Does anyone else LOVE Amelia Peabody?

I don't really ever read mysteries, but I am totally obsessed with Elizabeth Peters Amelia Peabody series! I love the humor and the adventure and the family dynamics and the Master Criminal... the mysteries aren't always THAT ingenious, but the stories are wonderful. Amelia and Emerson can adopt me any day.

So... I just wondered if anyone else was as crazy about the Peabody series as me. I know they have been fairly well received, but I don't know anyone else who has ever read them. Really, I just need others to geek out with!

PS: I'm only up to He Shall Thunder in The Sky so no big spoilers please.

I went through a phase where I was intent upon reading all of them. Around the same time I wanted to be an Egyptologist. Its been awhile since I was interested in either, but I remember really liking the series.

I absolutely love these books! I recently got my husband into reading them, too, which is great since he rarely reads fiction. I think my favorite ones are the ones in the middle centering around He Shall Thunder in the Sky. Actually, that's my favorite of the series--I hope you're enjoying it!

I have a love hate relationship w/the series. Love Amelia & Emerson, hate Rameses. Stopped reading them because of him. The phrase drowned at birth comes to mind.

Earlier volumes are better than later, but I'm still working my way through the whole batch.

Bookmarque -

I am SO with you!

I lived in Egypt for 8 years, from 1998 to 2006. I considered the Peabody-Emersons family. I read all the series until the most recent one or two, because they got a bit boring after R and N got hitched. Also I think her writing is not as funny as it once was.

I love all the characters, though R is a little hard to take sometimes, I admit.

I agree that some of the humor from the earlier ones is missing in these last few I've been reading, but it's not been enough to make me less pleased with the series.

As for Ramses, he is a little annoying sometimes since he's grown up, but when he was a child I adored him. I still like his character, but he's too stoic for his (and the readers') own good.

I actually read Children of the Storm first because it was given to me, so when I started reading from the beginning I was a bit lost. Since I've gotten into these later books, a bit of the suspense has been ruined since I know who ends up with who and the identity of the Master Criminal, but I'm still enjoying getting the details.

It does sadden me a bit that the focus has shifted off their excavations so much though....

>anna_in_pdx

lucky you to be in egypt for so long! i'm envious!

Just finished He Shall Thunder in the Sky. LOVED it. Poor Emerson, Walter, and Sethos.... I'm so glad I know that the Master Criminal returns later, or I would be really heartbroken right now.

I love them to pieces. My brother picked up Falcon at the Portal for me at the library one day, and I've been hooked ever since. And I have to say, I love Ramses as much as the rest of the clan, although the latest set of wee persons charm me less.

I stopped at He Shall Thunder in the Sky, I think, but for a long while, these were some of my absolute favorites! Your post makes me want to go back and read the early ones again.

I really enjoyed them when I first started reading them, but a book or two after the kids go married they just faded away. I didn't really decide not to read them I just didn't go to the effort of finding them.

I've only read the first one but I greatly enjoyed it, especially the character of Amelia. I'm a little surprised that I liked her so much. I kept waiting for myself to find her obnoxious but she was just delightful. It's good to know that the series stays fun (for a while at least).

I am loving them. I just finished Lion In the Valley and am waiting for Books 5 & 6 to arrive. So far, they are very entertaining and funny.

I've enjoyed the series for years. I too like the earlier books a bit more than the later - I like the focus on Amelia.

I knew an archaeology professor who assigned The Crocodile on the Sandbank to his beginning class!

I ADORE Elizabeth Peters and her Amelia Peabody! Have you listened to the audiobooks read by Barbara Rosenblat at all? They are absolutely wonderful--Barbara does the most amazing job with all the voices, especially Emerson!

#18 AnnaElliott, I concur. I've listened to a couple of the novels and Rosenblat does a great job with both the reading and the voices.

i also love the series

Me, too.

