Janet Evanovich - The Rocky Road to Romance (1991)

This is the fourth book in the Elsie Hawkins series and another wacky high-spirited romance from Evanovich.

When WZZZ's usual traffic reporter breaks his leg Daisy Adams, from the station's dog trivia and recipes slot, offers to fill in until he can return to work. Station owner, Steve Crow, would like to turn her down, but it's love at first sight and all he can think of is how to keep Daisy in his life.

This book is part of the Elsie Hawkins series, but like the others, Elsie plays a bit part. In this book she comes in as security guard to protect Daisy from a drug pedler she accidentally caught. In all the books Elsie carries a big gun, is a terrible shot and reminds me a lot of the character Grandma Mazur from the Plum series. I'm qite fond of Elsie and I'd really like an 'Elsie' in my life.

This is another fluffy light romance from Evanovich's early books. It's more for when your mind is tired & just needs a fairy-floss distraction. It's not the kind of book that will have you puzzling over anything or leave you wondering at the end.

Elizabeth Peters - The Falcon at the Portal (1999)

This is book 11 in the Amelia Peabody series.

The Emersons are in 1911 Egypt, excavating at Zawyet el'Aryan. It's more like an English cemetary with lots of little tombs and they don't expect to find much there.

David has recently married Lia and they're off in Europe on their honeymoon. Whilst he's absent someone is pretending to be him to sell antiquities supposedly belonging to his late grandfather Abdullah.

Naturally the Emersons all run off searching in different directions for the forger, without consulting each other. Initially they get in each others way until they realise they're better working together.

They have a new nemesis, Amelia's nephew Percy and he brings darker troubles for the family than they've ever faced before. It's a much somber book. Usually the troubles are deep, but obviously surmountable. Yet this book just made me feel sad and overwhelmed.

I'm really starting to like Ramses and Nefret again. They have matured and are less like arrogant idiots. The whole family is more cohesive and open with each other. They work great as a team. Yet, I find Nefret's marriage impossible to believe. It's probably the feminist in me, but I just cannot comprehend how a woman could be that stupid or petty. Nefret almost threw her life away without a good reason. I know the character is impulsive, but that is taking it all a bit far. I do wonder sometimes what kind of people Peters knew that put these characteristics in her mind.

As ominous as this book felt, I did like it, even though the ending had me raging. I'm really saddened that Peters is dead, I feel like something bright has been lost from the world and there is no-one gifted enough these days to take her place.

Elizabeth Peters - The Ape Who Guards The Balance (1998)

This is book 10 in the Amelia Peabody series. The Emersons are initially in 1907 England where Amelia is fighting the suffragette battle for equality and almost getting kidnapped in the process. Naturally her husband whisks them all off to Egypt, a location he considers much safer for his family - he's obviously learned nothing from the 9 preceding books.

Ramses is arrogant and annoying. Nefret continues to flirt with all and sundry. David is a doormat - sad, considering how stubborn and strong he began as. The trio find a papyrus and try to hide it from their parents, even though it puts all of them in danger. They insist they're adults, and being in their early 20s they are, but they continue to act like immature and foolish teenagers. By the end of the book they're doing better at being less secretive with each other, but not enough to keep themselves out of danger.

I was so happy to have Sethos back, but then Peters rudely took him away again in the first few chapters. I think that it soured the book for me. This is honestly a good book, a really fun book in the series but... I just really like Sethos, it's my romantic flaw.

Elizabeth Peters - Seeing a Large Cat (1997)

This is the ninth book in the Amelia Peabody series. It is 1903/4 excavation season and the Emerson clan are back in Egypt and living in their house outside Luxor, close to the Valley of the Kings. There are a few years between this book and the last, with a lot of changes inbetween. Emerson is making a survery of all the forgotten tombs, something everyone is finding very boring after locating a Royal Tomb in 1900. Ramses is suddenly all grown up and has spent the last six months with the Bedouins, away from his parents and learning many things that seem to have changed his personality almost completely. Nefret is now a young lady studying medicine and David is a young man who is English in every way except that he is Egyptian. Saddest of all is the death of the cat Bastet, Ramses childhood friend and companion.

