"In 1904 Morocco, European powers desire a foothold in the Arab world -- and [desert chieftain] Raisuli is determined to stir up tribal fury against them. So he kidnaps an American widow ... and her children, igniting a chain of events that include President Theodore Roosevelt ... wielding the big stick of foreign policy"--Container.

After the harrowing death of his partner, detective and best selling author Alex Cross has retreated to the peace of retirement. But when a brilliant criminal kidnaps a senator's young daughter, Alex is lured back into action. Teamed with the Secret Service agent assigned to protect the missing girl, Alex follows a serpentine trail of clues that leads him to a stunning discovery, the kidnapper wants more than just ransom, he wants Alex's help in documenting...

Though safely entombed in a crypt deep beneath the unforgiving desert, an ancient princess, whose destiny was unjustly taken from her, is awakened in the current day. Her malevolence, grown over millennia, unleashes terrors that defy human comprehension.