In year five of his reign, fourteen-year-old Pharaoh Tutankhamun is beset by problems: The Hittites are encroaching, and several of Egypt's vassal states have fallen because of the neglect of his late brother, the heretic Akhenaten. The priests of Amun, whose power rivals that of the pharaoh, are bitter, filled with resentment against the young king whose dead brother tried to destroy them.

For Lord Meren, the pharaoh's confidential inquiry agent, the unrest and whispering are clear threats to Tutankhamun's life. When Meren's spy at the temple at Thebes dies in a spectacular accident, the threat takes on new force. While Meren's son, Kysen, leads the temple investigation, the Eyes and Ears of Pharaoh embarks on a dangerous enterprise, not only challenging the priests but protecting Tutankhamun from the traitors scheming within the walls of his own court.