>18 AnnaElliott: & 19

the only audiobook i've successfully listened to was ralph fiennes reading The English Patient. it was probably a combination of my deep love of that book and the fact that fiennes voice, like every part of him, oozes perfection, that allowed me to get through it.

in general, i detest audiobooks. i wish i didn't. i just can't stand someone elses voice in my head when i'm enjoying a book. the worst of it is, i think there is nothing more romantic than being read to, but i can't even get through that.... ;(

for a long time, however, i was eager to see these books on screen somehow. obviously a movie would never work... so i thought maybe an HBO miniseries or just a regular HBO show. but the more i think about it, the more i think it's a horrible idea. other people keep ruining my favorite books!

I'm headed way off topic here, but I noticed on a copy of The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency that HBO has picked it up for production? Haven't verified that anywhere else, but I just cringe to think what a TV version will do to it....!

#22 atlargeinthewrld, I'm not a big fan of audiobooks in general, that's why I felt compelled to chime in about how well the Rosenblat did. I remembering also liking the reading of Dune, with the exception of one minor voice.

I too thought about the movie or miniseries version....as long as it was done just how I imagine the characters, hehe.

My husband, my daughter and I all love the Amelia Peabody series. My aunt was very insistent that we read them. She gave us her first twelve books to read. While I did consider some stories a little slow, I consider them old friends and I enjoy every bit I can read about them.

When my daughter was twelve she wrote to Elizabeth Peters and asked if she had a family tree for the cats. My daughter had lost track of who came from the Cat Bastet and Anubis. Ms. Peters wrote back that it was the first time anyone had asked a question like that!

My daughters and I are all hooked on Amelia. Many people find Ramses annoying and are put off by him. Like many of us, he improves with age. I love listening to them. I'm blanking on the reader right now, but she does a wonderful job.

Love them all, from first to last, in book form and audio (by Rosenblatt). Even Ramses as a kid and even his and Nef's two, but adore Amelia and her voice. Oh, and Emerson *sigh* and Sethos *double sigh*. And Abdullah! Okay, I see I'm going to have to reread the entire series ~ again. Best would be to reread them while actually IN Egypt (like Anna--#8).

I just read the first one last month with Barbara Rosenblat as the narrator. She can make anything sound great and was one of the reasons why I picked up this book. I will be doing more in the future.

I have been reading the series in order. The library did not have a printed copy of Deeds of the Disturber so I have it on a CD. Based on everyone's enthusiasm, I can't wait to hear it.

I'm posting late but I couldn't help it. I love Amelia Peabody - and I've read them all. Actually, listened to all but one - Barbara Rosenblatt is a superior narrator. I actually read the book of the last one - enjoyed it - but still love listening to Barbara Rosenblatt read the books.

I love love love this series! I can't remember what book I picked up first but eventually I went back and read them all from the beginning. I would recommend to anyone reading them in order - I felt like I was growing up with the Emersons as I read through their adventures.

I have a degree in archaeology / anthropology and am always wary of any novels involving any type of archaeology. Elizabeth Peters is an Egyptologist and I for one, can tell - and I love it! Did I say that already :)

atlargeinthewrld - you said you were up to He Shall Thunder in the Sky - I'm curious - did you read Guardian of the Horizon yet? It's the 1 book in the series that was written out of sequence.

For no other reason then I like making lists - here's one on the series with publication dates and the Emerson's digging seasons

1. Crocodile on the Sandbank - 1975
1884-1885

2. The Curse of the Pharoahs - 1981
1892-1893

3. The Mummy Case - 1985
1894-1895

4. Lion in the Valley - 1986
1895-1896

5. The Deeds of the Disturber - 1988
Summer 1896

6. The Last Camel Died at Noon - 1991
1897-1898

7. The Snake, the Crocodile, and the Dog - 1992
1898-1899

8. The Hippopotamus Pool - 1996
1899-1900

9.Seeing a Large Cat - 1997
1903-1904

10. The Ape Who Guards the Balance - 1998
1906-1907

11. Guardian of the Horizon - 2004
1907-1908

12. The Falcon at the Portal - 1999
1911-1912

13. He Shall Thunder in the Sky - 2000
1914-1915

14. Lord of the Silent - 2001
1915-1916

15. The Golden One - 2002
1916-1917

16. Children of the Storm - 2003
1919-1920

17. The Serpent on the Crown - 2005
1922

18. Tomb of the Golden Bird - 2006
1922 (I think....)

I want to read them all again now!
I wonder if she will write any more. I know she just came out with a new book in her Vicky Bliss series - hopefully another Amelia one is on the way.

