Book Reviews and More: Secret Of The Sphinx - Richard Paolinelli and Gibson Buffa

Friday, 19 June 2026

Secret Of The Sphinx - Richard Paolinelli and Gibson Buffa - The Timeless 02

Secret Of The Sphinx

The Timeless 02

Dreams Of The Storyteller Book 18

Richard Paolinelli

Gibson Buffa

Tuscany Bay Books

ISBN 9781073414611

ASIN B083S959R9

Secret Of The Sphinx - Richard Paolinelli and Gibson Buffa - The Timeless 02

This is the second of two new works by Paolinelli that I stumbled upon in 2026. They are both stories of The Timeless and both now published under the series Dreams Of The Storyteller. And this first one is another amazing read from Paolinelli’s masterful pen. But I am getting ahead of myself.

A few years ago I read 14 volumes in the Dreams of the Storyteller Series. I really enjoyed these short stories and novellas. And I was very excited when Paolinelli announced he was releasing two more tales in this series. This series is mainly comprised of stories that had appeared in Anthologies and are not published as stand along stories. My first encounter with Paolinelli’s work was in the Anthology Cracked An Anthology of Eggsellent Chicken Stories edited by Bokerah Brumley, since then I have read work by Richard over 35 times. And I have greatly enjoyed his work across many genres, and a number of series.

The description of this volume states:

“Interstellar thief Duchess Moran continues her assault on Earth's history. This time she travels back to ancient Egypt in search of a deadly secret: A gem that can raise an army of the undead to wipe out every living creature on the face of the Earth. But to find the stone, she must first locate a scroll hidden away deep within the Sphinx. Captain Rock Congo, his First Mate Little John Singapore and the crew of the Timeless remain hot on her trail through time and space. From the Library at Alexandria during Caesar's siege of the city to the construction of the Sphinx and even further back as the legendary architect Imhotep tries to steer his Pharoah, Djoser, from disaster. When Moran arrives looking to gain possession of the Eye of Anubis all of Egypt, and the entire planet will find itself on the brink of annihilation! The second book of the six-book series is sure to please any reader from age 10 to 100.”

These two stories were previously available as a separate series. Released in 2018 and 2019. The way this one starts and finishes once cannot help but expect more stories set in this world. This story feels like it could be the beginning of an epic series. At the beginning of both older and current editions it has a list of coming soon titles up to a book 6. Hopefully we will see more of them soon! But back to the story at hand.

The story begins with a shuttle landing on a prison. On that shuttle is a reporter. And he is there to collect stories from a specific prisoner. This section from the first chapter of book one gives us insight to the rest of the book, and other books in the series.

““Lad,” Singapore said softly.

“Yes, John?” Carver replied, still feeling uneasy over what he’d just witnessed.

“I’ll tell ye a story. Every day ye come back here and me number’s not drawn for the hangman, I’ll tell ye another.”

“About your ship, the Timeless?”

“Aye.”

“And your Captain, Rock Congo?”

“Aye.”

“And Duchess Moran?”

“Aye,” Singapore all but spat out the word.

“They say she is quite the beauty,” Carver ventured cautiously, not certain of the reason behind the emotion.

“Aye, she is,” Singapore admitted with a sigh. “Face and body of an angel that one. Hair as red as a home fire’s flame. Eyes as green as any emerald. And a heart as black as the Devil herself.”

This story continues a story with plots within plots and plans within plans. Pirate turned against pirate and a trips through the past with an attempt to change history in a very dramatic way. The characters are well written and the play is gripping and addictive. It grabs reader’s attraction and keeps then till the end, and then leads them wanting more. It will leave you desperate for the other four mentioned at the end of the volume.

The story is one again a recounting from First Mate Little John Singapore, about his time on the Timeless under Captain Rock Congo. As they chase after Duchess Moran through space and time. The need to stave off disaster by protecting the past and saving the future. But there is more to the interactions between Moran and Congo than meets the eye.

Richard is not only an author but the driving force behind Tuscany Bay Books, I have read many volumes from the Bay by a number of authors and all have been well worth the read. This was one of several two short stories that were added to the collection Dreams Of The Storyteller in 2026. There are now collection of 18 volumes in this collection, the first 2 date from 2014, 1 from 2022, and several in 2023, And now these 2 new ones in 2025, and now 2 more moved to the series in 2026.

This is a great novella from Paolinelli’s masterful pen. It took me by surprise. A great addition to the Dreams Of The Storyteller collection. I can easily recommend this story for what an excellent piece of Science fiction! I wish I had read it earlier before it was added to the collection. Do not make my mistake pick it up and give it a try I am certain it will entertain!

Note: This book is part of a series of reviews: 2026 Catholic Reading Plan!

For reviews of all books from Tuscany Bay click here.

Books by Richard Paolinelli:

Maelstrom

When the Gods Fell

The Calling

The Last Lonely Trail

A Zombie Christmas Carol

The Woman Returns

Of All The Gin Joints In The Universe

…

Infinity Series: