Amelia Peabody Series is Wrapped

"Banned forever from the eastern end of the Valley of the Kings, eminent Egyptologist Radcliffe Emerson's desperate attempt to regain digging rights backfires—and his dream of unearthing the tomb of the little-known king Tutankhamon is dashed. Now Emerson, his archaeologist wife, Amelia Peabody, and their family must watch from the sidelines as Lord Carnarvon and Howard Carter "discover" the greatest Egyptian treasure of all time.

But the Emersons' own less impressive excavations are interrupted when father and son Ramses are lured into a trap by a strange group of villains ominously demanding answers to a question neither man comprehends. And it will fall to the ever-intrepid Amelia to protect her endangered family—and perhaps her nemesis as well—from a devastating truth hidden uncomfortably close to home . . . and from a nefarious plot that threatens the peace of the entire region."

The day is over. The Amelia Peabody series is over. Or, at least, my journey reading them. I closed out and finished the final entry–per the proper timeline–Tomb of the Golden Bird. I can not say it was the best entry in the series, but it had all the fixings to be one with the opening of King Tut's tomb. And for once, Amelia Peabody actually went into a tomb and explored. I stress this because it always frustrated me how Amelia was not also slipping into a tombs. Instead she often stayed outside and sifted through debris. Stuff like that, anyway. Though, of course, Amelia Peabody is so much more than all those things combined. Otherwise, I wouldn't have stuck with reading the series for nine years.

Yet, outside of all the tomb exploration, the story wasn't all that great. Peters does a great job of building suspense, but it's not always sustainable throughout the middle of the book. It's in the middle part where Peters rely on the vague and ambiguous use of plot points to push her story. By "vague and ambiguous" I mean she first tosses up many threads and characters. Then we have the death of outside characters that somehow tie to the mystery or sub-mystery or sub-sub-mystery dangling all over the place! Stalking shadow figures with no face nor name assault the cast over and over and over and over and over again as suspense tools. The repeated offense of disguising suspects in both looks and motives on top of motives tying to which running mystery thread out of a box of many is ever present in Golden Bird. Which mystery or sub-mystery does he or she fit in in this jungle gym of an Egyptian-themed mystery? 

Once again Peters reaches for something knotty that only lands... Well, Jenga, anyway?

So it's all the same in Tomb of the Golden Bird. However, unfortunately, this led to a rather anticlimactic ending because she didn't focus and reinforce the dangers and stakes involved. Shoot, I don't even believe she was serious about anything in this entry. The remaining detangling sub-mystery threads ran out of steam and were revealed for the sole purpose of filler and diluting the core problem (murders surrounding Tut's tomb) with ineffectual possibilities and just plain ole drama. Tomb of the Golden Bird was an example of an author funhousing readers.

Nevertheless, Sethos is Sethos (who I only like after he was ousted in the series). Ramses is Ramses. Nefret is Nefret (though not the old Nefret for good reason). Emerson is Emerson. Peabody is Peabody.

And… well that's cool in itself. The core cast is what readers rely on. Them and their humous exchanges.

Regardless, I'm happy I've completed reading the series. It has been fun. I wish, wish Peters kept the focus of the story on King Tut's tomb. But, no. Lots of compiling of various sub-plots made a water-weighted experience. However, I am grateful that Peters closed the book on a note that this was, in fact, the last adventure before the family headed back to England in January of 1923. 

So it felt complete by those means.

It's over. But I'll always have Amelia and company as friends.

Now the question is... when do I start making friends with THIS adventuress?