Elizabeth Peters - The Complete Amelia Peabody Series - Audio Books

Series Description:


The Amelia Peabody series is a series of nineteen historical mystery novels and one non fiction companion volume written by Elizabeth Peters, featuring Egyptologist Amelia Peabody Emerson, for whom the series is named. The novels blend satire (mostly of the adventure novel, such as written by H. Rider Haggard), mystery, romance, and comedy. The series spans a thirty-eight-year period from 1884 to 1923. Most of the books are primarily set in Egypt, with some installments including scenes set in England and Gaza. Of the books in the series, only two do not take place in Egypt at all: Deeds of the Disturber, set entirely in England, and A River in the Sky, set mostly in Ottoman-era Palestine.


Novel Descriptions


Note: The following novels are listed in the order in which I believe the author would have wanted you to read them (Not necessarily in the order in which they were published)


01 - Crocodile on the Sandbank - (1884-85)

Set in 1884, this is the first installment in what has become a beloved bestselling series. At thirty-two, strong-willed Amelia Peabody, a self-proclaimed spinster, decides to use her ample inheritance to indulge her passion, Egyptology. On her way to Egypt, Amelia encounters a young woman named Evelyn Barton-Forbes. The two become fast friends and travel on together, encountering mysteries, missing mummies, and Radcliffe Emerson, a dashing and opinionated archaeologist who doesn't need a woman's help -- or so he thinks.




It's 1892, and Amelia and Emerson, who is now her husband, are back in England raising their young son Ramses, when they are approached by a damsel in distress. Lady Baskerville's husband, Sir Henry, has died after uncovering what may have been royal tomb in Luxor. Amid rumors of a curse haunting all those involved with the dig, Amelia and Emerson proceed to Egypt and begin to suspect that Sir Henry did not die a natural death.


  03 - The Mummy Case - (1894-95)

Amelia and Emerson bring their young son Ramses along in Egypt in 1894. Denied permission to dig at the lovely pyramids of Dashoor, they are assigned to the decrepit mounds of rubble that pass for the pyramids of Mazghunah. Nothing in this barren stretch of land seems of interest until an illegal antiquities dealer gets killed. 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 these goings on, Amelia starts digging -- for facts.




The 1895-96 season promises to be an exceptional one for Amelia, Emerson, and their precocious eight-year-old son Ramses. The much-coveted burial chamber of the Black Pyramid in Dahshoor is theirs for the digging -- finally. However, their luck turns when Ramses is abducted by moonlight. The entire excavation becomes complicated by misfortune, and Amelia feels certain that her arch nemesis, the Master Criminal, is to blame. What she doesn't realize is that he won't be satisfied until he has captured her.


  05 - The Deeds of the Disturber - (Summer 1896)

Amelia doesn't need to leave England in 1896 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. Versed in the dangers of ancient curses, Amelia comes to understand that a contemporary curse can be just as lethal. And she discovers that the familiar streets of London can be every bit as treacherous as the alleyways of Cairo after dark, especially when an evil mastermind sets his murderous sights on his relentless pursuer . . . Amelia Peabody!




It's true: the last camel is gone, leaving Amelia, Emerson and Ramses to bake under the desert sun in the winter of 1897. Armed with a mysterious note and map, they have been commissioned to locate a lost English aristocrat and his wife, who disappeared over a decade ago. In this tribute to H. Rider Haggard (King Solomon's Mines), the family marches into the desert where survival depends on solving a mystery as old as Ancient Egypt, and where they meet a young girl, Nefret, who will join their family and change their lives forever.


  07 - The Snake the Crocodile and the Dog - (1898-99)

With Nefret, now a ward of Amelia and Emerson, and Ramses at home pursuing their studies, the couple returns to Amarna in 1898 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, when they become the targets of a Master Criminal's evil plot. Emerson is kidnapped, and Amelia rescues him to discover that he has lost his memory. Tantalizingly close to her most important discovery yet, a tomb that may have been Nefertiti's, Amelia needs to turn her attention to regaining her husband's love.


  08 - The Hippopotamus Pool - (1899-1900)

When a masked stranger offers to reveal an Egyptian queen's lost tomb to Amelia and Emerson in 1900, they are intrigued to say the least. But the guide mysteriously disappears, leaving them to sail to Thebes to follow his trail. The fact that Ramses and Nefret are along on the journey both helps and hampers efforts to solve this mystery. Soon all four are risking their lives as they foil kidnappers, grave robbers and ancient curses. And intrepid Amelia finds herself faced with a surprising new villain who is every bit as clever and resourceful as she is!


  09 - Seeing a Large Cat - (1903-04)

It's 1903 in Cairo, and Amelia dreams of a large Egyptian cat, a sign of good luck. But the luck turns when she and Emerson, who are set to dig in the Valley of the Kings, receive an ominous warning: "Stay away from tomb Twenty-A!" More trouble brews as Ramses and Nefret, unknown to their parents, begin to sneak about to help an American who believes she's being stalked. When tomb Twenty-A reveals a mummy wearing silk unmentionables, Amelia is trapped in a labyrinth of murder, passion and deceit.


