From Publishers Weekly

Spunky Emily Pollifax, the occasional CIA operative last seen in Mrs. Pollifax and the Lion Killer (1996), travels to Jordan with former Company agent John Sebastian Farrell to receive a manuscript smuggled from Iraq, written by an executed dissident Iraqi novelist. As Farrell's cover, Mrs. Pollifax poses as his tourist cousin but immediately is up to her flowered straw hat in intrigue. In Amman, she discovers that her airplane seatmate hid a carving in her luggage that contains a mysterious map and key; then her room is searched. Simultaneously, the CIA learns that notorious Jordanian terrorist Suhair Slaman recently sneaked into and out of the U.S. Was he Emily's seatmate? You bet. Farrell's contact doesn't show up for their scheduled meeting at the Crusader castle at Karak, although Emily does find a dead body there. When their guide, Youseff, and his sister, Hanan, invite them to visit their grandfather, a desert sheik, they're trailed by Jordanian terrorists, the Iraqi secret police and Amman police Inspector Jafer. The climax occurs at an ancient desert fort, where Mrs. Pollifax fells the villains with karate. Whatever they lack in subtlety, the reliably delightful Mrs. Pollifax stories make up for in charming, intelligent characters, brisk action and seductive scenery. Author tour.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

The always delightful Emily Pollifax is back in another hair-raising adventure. Mrs. Pollifax's latest mission is a trip to the Middle East with her CIA friend Farrell to retrieve a manuscript written by a murdered dissident. The manuscript, thinly disguised as fiction, provides provocative details of Saddam Hussein's reign of terror. The pickup, arranged through an intermediary, proves much more difficult than Farrell or Mrs. Pollifax anticipated, what with smugglers disguised as businessmen, attacks by knife-wielding sheikhs, car chases, and rides on berserk camels. By the end, the always gracious Mrs. P., as expected, has fingered the baddies, restored order to the universe, and made some delightful new friends in adverse circumstances. Fun and entertaining, this one is sure to be a hit with the legion of Mrs. Pollifax fans. Emily Melton