Category:
Fantasy
Type: Fiction
Pages: 386
Have you ever dreamed of perpetual youth, of flawless beauty? Be careful what you wish for. Sometimes, there is a fly in the ointment.
The Temple of Eden, as a health and beauty spa, was mediocre, at best. Built in the early 1920's in "The Victorian Grand Style," the hotel, although very well maintained and kept pristine, but it could hardly be described as grand.
A secluded retreat, fully endowed with lush gardens and manicured lawns, this hotel and its surrounding grounds might possibly be described as beautiful--but never luxurious.
The Temple of Eden offered its guests only the most moderate of amenities and a strictly organic, vegetarian cuisine; no meat of any kind was ever served.
The price of a suite at The Temple of Eden was one-hundred-thousand dollars a day--a cost, a luxury, only affordable by the super rich; by the beautiful people.
The Grand Elite of the world eagerly flocked to The Temple of Eden, keeping the health spa fully booked a year in advance.
Why, you might ask yourself, would anyone pay such an exorbitant a price for what seemed nothing more than a stay at a mediocre hotel and health spa?
Because the The Temple of Eden has a secret to its success, and that secret lies in the very special mud baths that it provides for their guests.
To read an excerpt from my book, please go way down on this page.
Excerpt
PROLOGUE
Baalbek, Lebanon
November 2, 2013
Hamise Mamounia sampled the thick consistency of the blue-tinged mud; smelling it, tasting it, then rubbing it gently between his thumb and forefinger. He nodded in approval; the balance of the specially blended clays and the precise amount of "Essence" to water was perfect.
Unlocking the massive copper-doored, mahogany cabinet behind him with a brass key, he dialed a six-digit combination to open the safe within. The safe held a dozen objects; small, glass bottles, each of them containing exactly six fluid ounces of an iridescent, blue liquid.
Taking one of the bottles gently within his hands and holding it as if it were rare treasure, he studied closely the hand-written label that was attached. The label, written in an Arabic script, described the contents within as "Essence of Youth." Streaks of the shimmering blue liquid seemed to change color and hue within the bottle, as it swirled and eddied in a slow vortex, as if possessing a mysterious life of its own.
The complex procedure for the extraction, blending and nurturing of this "Essence of Youth" mixture, refined and perfected over many centuries, had been a fiercely protected secret, closely guarded by the Mamounia Tribe for well over a thousand years. “Essence of Youth” was the ultimate beauty secret; when added to a specially prepared mixture of mud, it bestowed youth.
Throughout history, the grand elite in every society have known of and shared the whispered secrets of these very special mud baths. Throughout history, men have searched, in vain, for the fabled "Fountain of Youth."
This mud was the Fountain of Youth!
Sealing the stoppered bottle with beeswax, Hamise gently placed it atop a cushioning pillow of straw within a small, oblong, cedar wood box. Filling the box with straw atop the bottle to cushion it even further, he then secured the wooden top to the box with eight tiny nails.
Wrapping the box in thick, brown paper, he affixed a carefully written shipping label, addressed to his uncle, Khalid Mamounia, at THE TEMPLE OF EDEN, #1 Hidden Valley Road, Ramsey Bay, California, 93920, USA
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