> wilowraven

i too have an anthropology degree, though it's cultural rather than archeology. but having taken so many archeology classes, i had the same misgivings at first. she definitely lets her background show though!

yeah, i read them in chronological order, so Guardian of the Horizon was in it's correct place in the story order. i just finished The Golden One, so I'm quickly coming to the end. like i said previously Children of the Storm was actually the first one i read (and the one i will be reading next). i'm interested to see how my opinion of it changes with having read the whole series now. it's been quite a while (almost 7 years) since i read it originally.

I just checked out the audiobook The Crocodile on the Sandbank for a reread! A lot of times my mind wanders with audiobooks and I lose my place, but Peters' books move along so well, that rarely happens.

One of the later audiobooks features an interview with Elizabeth Peters & Barbara Rosenblatt. It's really a hoot! They talk about how Barbara influenced Elizabeth's writing, among other things.

I've read all the books, but I only own up to He Shall Thunder. I'm not a fan of how Sethos has taken over the series. Why the hell does he have to turn up each time?

I have always enjoyed them since I stumbled on The Last Camel Died at Noon accidentally while searching the shelves for Ellis Peters (Brother Cadfael). I agree that some of the more recent ones lack the humor of the earlier ones. Oddly enough, I simply do not enjoy Peter's Vicky Bliss series nearly as much.

I agree that Vicky doesn't have the same zing as Ameila. Thinking about it, they may not be as funny. But Barbara Rosenblatt does a good job reading them in the audio version.

Schmidt is the savior of the Vicky Bliss series. "Midnight Train to Memphis" is very funny.

Am I the only person who really prefers Jacqueline Kirby to either Amelia Peabody or Vicky Bliss? I'm very disappointed that there are only four Jacqueline (don't call her Jackie) Kirby books: I find them much wittier than the other two series.

the Amelia Peabody's are the only books i've read of Peters'. i've heard of the Vicky Bliss series, and never been particularly interested, but i've not heard of the Jacqueline Kirby series. i'll check them out.

I don't know...there is just something about Amelia that I absolutely love! I have read other things by Peters but the Peabody series are the only ones that really stick with me.

It's been awhile...might have to start another reread on the series! Although Seeing a Large Cat truly annoyed me - in a good way of course :)

I've enjoyed most of the books in this series, despite the fact that Amelia must be one of the most annoying series characters in all of fiction--running around Egypt poking people with her umbrella, "playfully" shaking a finger in their faces, bossing everybody, bragging about her efficiency and her energy and her ability to get up early in the morning! I prefer the other members of the family, Emerson and Nefret and Ramesses (at least, once he grew up and lost the lisp, which I never found amusing). The Lost Oasis stories were just too far out for me; and The Hippopotamus Pool had that ridiculous "historical" reconstruction.
I too found the constant "Master Criminal" motif aggravating. That's one of the reasons that my favorite is the stand-alone Seeing a Large Cat. I read it for the first time a few months after a trip to Egypt, and was delighted with the Luxor and Valley of the Kings setting, also with the appearance of the young Howard Carter as a supporting character. I do re-read some of the novels from time to time, especially when I'm under the weather or pining for a return to Egypt.
I would like to add that I particularly appreciate the Egyptian characters, Abdullah and his extended family.

i'm in the middle of Children of the Storm, which, if i'm really honest, i don't love. but Selim just had the best moment. he's just escape near death after wrecking the car and is lying prone in the clinic, head bandaged after surgery. with perfect comic timing, he asks "who undressed me?" god how i love Selim!

i also really loved the image of Daoud "going down with the ship" and then learning to swim. priceless!

