The Mask of Fu Manchu (Fu Manchu #5) by Sax Rohmer

After discovering the tomb of El Mokanna aka “The Veiled Prophet” in Egypt, and retrieving the historical relics buried therein, the famous archaeologist Sir Lionel Barton blows up the tomb. This has repercussions as the heretic sect faithful to Mokanna choose to interpret the resulting fireball as the second coming of their prophet. A violent uprising begins. The insidious Dr. Fu Manchu senses an opportunity to use the powerful relics for his own evil goals which include fostering an Islamic uprising that he hopes will sweep across the globe.

The fifth novel in the Fu Manchu series, written by Arthur Henry Ward under his Sax Rohmer pseudonym, is once again told from the first-person perspective of Shan Greville. (For the uninitiated, the first three books were from Dr. Petrie's perspective) This one is a direct continuation of the previous novel, The Daughter of Fu Manchu so I would urge that book be read first. Of course, Nayland Smith and Dr. Petrie are major characters as is Greville’s fiancé Rima, the niece of Sir Lionel. The action stretches from Persia to Cairo, then back to London.

When our heroes first encounter Dr. Fu Manchu this time around they are startled by his youthful and vigorous appearance. It seems his genius has discovered a way to harness the essence of an essential oil of a rare Burmese orchid and he now has a new lease on life. His daughter makes a couple of appearances, mostly to administer mind-control drugs to poor Greville resulting in his full cooperation and adoration of Fu Manchu and his evil deeds. Fortunately, that doesn’t last for more than a few hours, but it is enough to cause significant damage to any attempts to forestall Fu Manchu’s plans as well as the successful kidnapping of Rima. The ransom scene deep inside the Great Pyramid to get Rima back is extraordinary and a real highlight of the entire novel.

This is another fun read in the Fu Manchu saga although not all is explained. For example, after the ransom scene in the pyramid, Fu Manchu is effectively trapped by Nayland Smith and company. There is no way out. However, there is never any explanation provided for how he escapes, simply that he has done so. Such are the mysterious ways of Fu Manchu.