This book was a bit of a shock. I didn't expect Peters to jump forward through so many years and to downplay Amelia and Emerson in the mystery like they were a couple of old crones. They're around 48, if Amelia gave her correct age in the first book, and that's not quite putting them in their dotage.

The Emersons do find a mummy in this book, but it's of a recently murdered woman and the family are once more plunged into a mystery. They tend to bumble around each other because they're all so secretive and sure they're right, so they refuse to share anything with each other. There was a lot of overlap and some silly dangers that could have been avoided. The whole secrecy aspect is going too far. After it almost got Amelia killed in the last book they should know better.

The story was okay, but I disliked a lot of the characters. Ramses is no longer my favourite. It's a good continuation of the series, but that was pretty much it for me.

Elizabeth Peters - The Hippopotamus Pool (1996)

This is the eighth book in the Amelia Peabody series. It is 1900 and the whole family is back in Egypt for this excavation season where they stumble upon a Royal Tomb in Thebes - mostly by following the thieves back to it. This has two parties after them, one to protect Queen Tetisheri and one to kill off the Emersons and loot her tomb.

It was a fun book, but I didn't like the ending. I thought that, after everything she has experienced, Amelia's character was incredibly stupid.

I was very happy to have Walter and Evelyn back in Egypt, but I didn't think their characters resolved out very well. Evelyn arrived in Egypt heart-broken and at some point everything was suddenly fine? Maybe that got lost in the editing.

So a few hiccups in this book, but it was still a good book in the series. Ramses and Nefret develop into teenagers and they're joined by another 'brother', David. I'm still quite fond of Ramses, he's interesting, but nice and not a bully like his father. I like Emerson, but his constant bullying and yelling at people gets tiring after a book or three.

Elizabeth Peters - The Snake, the Crocodile and the Dog (1992)

This is the seventh book in the Amelia Peabody series.

The Emersons are back in Egypt, having left Ramses and their adopted daughter Nefret at home in England. Unfortunately, even though they told no-one of their find, someone knows about the lost living Meroitic civilisation they discovered on their last excavation and they're determined to get the precise location. But, a mysterious stranger is equally determined to protect Peabody, although not so Emerson, who is abducted and later found with amnesia. This leads the group to Amarna, where Emerson thinks he's on the dig in 1884, before he ever met Peabody.

I didn't like the killing of the dog. It had been tortured and was terrified - they didn't need to beat it to death.

Other than that, the book was good, but not my favourite. I found Emerson to be much worse to Peabody than he was in the first book, he was very rough and often cruel. I kept hoping Amelia would give up on him and run off to someone nicer - I'm really not sure that Emerson is worth all the love and loyalty Amelia gives him when he does remember who she is. It was fun to have Sethos back. He's such an interesting character. I hope he has a larger role as himself in a later book - no, I don't believe the ending at all.

Elizabeth Peters - The Last Camel Died at Noon (1991)

This is the sixth book in the Amelia Peabody series. This excavation season finds them in the Sudan, initially on a dig in Nubia, until they're enticed into hunting for a lost Meroitic city and a missing Englishman. They're without their usual network of Egyptian friends and loyal archaeological staff, which leaves them dependent on each other in a treacherous environment a long way from sanctuary.

The death of the camels made me sad, particularly when I found out they'd been poisoned. I understand the plot reasoning for it, but I think it all would have worked fine if every camel was stolen in the night by their guides. (I know most of you will say "but it's just a book animal, it's not real", but, honestly, I cannot see any reason for writing about raping women or children in books either. It disgusts me just as much. I wonder if it puts bad ideas into people's minds.)

Other than that, this was a good book. Ramses is developing as an interesting character, he's 10 years old here and becoming more of a handful for his parents. He seems to have the best characteristics of both of them. He's loquacious, curious, brave and intelligent with a odd affinity for felines of any type.

I really enjoy all the information on Ancient Egypt that Peters threads through her books. Peters brings it alive for me. I never enjoyed Ancient Egypt studies as a child, but since reading these books I've become interested in the excavations of the 1880s to the 1930s and how the Egyptians lived.