I purely adore Amelia. Have you listened to the audio books read by Barbara Rosenblat? They are utterly fantastic--almost like watching a movie version, her reading brings the scenes and characters to life so vividly.

several people have said they are good. i'm just not an audiobook person.

A River in the Sky, the new Amelia Peabody book, comes out April 6! i feel like a failure for just finding out about this, but now i'm super excited!

so excited that i'm reviving this thread!

I forgot to back-search and recently started another thread asking about recommendations for which one(s) of the Amelia Peabodys would do as stand-alones. (Which anyone is welcome to post here as well.)

that's something i can't really answer, since i feel like they feed into each other so much (the overarching family saga parts). of course, Guardian on the Horizon was written out of sequence so it's arguably the most independent. but you'd still want to know something about the Emersons' past for it to really make sense.

other than that... well, the first one? ;)

Love them ... got them all.

"Another shirt ruined !!" - Terry Pratchett used that quote in one of his books

I'm on book 18 in the series. Can't wait to get to the most recently published one so I can start all over again. My favorite character is Ramses, even with his dark moods he's a complicated character and seeing how the writer developed him from a child to an adult is fascinating. I'd like to find fan sites for this series. It's hard to find decent maps of the regions from the correct time period. I bought the companion guidebook but there are no maps in it. Anybody have any good map sites to recommend?

there are 2 maps here but i don't know how helpful they'd be.

if you like Ramses, then you will probably enjoy A River in the Sky. personally, i just can't really get into it. it's sad really, because by the place this one falls in the chronology, i should really enjoy it. i'm 130 pages in and i feel like nothing has happened...

finished A River in the Sky and am very disappointed to note that i gave it 2 stars. it was not good, in my opinion. i'm very sad about that as it's very likely the last book that will be published in the series...

Arrg! I can't believe it took me this long to find this group. I have been looking to geek out on this series with somebody for awhile! I've read them all and listened to as many as possible on Audio as Barbara Rosenblat is an INCREDIBLE performer. The Susan O'Mally readings are just not up to par for a character as big as Amelia. I got my mom turned on to the audio books too and I send her one or two a year on Mother's day or her birthday. I am having a hard time finding versions read by Barbara Rosenblat for sale though.
I love all the characters, even broody ol' Ramses who, yes, I adore as a child - how can you not? Amelia though, wins my heart. I love her secret little bottle of hair dye, it's just so endearing. I wonder where Emerson keeps his?

I love reading about Amelia Peabody! Of course, anything to do with Egypt is right up my alley! God Bless! :o)

I found this as I was going through old posts. I have a lot of the Amelia Peabody books and I have borrowed the audio books from my library. I have been in Egypt twice and we are waiting for the new museum to open to go back. We have a wonderful tour guide and my daughter keeps in touch with her. My degree is also in Anthropology/Archaeology.

Wow, so fabulous to see an old thread about one of my favourite series. Unusual place for mysteries for me when I first read them. I agree the earlier books are the best, but that is so often the case. I love that Amelia is by no means perfect, but also her and Emerson are such a wonderful combination.
They also really got me into other historical mystery novelists like Deana Raybourn Tasha Alexander and many more.

Been a while since I visited with the Peabody/Emerson clan! At the time I was plowing through the series, I thought some of the plots in the middle of the series were too convoluted to follow easily; however, time and distance might change that opinion. I think I have a copy of Crocodile on the Sandbank on my shelves...a summer reunion may be just the ticket.

Wow, happy to see this thread revived! I have been thinking so much about how desperately this series needs a rerelease in a clothbound cohesive edition like they have done for DiscWorld recently (and I would NOT complain about a new audio edition along the same lines). I blame bookbinding accounts on IG for making me literally think about swapping my completely mismatched editions with trade paperbacks and recovering them myself. 21 books is a scary commitment though.

That many...? I'll have to take inventory. I may have missed some along the way.

I've been looking for a new series with a good number of books to read. I see my library has most/all of them, and a good number in audiobook. Looking forward to giving this a try!

I get the audio books from my library.