Latro forgets everything when he sleeps. Writing down his experiences every day and reading his journal anew each morning gives him a poignantly tenuous hold on the world and his own identity.

Latro finds himself in Egypt, a land of singing girls, of spiteful and conniving deities. Without his memory, his is unsure of everything, except for his desire to be free of the curse that causes him to forget. The visions Gene Wolfe conjures--of the wonders of Egypt, and of the adventures of Latro as he and his companions journey up the great Nile south into legendary territory--are unique and compelling.