Elizabeth Peters: The Golden One

“It’s been ages, Amelia,” she said. “What have you been up to?”

“Just the usual,” I replied. “And what have you been up to?”

She laughed. “The usual. Lunches, teas, visitors… That reminds me, I ran into someone recently who asked to be remembered to you. A sweet little thing with freckles on her nose. Her name is Molly Throgmorton.”

I swallowed the wrong way. “Molly what ?”

“She has been recently married,” Marjorie said. “Her husband was with her – a very pleasant but rather coarse American, who looked to be at least fifty years her senior – but she was wearing a diamond the size of a lima bean, my dear, so he must be extremely rich. She said you knew her by her maiden name, but I’m afraid I have forgotten it. Do you know who I mean?”

“Yes. I know who you mean. Where is she – where are they staying?”

“They left Luxor on Tuesday. Is something wrong, Amelia?”

“No. It’s just that I am… sorry to have missed her. I don’t suppose she happened to mention where they were going?”

Marjorie shook her head. “She said she hoped to see you another time. Her exact words were ‘Tell her she hasn’t seen the last of me.’ Rather an odd way of expressing it, but I suppose she meant it as a touch of humor.”

“No doubt,” I said.

“I am going to break all the rules of decorum and ask Selim to dance with me,” Marjorie announced with a smile. “He waltzes beautifully! Come to tea on Friday, Amelia?”

“Thank you. That would be nice.”

The festivities were still in progress when we took our departure, leaving Jumana to “cavort with the young people,” as Emerson put it. The sounds of revelry faded into silence as the carriage traversed the winding road, and the still, starry night of Egypt enclosed us.

“Vandergelt informed me that the Albions left Luxor yesterday,” Emerson remarked. He added pensively, “I must say that the general quality of criminals has sadly deteriorated. Not that I mind – especially at the present time. How are you feeling, my dear?”

He put his arm round Nefret and she leaned against his shoulder. “A little tired, perhaps. But it was a wonderful evening.”

“Life,” Emerson declared, in such a happy frame of mind he actually committed an aphorism, “life could not be better. Eh, Peabody?”

“Indeed, Emerson.”

Not for worlds would I have cast a shadow on his good humor. Nor was there cause to do so; my fancies were no more than that, idle thoughts of a wandering mind. Yet the words kept going round and round in my head, like a broken gramophone record.

“If she blames me for her mother’s death, how do you suppose she feels about you?”… “Tell her she hasn’t seen the last of me…”

“The young serpent also has poisoned fangs.”

Crocodile on the Sandbank

When strong-willed Amelia Peabody’s studious father dies, Amelia decides to use her ample inheritance to travel. After rescuing a gentlewoman (Evelyn Barton-Forbes) in considerable distress, the two become friends and Amelia hires Evelyn to be her companion on the next leg of her trip, which takes them to Egypt. There Amelia encounters mysteries, missing mummies, and Radcliffe Emerson, an opinionated archaeologist who doesn’t need a woman’s help to solve the mystery – or so he thinks.

The Curse of the Pharaohs

When Lady Baskerville’s husband Sir Henry dies after discovering what may be an undisturbed royal tomb in Luxor, she appeals to eminent archaeologist Radcliffe Emerson and his wife Amelia to take over the excavation. Amid rumors of a curse haunting all those involved with the dig, the intrepid couple proceeds to Egypt, where they begin to suspect that Sir Henry did not die a natural death, and they are confident that the accidents that plague the dig are caused by a sinister human element, not a pharaoh’s curse.

The Mummy Case

Amelia and Emerson bring their young son Ramses along on this adventure, where they find themselves investigating the mysterious death of a dealer in illegal antiquities. Before long, mummy cases start appearing and disappearing and a second murder complicates the mystery. When it becomes clear that a Master Criminal is behind the mysterious goings on, Amelia determines to unmask the dastardly fiend.

Lion in the Valley

Amelia finally gets her wish – she is returning to Egypt with her beloved husband and colleague in archaeology, Emerson, to excavate a pyramid. However, her excavation is quickly complicated by a disguised nobleman, distressed damsels, and a brilliant (and dashing!) Master Criminal. Amelia, with a pyramid to explore and a mystery to solve, is in her element.

The Deeds of the Disturber [PerfectBound e-book]

This time Amelia doesn’t need to leave England to find murder and mayhem. When a night watchman at the British Museum dies with a terrified expression on his face in front of a "haunted" mummy case, Amelia knows she needs to get to the bottom of it.

The Last Camel Died at Noon

In this affectionate tribute to H. Rider Haggard (King Solomon’s’ Mines) the Emerson family heads to the Sudan for the season, following an ancient map they hope will lead them to a secret oasis. What they find is one of the most perilous adventures of their lives.

The Snake, the Crocodile, and the Dog

With the children at home in England pursuing their studies, Amelia and Emerson head back to Amarna for a dig that promises to be just like old times. The trip turns out to be more like old times than they plan, however: Emerson’s memory disappears, and Amelia must try to win his love again, amid peril from enemies both old and new!

The Hippopotamus Pool

Popular, plucky 19th-century Egyptologist Amelia Peabody romps through her eighth archaeological adventure. When Amelia, her husband Emerson, and their thirteen-year-old son Ramses return to Egypt to begin excavation on an undisturbed Royal Tomb, they find themselves faced with a surprising new villain who is every bit as clever and resourceful as the intrepid Amelia herself!

Seeing a Large Cat

Peabody and Emerson receive a warning: "Stay away from tomb Twenty-A!" Along the way to solving the mystery, the Emersons meet a spoiled young woman, an overprotective father, and an intelligent con artist – in addition to discovering that Ramses has grown from a precocious child to a teenage heartthrob. Ramses strikes out with his adopted cousin David and beautiful Nefret on adventures that are best not known to anybody… especially Amelia.

The Ape Who Guards the Balance

Has all the elements necessary for a classic Amelia Peabody mystery: a dead body (mauled by crocodiles?), young lovers, a reunion of old friends (and enemies), archaeological discoveries – all recounted in Amelia’s own inimitable style. Excerpts from Manuscript H and letters from Nefret provide another perspective on the great detective and Egyptolologist.

The Falcon at the Portal

David is accused of forging antiquities, and the Emerson clan springs into action to help clear his name. The romantic tension between Ramses and Nefret finally comes to a head, a body is discovered at Emerson’s excavation site, and the obnoxious cousin Percy reappears.

He Shall Thunder in the Sky

It is 1914, the Emersons are in Egypt for another dig. Tensions within the family are heightened by World War I and a threatened invasion of Egypt by the Ottoman Turks. A dangerous game of spy vs. spy ensues, complete with deceit, deception, and disinformation.