This book is great! Would definitely recommend. Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Title: The Search For Rasha



Author: Paul B. Skousen



Genre: Historical Fiction, Romance, Sequel, Action/Adventure, Ancient Egypt.



Plot: As is the way with sequels and adventures, things are going well and all seems to be heading toward a lovely happy ending until the unthinkable happens. Rasha is kidnapped and dragged off into the desert by bandits, leaving her lover Bassam determined to save her.



But crossing the great Sahara to rescue his sweetheart will test Bassam in ways he hasn't been tested before and the rescue mission could go horribly wrong.



Likes/Dislikes: This is a sequel, which I didn't know when I picked it up, but it is set in Ancient Egypt and weaves a very exciting story. It just would've meant more to me if I had read the backstory. This isn't about the love blossoming between Bassam and Rasha, it is about their continuing relationship and trying to save and preserve their lives. It was very well written and very well researched.



Rating: PG-14 and up, mainly for reading level.



Date Reviewed: January 22nd, 2020



I received a copy of this book courtesy of Netgalley for my honest opinion and I wasn't required to write a positive review. The opinions expressed in the above review are my own.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I was looking forward to read this book, because I love books which set in ancient Egypt. The only problem to me was that I haven't read other books for this series, so maybe it was harder to read than I though. This part of history is one of my favorite, so there was reasons why I enjoyed this story. Those chaacters were awesome and brilliant so it was so easy to like thiš book, even thought sometimes O had feelings that maybe before that I should read other books by Paul B. Skousen to understand how this story start and got some points for examples to Rasha or Bassam etc. So maybe this series is one of those which needed started in 1st book and not like me, in the 3rd book.

This book was definitely an eye opener and kept me reading until the very last page! I will definitely ready for the next book this author writes!

I enjoyed The Search for Rasha for the setting alone. They're aren't many historical novels set in Egypt. The story is well written and lovely at times. I found the characters engaging and likeable. It's a good read.

Bassam Saga book 3.

Rasha, daughter of the great Abdali-ud-din leader, is kidnapped during the night by bandits seeking ransom. Her fiancé, Bassam, is as determined to get her back as her father. A caravan guide, Shamar, works out that the girl his clients have with them is a kidnap victim and makes a plan to rescue her.

This is a well written story with desert adventure and poetic prose when Bassam speaks of his love for Rasha and resolve to bring her home, though we don't see what he's actually doing about it for a while. Rasha is intelligent and resourceful. She's a strong personality and a likeable character, as is her rescuer.

Some of the missives from other people break up the narrative and slow it down. Personally, I would have preferred to keep the story on Rasha and Shamar or move between them and what was being done to find her.

The book stands alone well and I didn't feel the lack of background from not having read the previous books in the series. I rather liked the end, though it was sort of predictable. The notes after the story were also interesting as there was historical precedent for much of the story, which I had thought was just a Fantasy.

The book took some time for the real action to start happening. However, there were some things that did not make sense (like Bassam writing letters addressed to Rasha, although he will not send them as he does not have the means to do so. If he knew where she was, he would not be looking for her).

As an Egyptian, reading this book, I found some things confusing. The Egypt the author is referring to seems to be more fictional than based on fact.

Rich with details, this story unfolds as Bassam and his men are looking for his love, Rasha. Rasha, who has been captured, is looking for Bassam, and this story unfolds from both points of view. Beautiful plot details give accounts of their travels and experiences, and lend dramatically to this adventure.

I’ve been reading a lot of historical fiction lately, and this story definitely stands out! I’d have to say this is the first love story I’ve read that takes place in Egypt and gives such amazing description of everyday life on the Nile. I’m so glad I have this story a chance, and I look forward to more from this author.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Skousen's descriptions of the various places in Egypt are breathtaking and transport you to a place and time you know you don't have consciously stored in your memory bank. But you feel like you've been there, that you're there with the characters. Feeling, smelling and tasting everything that they are. 

Our story begins with a narrator who is retrieving ancient scrolls from a tomb and transporting us into the story of Bassam and Rasha. Young lovebirds and heirs to Rasha's family dynasty, they find themselves in the middle of a tragic incident. Rasha is kidnapped and taken across the desert to be held for ransom.

The leader of the kidnapper's camel caravan realizes that Rasha needs help and gets her out of the impending situation, but they are quickly on the run and trying to get her back home before they are caught. You hear the story from both Rasha and Bassam's perspective. Quickly transitioning away from Rasha altogether as you are left hanging and wondering whether she is alive, lost in the desert, or found her way home.

Bassam and his two men, Fawzi and Ammar, traveled up the Nilus (Nile), across hot deserts and face-off with dangerous and wild animals. All on their two year journey to find out what happened to Rasha and hopefully rescue her. 
One of the things that this story really reminded me of was how difficult travelling was during these times and the actual length of time it took to get from one place to another. 

Overall a fantastic epic written with love and care for preserving historical relevance and antiquity. A romance between Bassam and Rasha that transcends time and experience that even the harsh deserts of Egypt cannot remove their love for one another.

The cover and description of this book were AMAZING but unfortunately I just couldn't get into the story. It felt like I should definitely read the previous book(s) before starting into this one. Thank you for the opportunity to check out this book.

