First Season of Ground-Breaking Egyptian Series Now Online

The complete first season of The Weapon, Egypt's first Web Series, is now on YouTube. This is the first time the complete season (8 episodes) has been available in its entirety, uncensored, and with English subtitles. You can watch it here.

Here is the official synopsis: "An Egyptian Web Series centering on the battle between a masked vigilante called "The Hunter" and an organized syndicate of criminals sanctioned by the fascist ruling party. The story takes place in the not so distant future, where Egypt is going through a terrible war against an undefined enemy.

This controversial, action-packed series is the first of its kind, and has been praised for predicting the rise of  "Black Bloc" in Egypt.

Produced by Independent Productions. Written and Directed by Ahmed Khalifa. Music by Machine Eat Man and The Room.

THE WEAPON is the first Egyptian Web Series in history, and the first Egyptian TV series to be added to THE WEB SERIES CHANNEL, the world's leading directory of the best TV programs from around the world.

For more information, please visit the official Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/theweapon.elselah" 

I first wrote the outline of the story envisioning it as either a film or a novel. But at my brother's (and co-producer's) suggestion, I began to see that the story, which is epic and multi-faceted, could make a great, multi-season series. And since the response to the first season has been favorable, hopefully the second season will be coming out later this year.

My New Book Out Now on Kindle

My new book, Egyptian Gothic, a collection of never-before-published stories (one novella, a short story, and two radio plays originally written for the BBC), is out now on Kindle.

Here is the official synopsis: "Do you think you know about Egypt? Its dark secrets, its hidden memories? Discover Egypt for the first time in EGYPTIAN GOTHIC, a collection of four Gothic/Suspense tales.

Egyptian Gothic… Egypt as you've never experienced it before.

This is the Egypt of blood, tears, and dark deeds. The Egypt of tyrants, monsters, and ghostly Pashas.

Contained within these four dark tales are heroes, villains and disturbing truths.

In "Egyptian Gothic", in Post-January 25 Egypt, a failed writer receives an old manuscript of a long-lost Gothic novel that might be the key to the end of life as he knows it.

In "Fire", a struggling young man comes face to face with evil incarnate while working as a security guard for a corrupt Egyptian Minister.

In "The Deaths of Women Scorned" and "The Source", two radio plays originally written for the BBC, discover spellbinding mysteries and a large cast of fascinating characters, including Dr. Fouad Sarhan, who has been called “The Egyptian Nero Wolfe.”

The book should come out in an Arabic-Language edition later this year (fingers crossed!). But, for now, readers around the world can get their hands on it through Amazon US, UK, Germany, France, Canada, and Japan. Kindle books are compatible with PC, Mac, and iPad, so you don't have to own a Kindle to be able to read them.

"The Maadi Killer" (سفاح المعادى) hits bestseller lists!

My latest novel "The Maadi Killer (سفاح المعادى), and after being in stores for almost a year, has finally become a bestseller in Egyptian bookstores, including The BookSpot in Maadi (snapshot of the bestseller list below), where it joins other bestsellers by Ibrahim Eissa, Youssef Zidan, actor Ahmed Helmy, Ahmed Mourad, among others.

"The Maadi Killer" is the second book in my "Egypt Trilogy", the first being "The Diary of A Dead Young Woman" (مذكرات ميتة), which was published in 2010.

Book Review

Mostafa Mahmoud: The Contrarian Philosopher (مصطفى محمود: الفيلسوف المُشاغب) by El Sayed El Horany: The late Dr. Mostafa Mahmoud has always been a controversial figure. From his days as an outspoken atheist, to becoming an author of such controversial books as God and Man  (الله والانسان), which is banned to this day, to his foray into beguiling Sci-Fi (The Spider) (العنكبوت), to his views on Islamic Philosophy, he has inspired hundreds of thousands, confounded as many, and even angered some. Mostafa Mahmoud: The Contrarian Philosopher,  by journalist Al Sayed Al Horany, tries to unravel the mystery behind this most enigmatic of Arab figures; an immensely prolific author whose works delve into almost every subject on earth, from sexuality, to religion, to faith, to crime, to psychology, to parapsychology, to magic; you name it, Mahmoud has written about it. But his private life has always been a closely guarded secret. Although there have been many books about the man, not one has managed to fully pierce the shell that surrounds him, not even this one. What The Contrarian Philosopher manages to achieve, however, is shed some light on his life through the eyes of some of his close friends; not much, but enough to make us understand a few things about the man and his contradictory nature.

