Elizabeth Peters' Crocodile on the Sandbank
I've been meaning to read the Amelia Peabody books for a while, since I loved Peters' Jacqueline Kirby mysteries so much, and this first one did not disappoint. Amelia is a rich spinster heiress (well, a 31 year old heiress, which makes her a spinster in the 1800s), off to travel the world--particularly Egypt--to see all the things she's studied over the years. Soon she's basically adopted an English girl (granddaughter of an earl) abandoned by her scheming lover and has taken everyone else in hand as well. I love her--she's stern and opinionated and hilarious. She's also kind of racist/Orientalist/paternalistic, though I am pretty sure that's the character's period-appropriate voice, and not the author's. I do wish there hadn't been a little description at the beginning describing her marriage and children--I mean, spoilers!! Not that her love interest can't be seen coming from a mile away. Oh yeah, and there's mysterious mummies threatening everyone and whatnot. The actual mystery takes a little too long to resolve and is VERY OBVIOUS, but I really enjoyed the characters here. This weirdly reminded me of the Gail Carriger books, except, you know, without werewolves and vampire. But the characters and the main couple are very similar. Anyway, fun read. B+.
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