Amelia Peabody Omnibus

Amelia Peabody #1-4

by Elizabeth Peters

Amelia Peabody is Elizabeth Peters' most brilliant and best-loved creation, a thoroughly Victorian feminist who takes the stuffy world of archaeology by storm with her devastatingly handsome, brilliant archaeologist husband Radcliffe Emerson and their precocious son Ramses.

Book 1 - Crocodile on the Sandbank
In the first adventure - set in 1884 - 32-year-old Amelia, a self-proclaimed spinster, decides to use her substantial inheritance to indulge her passion, Egyptology. On her travels, she rescues a gentlewoman in distress - Evelyn Barton-Forbes - and the two become friends. The two companions continue to Egypt where they face mysteries, mummies and the redoubtable Radcliffe Emerson, an outspoken archaeologist, who doesn't need women to help him solve mysteries -- at least that's what he thinks!

Book 2 - The Curse of the Pharoahs
Set in 1892. Amelia and Emerson, who is now her husband, are back in England raising their young son Ramses, when they are approached by a damsel in distress. Lady Baskerville's husband, Sir Henry, has died after uncovering what may have been royal tomb in Luxor. Amid rumors of a curse haunting all those involved with the dig, Amelia and Emerson proceed to Egypt and begin to suspect that Sir Henry did not die a natural death. The accidents plaguing the dig appear to be caused by a sinister human element, not a pharaoh's curse.

Book 3 - The Mummy Case
Amelia and Emerson bring their young son Ramses along to Egypt in 1894. Emerson is living up to his reputation as 'The Father of Curses'. Denied permission to dig at the pyramids of Dahshoor, he is awarded instead the 'pyramids' of Mazghunah - countless mounds of rubble in the middle of nowhere. Nothing in this barren spot seems of any interest but then a murder in Cairo changes all of that. The dead man was an antiques dealer, killed in his shop, so when a sinister-looking Egyptian spotted at the crime scene turns up in Mazghunah, Amelia can't resist following his trail. At the same time she has to keep an eagle eye on her wayward son Rameses and his elegant, calculating cat, and look into the mysterious disappearance of a mummy case...

Book 4 - Lion in the Valley
In 1895, the much-coveted burial chamber of the Black Pyramid in Dahshoor is theirs for the digging. But there is great evil in the wind that roils the hot sands sweeping through the streets and marketplaces of Cairo. The brazen moonlit abduction of Ramses alerts Amelia to the presence of her arch-enemy, the Master Criminal. And his is now a personal quest for the most valuable and elusive prize of all: Vengeance on the meddling lady archaeologist who has sworn to deliver him to justice...

Genres: Mystery, Historical Fiction, Fiction, Historical, Cozy, Cozy Mystery, Fantasy

1024 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 4, 2012

About the author

Elizabeth Peters is a pen name of Barbara Mertz. She also wrote as Barbara Michaels as well as her own name. Born and brought up in Illinois, she earned her Ph.D. in Egyptology from the University of Chicago. Mertz was named Grand Master at the inaugural Anthony Awards in 1986 and Grand Master by the Mystery Writers of America at the Edgar Awards in 1998. She lived in a historic farmhouse in Frederick, western Maryland until her death.

Reviews

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked this omnibus up in the Kindle store on a promotional sale. I admit I knew a great deal more about Barbara Michaels work than that of her alter ego, Elizabeth Peters. But, with several recommendations from friends I made the connection, but had no idea what to expect. I am now committed to reading this series all the way through. For the sake of time, I'm only going to summarize the first four books of the series which are featured in this omnibus.

The first book, "Crocodile on the Sandbank", sets the stage by introducing Amelia and Emerson, which is a cool romance, but theirs is a unique relationship that is not at all mushy or sentimental. There are plenty of laugh out loud moments, too, and I knew after finishing the first book I was in love the series.

The second book, "The Curse of the Pharoahs", sees Amelia and Emerson settle into married life and all that entails while they continue to work together and solve mysteries.

The third book, "The Mummy Case" was the weakest in the set, but was a nice showcase for Ramses, the Emerson's son.

The last book in this omnibus was one of the strongest. "Lion in the Valley" has a suspenseful mystery and a few surprising twists.

I believe this series can be read either by the order in which they were published or by chronological dates. So, I'll have to see which book in the series I should read next, but one this is for sure, I will most assuredly be reading this series from start to finish! 4.5

[Claire · Rating 5 out of 5]

I chanced upon this series via a review of Meljean Brook's excellent steampunk romances (which I also highly recommend). I am enchanted by Amelia and her family and feminism. The whole thing is perfection.

[Florien John · Rating 5 out of 5]

Charming as ever

Fun and delightful read - such sharp phrasing and conversational ease - I have a mind to do a clean sweep of this series for fear that in not doing so I would suffer nothing but regret.

[Anneri · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read the whole series in - I think - 2014? Nowadays, I can't concentrate on anything new, so a 'good ripping yarn' (that, ore Georgette Heyer or Dorothy Sayers) is all I can read, so it's fine. but honestly, I remember it being funnier?!

[Leah]

I enjoyed reading these books years ago, and enjoyed them again this time.

[Jay-me (Janet) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this omnibus - but have entered the separate books as I want to count 4 books for my reading challenge.

Finished reading on 28th January - but date removed so that it isn't included on books finished this year.

Review of the whole series https://jaymekindle.wordpress.com/201...




