I def. liked this second Amelia Peabody mystery so much more than the first. Maybe because I adore her Vicky Bliss novels and am so much more familiar with her writing now. I couldn't tell you.
Peters, as always, creates an unique and memorable heroine who is intelligent and isn't afraid to tell everyone. The setting is so well crafted that someone who has never been to Egypt can easily picture what's going on. Looking forward to the next in the series. ( )

This book finds our heroine Amelia Peabody married to the archeologist she met in Crocodile on the Sandbank. They have made their home in England where they have put their first love (digging around in Egypt) on hold while they raise their son and Professor Emerson teaches archeology. But this life is not what they are suited for. When an opportunity presents itself to re-engage themselves in an expedition whose leader died (or perhaps murdered)they jump at the chance.

As the Emersons set about to dispel the idea of the Curse of the Pharoahs (a trumped up idea) they meet with a plethora of strange characters, each a possible suspect in the death of Lord Baskerville who was the original archeologist. There is the tabloid writer, the brash American investor, the superstitious Egptian natives, two other archeologists who are assisting the Emerson team, a young woman and her mother (Madame Berengeria) who believes that she is the reincarnation of a high-ranking Egyptian queen and that Professor Emerson is her long-lost love. There is also the appearance of the white veiled figure who threatens the group during the nights and leaves danger in its wake.

All in all a captivating story for mystery fans. The plot moves along rapidly and it would behoove the reader to pay attention to the details as set forth in order to find the true culprit.

I would say this is a most satisfying story either as a summer read or one to curl up with by the fire. ( )

Emerson and Amelia are now raising a young son, Ramses, and are called to Egypt to a site where Lady Baskerville's husband died under mysterious circumstances. The truth is a deadly affair. I find the follow-up just as interesting as the first novel.

Marital bliss doesn't really suit Amelia and Emerson. Perhaps Elizabeth Peters wrote them this way intentionally, but their strong personalities which are so charming while they're running around in the Western Desert having wild adventures are positively grating while they're at home in proper English society. Their son Ramses, too, is the most irritating, un-childlike little snot one could imagine. He carries exclusively the worst parts of both of his parents' natures, and if I were Amelia and Emerson I would have dumped him off with a relative and left him at home while I went adventuring too.

Fortunately the interlude in the Emersons' not-so-proper English estate is brief, and we get back to the fully enjoyable adventuring very quickly. The remainder of the book fully lives up to the rollicking fluffy fun of the first in the series, and the mystery at the heart of this book is considerably improved by a much wider array of potential evildoers.

This novel is a credible follow-up to the first in the series. Still light reading, but still entertaining. And don't worry--Ramses improves with age, and the stay at home is even briefer in the third installment. If nothing else, Elizabeth Peters seems to learn from her mistakes! ( )

Amelia is such a self-important snot. But I love her. ( )