Amelia and family are staying in England until Emerson finishes writing his long-overdue history of Egypt. She has been conned by her older brother to care for his two children - Percy and Violet - for the summer. They do not get along with Ramses as well and there are a series of accidents concerning him.

Amelia is investigating suspicious occurrences at the British Museum including visits by an Egyptian priest saying that horrible things will happen if a mummy is not returned to her tomb. Among the suspicious events are the deaths of a night watchman and the death of an archaeologist which makes Amelia believe that Emerson's life is in danger.

Investigations also lead to an Egyptian woman who was once an intimate of Emerson which leads Amelia to strong feelings of jealousy which are not helped by the fact that Emerson is keeping secrets from Amelia.

This was another fun episode in the Amelia Peabody series. I love that the stories are told in Amelia's voice and from her viewpoint which is eccentric. Susan O'Malley did a great job with the narration. ( )

These books walk a line between amusing and wholly annoying. This one strayed over. ( )

The Deeds of the Disturber
3.5 Stars

Amelia and her family return to England, where they learn of the mysterious death of a night watchman at the British Museum. When another man dies under suspicious circumstances, rumors abound concerning a mummy curse, and the Emersons find themselves wrangled into investigating.

Elizabeth Peters is a master of social satire with her tongue-in-cheek descriptions of British society and their sense of superiority. Nevertheless, this installment in the series has its problems.

To begin with, the mystery has potential as Amelia employs her detecting skills on British soil. However, the pacing is rather slow until the last few action-packed chapters (which earn the book an extra half-star), and the eventual explanation is convoluted and not altogether logical.

Moreover, Amelia can be exceedingly annoying at times, which is most apparent in her decided lack of communication with Emerson leading to completely unnecessary angst in their relationship. That said, there is some excellent character growth for them both as details of his past prior to his meeting Amelia come to light.

Ramses, as always, provides excellent comic relief and his antics are hilarious. In this regard, Amelia finally comes up to snuff and demonstrates an excellent understanding of her son's nature when her obnoxious nephew's manipulative bullying comes to light.

While this installment is an improvement on the absurdity of the last, it still does not quite meet the expectations set by the first three books. ( )

Amelia no necesita dejar Inglaterra en 1896 para encontrar asesinatos y tumultos. Cuando un vigilante nocturno del Museo Británico muere con una expresión aterrorizada en la cara delante de un sarcófago “embrujado” de una momia, Amelia sabe que debe llegar al fondo de ello. Versada en los peligros de antiguas maldiciones, Amelia empieza a comprender que una maldición contemporánea puede ser igualmente mortal. Y descubre que las calles familiares de Londres pueden ser tan traicioneras como los callejones de El Cairo después del anochecer, especialmente cuando un cerebro malvado pone sus vistas asesinas en su implacable perseguidora... ¡Amelia Peabody!

The Emersons are absent from Egypt in the fifth novel in Elizabeth Peters’ delightful mystery series. The book opens with the appearance of Amelia’s awful brother showing up on her doorstep asking for her to take care of his two children – Violet and Percy – for the summer. Against her better judgement, Amelia agrees. Percy, who is a toady obviously up to no good, and Ramses hate each other on sight. Violet is a spoiled, simpering brat who eats too much and flies into hysterics at a moment’s notice. But meanwhile, there is apparently a “curse” on a mummy at the British Museum and a guard turns up dead. Amelia and Emerson are on a hunt for the killer that ;leads them to an opium den where Radcliffe encounters someone from his past.

As usual, these books read like the female version of a young boys adventure and are great fun. ( )