The Mummy Case by Elizabeth Peters
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Narrated by Barbara Rosenblat
In this, the third installment of the Amelia Peabody series, Peabody and Emerson are once again on the case in Victorian Egypt. This time, they have brought along their son, Walter (nicknamed Ramses). Emerson applies to dig at the pyramids of Darshoor, but is denied that juicy tidbit and assigned instead to Masghunah, which is decidedly not a first class dig site. They decide to make the best of things, and settle in to excavate and catalog whatever may be there. The discovery of a murdered antiquities dealer of their acquaintance sets Amelia on the hunt for the killer, despite Emerson’s objections. Add to the mystery an intriguing scrap of papyrus, a missing mummy case, Ramses’ precocious penchant for mischief, two religious sects vying for the souls (and loyalties) of the native population, and a rescued lion cub and you have the formula for another fun mystery.
The stories in the series are a bit formulaic- the Emersons travel to Egypt during the English winter season to excavate and preserve ancient tombs and other archaeological sites. Usually set off by a murder of some sort, Amelia engages in sleuthing to find the killer and solve whatever puzzles the current dig site has to offer. But that doesn’t take away from reading them at all. The characters become old friends and fans will relish spending time with them once again. New friends and foes are introduced and the reader is left trying to figure out who is the real villain. This book takes the Emerson’s into more danger than before, even to a life-threatening edge.
A light, quick read as most of these stories are, The Mummy Case is another quite readable Amelia Peabody tale.
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Available now and on sale at Smashwords from December 25, 2017 to January 1, 2018:
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