Many years ago, when the local library had more convenient opening hours, I used to go two or more times each week to change my library books. I used to look through the recently returned books first and then wander round looking for something interesting. There were a few authors that I kept my eye out for – any new books by favourites such as Terry Pratchett which I would read in hardback from the library and eventually buy my own paperback copy when they were published months later. It was whilst looking for books by Ellis Peters that I mistakenly picked up a book by Elizabeth Peters – and quickly put it back because it did not look interesting.
As the library started opening for fewer hours, I started reading less – and was mainly re-reading from my store of paperback books. Then I bought a kindle and the bookworld opened out once more with the additions of books by indie authors that would never have found their way onto the library shelves, as well as traditionally published authors adding e-books to the hardbacks, paperbacks and audio versions of their work.
In October 2012 I purchased the omnibus edition of Amelia Peabody Mysteries by Elizabeth Peters. I don’t know what spurred me into the purchase – it was possibly a Kindle “Daily Deal” however it remained in my TBR list until last month when I started to read the first book., enjoyed reading it, and quickly purchased and read the rest of the series. One thing I wish had been made clearer was the fact that two of the books were published ( & are numbered) out of chronological order. I would have read them out of order if I had realised, instead I left them to the end and read some different books before going back to those two books Guardian of the Horizon and A River in the Sky.
As I say I enjoyed the series, however there were a few things that I didn’t like. The stories are about an English lady, Amelia Peabody, born in the 19th Century. She inherited a fortune from her father – to the dismay of her brothers who had not realised that their father had amassed such a fortune. Only one of the brothers appears in the series and he & his children are definitely not nice people. Amelia decided to use her money to travel & set off for Egypt where she met and married Radcliffe Emerson. The series continues with Emerson (as he prefers to be called) and Amelia (and their family, friends and various animals) conducting archaeological digs – mainly in Egypt.
The kindle versions that I read have a few of the editing/typos that slip through – but nothing to really bother me. One thing that did bother me was in one of the later books the name of Amelia’s grand-daughter changed for the whole of the book from “Charla” as it was in the earlier (& later!) books to “Carla”. Whether this is an error in this book or just the kindle edition I do not know.
Another error was that Emerson referred to “Lancashire Cotton Farmers” forming part of the British Army in Egypt. These were part of the East Lancashire Regiment – known locally as “Pals” and were mainly workers in the cotton mills of Lancashire. – cotton exported from hotter countries and not grown in Lancashire. My grandfather was in the East Lancashire Regiment during the Great War.
Finally – my pet peeve – this is something that really annoys me, I come across it so often and it is the one sure way to know that the author is American. Amelia is referred to as Amelia Peabody Emerson. NO NO NO She would not refer to herself as that.
When she married she would be Mrs Radcliffe Emerson, or Amelia Emerson née Peabody. I have no problem with their son having his mother’s maiden name as one of his given names but it really annoys me reading books set in England where the American custom of naming is used throughout.
Having said that I thoroughly enjoyed the stories – Amelia, her husband Emerson, son Ramses (actually named Walter) and the various other family members striding larger than life through the books, Amelia with her parasol, washing the donkeys and camels, Emerson shouting and cursing – and earning his nickname “Father of Curses” all with little touches of humour that I would have missed if I had left that first book unpurchased remembering that I hadn’t liked the look of it all those years ago when I saw it on the library shelves.

[Amy Bird · Rating 4 out of 5]

This omnibus includes the first four books of the Amelia Peabody series by Elizabeth Peters: Crocodile on the Sandbank, The Curse of the Pharaohs, The Mummy Case, and Lion in the Valley. I checked it out from the library after a reference to the series in Six Cats a Slayin’ (one of the Cat in the Stacks books by Miranda James) piqued my curiosity. I am very glad I did, and now I am working my way through the rest of the series.

Set in Egypt during a time when archaeology was flourishing there, these books are full of adventure, mystery, amusing commentary, and a touch of romance. While the solutions to the mysteries are fairly obvious to the reader, it is still fun to see how things develop through the narrative of the unconventional and witty view of the heroine, Amelia Peabody herself. Well written and amusing, these are a quick and easy read.

I think the first book was my favorite and the fourth book my least favorite of this collection, with the other two somewhere in between, but all of them were enjoyable.

[Daniela Kraml · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first four Amelias, loved them.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ok so I've actually read all 19 of the books in this series & I'm using this 4 set as a stand in vs reviewing each individually. This is a saga mystery where you get to see a group of people over decades doing the same thing but in a slightly different manner in each book. "Every year a dead body"says Abdullah. Every year the family intends to just do a season of digging but it never is just a season of digging, crime is always involved. I like the time period & the way the world of the characters is portrayed. I saw many simularities between the turn of this past century & the 1885-1912 & onward. Very strong personalities in these books.

[Debs Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

So far I've read two from this omnibus. I enjoyed the first one more because it was so different to what I was expecting and I found the ironic tone of the main character hilarious. Falls in the "ripping yarn" category. Number two had lost the surprise element but maintained the standard. I can see that the books follow a similar plot line each time with enough differences to stay interested, but couldn't do them all in one go!

[Lorrie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I dipped in and out of the first book since January (not sure why). This turned to be a fantastic set of four mystery novels set in Victorian era Egypt...though I thought it was a little later than that. Pharaohs’ curses, missing mummy cases and a set of lovable and quirky characters? What’s not to like? Well written and funny. I’m getting book 5 now.

[Ivanka Soljan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed the quirky characters, the subtle humour and the settings. Great beach read... easy, light and funny.

[Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

27-May-2017 to 01-Aug-2017
Read only 'Crocodile on the Sandbank'