Tomb of the Golden Bird
Written by Elizabeth Peters
Narrated by Barbara Rosenblat
4/5
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About this audiobook
In New York Times bestselling author Elizabeth Peters's eagerly anticipated Amelia Peabody adventure, the Emerson clan is a hairsbreadth away from unearthing the legendary site they've been searching for. But a sinister plot and a dark family secret stand in the way of their ultimate ambition -- and threaten to change things forever. . . .
Convinced that the tomb of the little-known king Tutankhamon lies somewhere in the Valley of the Kings, Egyptologist Radcliffe Emerson and his wife, Amelia Peabody, seem to have hit a wall. Emerson 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.
The family returns to Luxor and watches from the sidelines as Carter and Carnarvon ""discover"" King Tut's tomb. But before their own excavation can get underway, Emerson and his son, Ramses, find themselves lured into a trap by a strange group of villains demanding ""Where is he?"" The Emersons embark on a quest to uncover who ""he"" is and why ""he"" must be found, only to discover the answer is uncomfortably close to home. Now Amelia must find a way to protect her family -- and perhaps even her would-be nemesis -- from the forces that will stop at nothing to succeed in the nefarious plot that threatens the peace of the entire region.
Filled with heart-stopping suspense, and Amelia Peabody's trademark wit and wisdom, Tomb of the Golden Bird is the latest thrilling installment from the beloved ""Grand Dame of historical mystery"" (Washington Post).
Elizabeth Peters
Elizabeth Peters earned her Ph.D. in Egyptology from the University of Chicago’s famed Oriental Institute. During her fifty-year career, she wrote more than seventy novels and three nonfiction books on Egypt. She received numerous writing awards and, in 2012, was given the first Amelia Peabody Award, created in her honor. She died in 2013, leaving a partially completed manuscript of The Painted Queen.
More audiobooks from Elizabeth Peters
The Painted Queen: An Amelia Peabody Novel of Suspense Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Ape Who Guards the Balance: Book 11 Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
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Titles in the series (12)
The Golden One Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Lord of the Silent Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Lord of the Silent: An Amelia Peabody Novel of Suspense Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Golden One: An Amelia Peabody Novel of Suspense Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Guardian of the Horizon Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Guardian of the Horizon Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Serpent on the Crown Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Serpent on the Crown Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A River in the Sky: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Tomb of the Golden Bird Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Tomb of the Golden Bird Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
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Reviews for Tomb of the Golden Bird
33 ratings18 reviews
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5I'm a huge fan of this series of books. Although Peters is an Egyptologist herself the fun for me comes with the interplay between the characters, with Amelia and her redoubtable parasol at the heart. This time Howard Carter's discovery of the Tomb of Tutankhamen is at the heart of the novel, much to Emerson's chagrin. All the key characters are present and on fine form, even Gargery and David make it to Egypt. But for all of that this feels as though, chronologically at least, it might be the end of the series, as Ramses and Nefret’s family starts to grow up and Amelia and Emerson are, well, like Gargery, ageing. A superb read.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Amelia and Emerson's contemporary, Howard Carter, discovers Tut's tomb.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5As the final book in the series (chronologically speaking) this book leaves long time readers with a satisfying wrap up. Ms. Peters creates a convincing story around the discovery of King Tut's tomb (crediting the Professor with the intuition to find the burial place) and overlays it with on-going unrest in Egypt. There is the token attempted antiquities heist, but mostly this book is fun for all the interplay between the various characters. I will miss the Emerson clan!
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I'm afraid that I didn't like this as much as I have the other Amelia Peabody books. I felt that there were too many plots about which I cared too little, and, as a result, too much explanation and tying of loose threads as the book reached its close.What did profoundly touch me was the closing scene, which I prefer not to give away and risk reading a reader's pleasure. If the author were contemplating an end to the series, that would be the perfect place - but I do hope that there will be more!
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5delightful
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5This latest entry in the long-running Amelia Peabody series is set against a backdrop of Howard Carter's discovery of Tutankhamon's tomb. The "plot", such as it is, though, is more concerned with nationalism in the Middle East. It's a pity that Peters didn't see fit to focus more attention on that aspect of the story. Still, it's an entertaining hoot. For fans of the series, there are no surprises.
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5Disappointing. I adore Eliz. Peters and the Amelia Peabody mysteries (of which this is one), but I found this one slow going and muddled and could never quite figure out why I should even care about the mystery aspect, such as it was. I kind of wish Ms. Peters would either wind up the Amelia stories and move on to something else, or jump ahead to the next generation of the family. Best I can figure the math (and anyone who knows me well knows how scary THAT phrase is!), Nefret’s and Ramses’ twins should be in their early- to mid-twenties at about the time of WWII and I could see some interesting story possibilities there. But for this story, I give it a rather sad D+ and that’s being generous.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5A late entry (2006) in the Amelia Peabody series. Ramses and Nefret are grown, married and have two children. The story takes place in 1922 when the tomb of King Tut was found by Howard Carter. There are several red herrings and no mystery to speak of. Too many characters spoil this soup.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5We loved this book, but as with all the books in this series, it just left us wanting more! (And also wondering how old Amelia is at this point.)
