Arthur Phillips

One of our favorite second novels is Wilton Barnhardt’s Gospel, a rollicking, world-spanning adventure starring a couple of hapless and deeply flawed archaeologists. Reading The Egyptologist, the second novel by Minneapolis-born Phillips, brought back good memories of Gospel, perhaps only because of a superficial similarity in setting and the fact that both books are damn good reads. The intricate plot of The Egyptologist revolves around a naively delusional tomb raider named Ralph Trilipush (try anagramming that), who disappears in 1922 while searching for the burial site of Pharaoh Atum-hadu, whose name is spelled in pornographic hieroglyphics and may be a hoax. Clueless Ralph, however, seems less interested in his expedition than in designing the cover of the best-seller he plans to write when he becomes famous. Author Phillips has a chameleonic prose style and caustic sense of humor, which is especially potent in the book’s surprising ending. His facility with puzzles—not surprising in a five-time Jeopardy! champion—only makes the book more intriguing. 1500 Grand Ave., St. Paul; 651-646-2665; www.boundtoberead.com