"This powerful novel is weird and soul-thrilling." The Scotsman. Cyril Forrester, a young Englishman traveling on the Continent, chances to meet a secretive old man and his ward, a lovely young violinist named Valerie. Enthralled by Valerie''s beauty and disturbed by the elderly Egyptian''s depravity, Forrester follows the couple around Europe. A sinister plot is slowly revealed, in which a mummy''s curse threatens to destroy the Western world.Victorian readers had a passion for tales of mystery and intrigue in exotic settings, especially those involving supernatural powers. This ripping yarn was created by one of the era''s most popular writers of sensationalistic fiction. Pharos, the Egyptian is thought to have inspired the classic horror film The Mummy, and its gripping, action-packed story remains an enduringly compelling tale.