Rasha is abducted from her home in Raheem. She manages to escape and flees. Her beloved Bassam is coming back from a trade expedition when he hears that she is abducted and sets off to rescue her and bring her safely home.

This novel reads like a science fiction/fantasy story and only by some details can you deduct when and where Rasha and Bassam are. But often you are at a loss. Only because I have been in Petra I wondered if Raheem was Nabatean Petra (now Jordan) and saw it confirmed only at the end of the story. You can only deduct by the mentioning of what we know as the Stone of Rosetta that the story is set 200 BC. The Nile river is mentioned as the Nilus and towns like Elefantine and the Pyramids but a lot of the animal life is using local words. Oh we are talking about hippo's?This intensifies the feeling of being on an alien planet.

Positive:
- You learn new things about Egypt like the fact there are so many more pyramids and to realise that in 200 BC they were already relics from a distant past.
- The feeling of being submerged in the past with no knowlegde from the 21st century.
- That also in those days people travelled to far away places to trade and interacted with different cultures.

Negative:
- It is impossible to connect the ancient names to real places. I often wondered if they were in Sudan or even more south.
- The whole story is more or less two groups journeying. That can make the story a bit slow and you as a reader needing a break and reading another novel in the meantime.

A Daring Trek Through Egypt to Rescue Rasha

Rasha is writing in her journal when a group of bandits enters the town of Rekeem. She thinks she’ll be safe if she hides , but she’s the prize the bandits are after. They hope to be able to demand a ransom from her father Zafir, a leader of the Abdali-ud-din. Rasha fears she will be killed and sends a note to Bassam telling him of her enduring love.

Bassam is devastated. He must find Rasha. He sets out on a trek across Egypt to rescue Rasha seeing the pyramids, and the Nile before turning back and recrossing the desert. The travel is filled with dangers. On the return journey, Bassam finds himself the hunted rather than the hunter and endures great hardship and danger.

I find all stories of Egypt fascinating. This one is particularly well researched and gives a picture of the daily life of the people. The descriptions of the pyramids and the Nile are breathtaking. It was also interesting to visit the ancient towns along the route to Egypt.

This is the third book in the saga of Bassam. As such, it focuses on the preservation of the love between Bassam and Rasha rather than the story of their falling in love. The characters of Bassam and Rasha are compelling, but my favorite character was Shamar. He appears to be a hard-bitten old man but the veneer covers a soft heart.

If you enjoy adventures stories with a background of ancient Egypt, this is a good one.

I received this book from Net Galley for this review.

A very interesting book, loved and really enjoyed the reading. Strongly recommend the book if you are into page turning books.

Slow. A well researched historical read. Not really a romance. Practically no buzz about this book.

A bit of a difficult book to get into. The writing is rather stilted at times and it definitely was difficult to really be interested in it. The plot was a little too boring for me.

I was very much looking forward to this book set in ancient Egypt, which is one of my favorite periods in history. Overall, I really enjoyed this story with its vivid descriptions of everyday life along the Nile. I'd recommend it if you're a fan of historical fiction and a good love story.

I truly enjoyed the story as Bassam traveled through the ancient ports of Egypt to search for his kidnapped love, Rasha. The inclusion of ancient places, such as Noph, Cyene, Ale'ksandria, Nub'ah, Atbara, and ‘Adan were a fun treat. And perhaps my favorite were the descriptions of the river horses and krokodilos found in the Nile.

The author creatively used scrolls to tell the story, which is actually more historical fiction than romance. The plot was more about the journey to preserve the love already between Rasha and Bassam as opposed to witnessing them fall in love from the beginning.

The history that is all tied together at the end was a pleasant surprise and makes finishing the book very satisfying. It is obvious that the author did extensive research to add the details found in this story.

The secondary character, Shamar, may have been my favorite. He was hard on the outside but soft and caring on the inside. The banter between Fawzi, Ammar, and Bassam was always fun and brought a lighthearted vibe to their dangerous journey.

I didn’t realize until I was a few chapters in that this is book #3 in the series. It absolutely worked as a stand alone novel, but I’m sure the story would’ve been more enjoyable if I had known the backstories and had read through more character development. So I would recommend reading the first 2 books in the series, which I will definitely do!

I give this truly enjoyable story a 4/5. I did not give it a 5 because at times it felt a little slow moving with the long journey along the Nile.

My favorite quote was: “…the desert continues her slow crawl northward, ever laboring to bury the trespass of men.”

The Search for Rasha is an historical adventure that will take you on a journey through Egypt, past the pyramids and the Nile river, fueled by one man’s desire to save his lover from danger. I found the book interesting but nothing new in the historical fiction category

I’ve been to Egypt & this is one of my favorite places. I loved the description of this book & couldn’t wait to read it! I’ve struggled to get into the story. I enjoyed reading the description of her escape, but the rest of the story is a lot of description that boils down to he misses her & she misses him. I finally gave up trying to read this story about 1/3rd of the way in as there was so much filler.

Being a fan of the Bassam Saga since the very beginning this book did not disappoint. The narrative is so descriptive it transports me back in time to when camel caravans roamed ancient Egypt. The inclusion of humor in a historical adventure novel is greatly appreciated.