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Tomb of the Golden Bird – Elizabeth Peters

I did it! I have now read the entire eighteen-book Amelia Peabody series, and while I don’t know if there’s another installment, I’m all set to read it if one were to come out. “The Tomb of the Golden Bird” revolves around the finding of the tomb of the great King Tut by Carter, and not by Emerson. What a harsh blow to the ego that was for our favorite Egyptologist. He’s been on the wrong side of the men in charge of assigning archaeological sites for quite a while, and spent a good deal of time banned from the … Continue reading →

The Serpent on the Crown – Elizabeth Peters

Neither Emerson nor Amelia have ever been able to abide hysterical females, although Emerson and Ramses both feel a gentlemanly sense of obligation to assist them out of their hysteria. When the dramatic and yes, hysterical, Mrs. Petherick approaches the family and tells them of a black afrit (spirit) who stole the life of her husband and is now trying to kill her, they find her story interesting but aren’t inclined to believe her. What does hold their fascination is a solid gold statue she gives into their care, telling them she believes the statue is cursed, and if she … Continue reading →

Guardian of the Horizon – Elizabeth Peters

As we’ve gone through the Amelia Peabody series volume by volume, we’ve occasionally seen gaps from one book to the next, where the “editor” says that certain volumes of Amelia’s journals have gone missing. In “Guardian of the Horizon,” we are informed that one of those missing journals has been recovered, and we are given the story contained in that journal in this book. I’m not sure why Elizabeth Peters chose to do this – perhaps she came up with the idea for the plot afterward and decided to come back and interject it, who knows – but this volume … Continue reading →

He Shall Thunder in the Sky – Elizabeth Peters

You would think that a book series with so many installments, featuring the same characters over and over again, would get boring at some point. Many do, but not the Amelia Peabody series. Even though the setting in each is essentially the same (archaeologist family gets involved in illegal doings and has to bring the criminal to justice, all the while finding new tombs and digging them out) the plots from book to book differ enough to make each one a thrilling masterpiece. When last we saw the Emersons, Nefret had just been through a difficult experience and was sent … Continue reading →

The Falcon at the Portal – Elizabeth Peters

The Emerson clan has a reason to celebrate – Walter and Evelyn’s daughter, Lia, is going to marry David Todros, the young Egyptian Emerson and Amelia brought home with them during an earlier adventure. While it took a little time for the couple to overcome the objections of the family, they were finally victorious, and “The Falcon at the Portal” begins with the wedding. David and Lia head off on their honeymoon, leaving things decidedly more quiet around the Emerson household, until an old friend of Emerson’s shows up at the house with a forged antique scarab and the alarming … Continue reading →

The Ape Who Guards the Balance – Elizabeth Peters

Our next installment in the Amelia Peabody series takes us to Chalfont House, the home in London where the Emerson family lives during the summer when not at their Kent estate. Amelia has caught wind of a women’s rights protest march and is determined to join in, bringing along some chains. You see, the last demonstration saw women hauled away by the constables, but as Amelia reasons, if she chains herself to a fence, they can’t very well haul her away, now, can they? Refusing Emerson’s offer to drive her to the demonstration in their new motor car, she bustles … Continue reading →