  10 - The Ape Who Guards the Balance - (1906-07)

Attending a suffragettes' rally outside the home of an antiquities collector in 1907, Amelia finds herself embroiled in a series of bizarre events that leave her in great danger. Suspecting that the Master Criminal, Sethos, is responsible, the family sets off for Egypt. There they acquire an important papyrus of the Book of the Dead. When the dead body of a young woman is found in the Nile, Amelia, Emerson and Ramses all have their theories, but their own lives might be at stake if their ancient book is involved. Letters from Nefret provide a new perspective on Amelia, the great detective and Egyptolologist.


  11 - Guardian of the Horizon - (1907-08)

Readers have long wondered what befell the Emerson clan during the years before the Great War. Now, at last, the silence is broken and the truth revealed of a perilous journey to a secret and mysterious place hidden deep in the heart of the unforgiving desert. An adventure prompted by loyalty to an endangered friend -- and spurred on by lies and treachery -- it leads Amelia Peabody and her intrepid family into a nest of vipers lying in wait at a remote mountain fortress. And when a dark past and a shocking mystery are ultimately discovered, a loved one may be lost forever.


  12 - A River in the Sky - (1910)

Intrepid archaeologist and superior sleuth Amelia Peabody returns in A River in the Sky. In this breathtaking new adventure, New York Times bestselling Grand Master Elizabeth Peters transports the indomitable Amelia and her family, the Emersons, from their usual milieu, early twentieth-century Egypt, to an exciting-and dangerous-new locale: Palestine! A tale full of atmosphere, intrigue, and thrills, A River in the Sky is further proof that "Peters has few rivals."


  13 - The Falcon at the Portal - (1911-12)

It's 1911, and David Todros, Ramses' best friend, is suspected of dealing in forged antiquities, possibly to help support a rising nationalist movement. The Emerson clan immediately springs into action to help clear the young Egyptian's name, and there are dangerous consequences for all involved when a body is discovered at Emerson's most recent excavation site. And in this installment, Ramses and Nefret's relationship finally changes forever.


  14 - He Shall Thunder In The Sky - (1914-15)

The winter of 1914 finds the family back in Cairo, but times have changed. The city is under martial law because the Suez Canal might be attacked by the Ottoman Empire at any moment. Ramses is widely scorned for his pacifist role, but Amelia and Nefret, who now runs a women's clinic in Cairo, discover that he might be involved in an insurrection. And the discovery of an unexpected treasure at Giza leads Amelia to suspect that the Master Criminal, Sethos, is at work again.


  15 - Lord Of The Silent - (1915-16)

Risking life, limb, and her second-best hat, Amelia and her husband, and their growing entourage, defy German submarines and warring Senussi to embark on another season of exploration and crime solving in 1915. Hounded by would-be assassins, Amelia quickly discerns that Ramses is doing undercover work that poses a threat to the family. Then a fresh -- but not fresh enough -- body turns up in the tomb they are excavating. With Sethos, her arch nemesis put to rest in the last expedition, who can be responsible for this?


  16 - The Golden One - (1916-17)

A new year, 1917, is dawning, and the Great War that ravages the world shows no sign of abating. In these perilous times, archaeologist Amelia Peabody and her extended family must confront shocking dangers. But it is son Ramses who faces the most dire threat, answering a call that will carry him to the fabled seaport of Gaza on a mission as personal as it is perilous -- where death will be the certain consequence of exposure. While far away, Ramses's beautiful wife, Nefret, guards a secret of her own.


  17 - Children Of the Storm - (1919-20)

December of 1919 marks the end of the first year of peace after the Great War. Amelia is looking forward to a magical holiday season in her Luxor home with her handsome husband Emerson, their accomplished son Ramses and his doctor-wife Nefret, who are now parents. Joining them is Emerson's brother Walter and his wife Evelyn who arrive from England. Finally united after years of separation and international turmoil, they are planning to celebrate their dear friend Cyrus Vandergelt's thrilling discovery: the burial of four royal high Priestesses, complete with coffins and mummies, rich jewelry, and wonderful beaded robes . . .


  18 - The Serpent On The Crown - (1922-23)

A priceless relic has been delivered to the Emerson home overlooking the Nile. But more than history surrounds this golden likeness of a forgotten king, for it is said early death will befall anyone who possesses it. The woman who implores the renowned family of archaeologists and adventurers to accept the cursed statue insists the ill-gotten treasure has already killed her husband. Further, she warns, unless it is returned to the tomb from which it was stolen, more will surely die. With the world finally at peace - and with Egypt's ancient mysteries opened to them once more - Amelia Peabody and her loved ones are plunged into a storm of secrets, treachery, and murder by a widow's strange story and even stranger request. Each step toward the truth reveals a new peril, suggesting this curse is no mere superstition. And the next victim of the small golden king could be any member of the close-knit clan - perhaps even Amelia herself.


  19 - Tomb Of The Golden Bird - (1922-23)

Convinced that the tomb of the little-known king Tutankhamon lies somewhere in the Valley of the Kings, eminent Egyptologist Radcliffe Emerson and his intrepid wife, Amelia Peabody, seem to have hit a wall. Having been banned forever from the East Valley, Emerson, against Amelia's advice, has tried desperately to persuade Lord Carnarvon and Howard Carter to relinquish their digging rights. But Emerson's trickery has backfired, and his insistent interest in the site has made his rivals all the more determined to keep the Emerson clan away. Powerless to intervene but determined to stay close to the unattainable tomb, the family returns to Luxor and prepares to continue their dig in the less promising West Valley—and to watch from the sidelines as Carter and Carnarvon "discover" the greatest Egyptian treasure of all time: King Tut's tomb.