To some friends, he was the kind, sage, hyper-intelligent genius whom you could always rely on for a sound piece of advice, to others he was an aloof, confounding eccentric whom you dare not approach unless invited to. In some of the most fascinating parts of the book, Mahmoud's second wife hints that the reason all his marriages failed was his extremely close relationship with his older sister, whom he treated like his mother, and who never truly approved of any of his wives. Moufeed Fawzy, the famous Egyptian reporter, and a once close friend of Mahmoud's, claims that the main reason the man was aloof and sometimes even harsh, was that he revered his privacy and freedom, and considered marriage something which enchained him and encroached upon his liberty.

But despite these candid accounts, the book mostly fails to break new ground when it comes to demystifying Mahmoud's enigma. But the book does have an ace up its sleeve, something which Mahmoud's fans will relish, and that is a batch of newly discovered and never before published writings by Mahmoud. These include a novella called "A Face Behind The Glass", an effective murder mystery with political undertones, and a series of fascinating articles that mainly reveal Mahmoud's opinion of the modern West and current Arab leaders. Let's just say he was not really a fan of either.

Overall, and despite the book's weaknesses when it comes to dissecting Mahmoud's psyche, the brief interviews with some of his close friends, and the never before published writings are worth the price of this book alone. As for the man himself, I still believe that the best way to get to know Mostafa Mahmoud, his genius, his obsessions, and his faults, is to read his entire bibliography.

Book Review

The Revenge Of Instinct (إنتقام غريزة) by Islam Nada: Islam Nada is proving to be a rising star in the Egyptian Mystery/Sci-Fi genre. This is the second book of his that I’ve had the chance to read, and I have to say that, now, I am officially a fan of his work, as The Revenge Of Instinct (despite having a very weird title) is a solid collection of genre-hopping short stories that have one thing in common: the element of suspense.

In his introduction, Nada acknowledges Egyptian writer Ihsan Abd El Qodoos and Agatha Christie as influences. Well, it definitely shows, as the stories deal with everything from rape, to insanity, to puzzling murders, to government corruption , to faith, to aliens, you name it! Although some stories are better written than others (A Second Chance is especially silly and preachy), the majority of the tales are well-crafted, high on readability – mainly due to Nada’s smooth and straightforward prose – and, most importantly, hugely entertaining.

Highlights include the title story, a psycho-sexual tale that is reminiscent of Ihsan Abdel Qodoos’s work; Homesickness and The Mother, two extremely short stories with clever twist endings and which bring to mind the short stories of Daphne Du Maurier; Ravings, a taut, suspenseful tale with a brilliant twist; The Hero, a darkly comic crime tale; and the closing story A Murder On The Catwalk, an entertaining and meticulously crafted Agatha Christie/Arthur Conan Doyle pastiche.

Reading this collection, I was amazed by how ambitious and well-crafted these stories are, and Nada’s love for the psychological suspense and whodunit genres is obvious and admirable, as I can only think of a handful of contemporary Arab writers who dabble in this kind of fiction, most of them unsuccessfully. And even though Nada is still finding his voice, this is a fine collection of stories that is an easy read and a perfect book for a rainy night.

Available from Dar Al Kotob here.

Book Review

The Corruption Of Places (فساد الأمكنة) By Sabry Moussa: First published in 1973 and now re-issued as part of Dar El Shourok's "Special Spotlight" series, Sabry Moussa's The Corruption of Places (فساد الأمكنة) is a truly original book that defies categorization. Part fantasy, part historical novel, and part Greek-Tragedy, it is unlike any Arabic book I've ever read.

The plot revolves around Nicola, an European immigrant whose travails lead him to Egypt circa 1940's, where he becomes involved in a massive mining operation in the Eastern Desert. While there, he meets an array of strange characters, witnesses the injustice the poor locals are subjected to by the hands of the rich and powerful (both Egyptian and British), and experiences the tragedy of losing his daughter before his eyes.

But the plot isn't the book's strength, as the novel is mainly made up of loosely connected episodes that are high on atmosphere and texture, but low on plotting and characterization. And, basically, this is The Corruption of Places in a nutshell: It is a masterpiece of ambiance and visual poetry, but the plot is forced and the characterization pretty slapdash. Add to that Sabry Moussa's verbose style, and what you get is a book that is not an easy read. But that doesn't mean that it is not worth the effort, as within the book are moments of such beauty and power, that one forgives the story's shortcomings, and the story does pick up steam near the final third, when Moussa's stunning descriptive powers are fully showcased.

So, if you are looking for something different, original, and haunting, grab a copy of Sabry Moussa's The Corruption Of Places, a fine example of alternative Arabic literature.

New book reviews coming this month!

I know I said that I would post new reviews starting this past February, but, lately, I have been working on several projects at once and have gotten a bit behind on my reviewing duties. But, starting this month, I am going to post new reviews of some really stellar books, many of which have been overlooked by mainstream media and awards.

So keep watching this space and thanks for your patience!