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5Another waste of time. characters blaming each other for some unknown plots and intrigues. Virtually nothing to do with archeology or tombs.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5This Amelia Peabody adventure centers on Howard Carter's discovery of King Tut's tomb in 1922.Of course, the Emerson family gets caught up not only in the excitement of the discovery, but in fighting crime and all kinds of intrigue as well.This was a very satisfying addition to the series.I simultaneously read Carter's own account of the tomb's discovery. which made this book even more fun and interesting.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Emerson clan comes to Egypt sure that the tomb of Tutankhaman will be found in the East Valley, and Emerson finds the spot, but it is not in his area, so he has to get Howard Carter to actually open it. Everyone is anxious to get into the caves before they are officially opened, including the Emersons, which causes great rivallry to be fired up and anger on all sides. There are other political uprisings afoot, which Sethos gets involved in, and brings the family into when he falls ill. All the characters go their separate ways with a wonderful conclusion at the end of the book, which will leave all Amelia's fans very satisfied.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5This series of books gives one a wonderful historical view of archaeologists in fiction form. Recommended to all.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5I found this book confusing and the plot convoluted. Perhaps it is better read than listened to. And being one of a series perhaps I need more back-story.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5In the 18th book of the Amelia Peabody series, we join the archaeological Emerson family in 1922 Egypt for another digging season. Radcliffe Emerson is sure a major find is still waiting to be discovered in the Valley of the Kings. Professor Emerson is trying to dissuade the wealthy Lord Carnavon and his hired archaeologist, Howard Carter, from continuing their work and giving the concession to him. Unfortunately Carter and Carnavon want one last season, in which they will soon discover where Tutankhamen is buried.
I've been looking forward to this installment of the series for some time. I've always wondered how they would combine the real-life discovery of King Tutankhamen's tomb with the fictional story of “the world's greatest archaeologist”, Radcliffe Emerson. I enjoyed discovering how Amelia manages to get in on the excitement of the discovery and how she and Emerson refuse to be thwarted by Carnavon and Carter. I really enjoyed seeing how the author slipped in the storyline of how Professor Emerson might have been responsible for letting loose the Mummy's curse that ends in the deaths of Carter and Carnavon, along with other members of the crew.
The series is getting older, as is our heroine, Amelia Peabody. It's not quite as exciting as it used to be but I always give an extra star when listening to the audio book version, narrated by the incomparable Barbara Rosenblat. She personifies Amelia to me, much as Jayne Entwhistle personifies Flavia de Luce. If you are a fan of the series, you should enjoy this one. - Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The climax of the science of Egyptology - the discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamen - will probably also be the final chapter in the history of the Emerson clan. Covering probably a good thirty years of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the series runs the gamut of actual characters in history and adds many additional Egyptologists besides; and manages to walk the fine line between melodrama and ludicrousness quite successfully. In this episode, Ms. Peters attempts a sweeping tale of earthshaking proportions while also adding her usual precise historical detail. Unfortunately, to succeed in the task would have required a book of Harry Potter-esque proportions, and the resolution of several subplots feels to be a bit abrupt. Nevertheless, not to read it would leave one who has read the earlier books aching to know what happens; while one who has not read them, should. Either way Tomb of the Golden Bird would eventually be a must-read.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5I liked this book only for it's interplay between characters especially Peadbody and Emerson. The story did not hold together well the drama dead ended several times and the ending was anti-climatic. I started reading hoping there would be a mystery tightly woven around archeology the characters came off as more secret agents than archeologists or egyptologists. I would have loved to have the story of King Tut's tomb a more signficiant part of the mystery as those details were very exciting. I will read more by her simply because of the engaging character and hopefully other stories will be more cohesive and suspensful.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5I usually try to be thoughtful and reasoned when doing a review, but this book was just plain bad. This series jumped the shark several books ago, but I keep hoping Peters will realize this and turn the series over to a new generation of characters that *might* be able to breath some new life and new ideas into the plotlines. Alas, this is nothing but a "clips show" of old material (Sethos as rogue - we get it! David entangled in Egyptian independence - done! And, PLEASE, no more visions of Abdullah, family Xmas celebrations, councils of war, tea at Shepherd's or Kadija's green goop!) thrown together in hopes of suckering fans of the series into spending money. My advice: if you *have* to read this one, borrow it from the library. I know I won't be purchasing any more books in this series.