Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Egypt

Kailana said, "Another good Egypt book is Nefertiti by Michelle Moran." And Marg said, "Any of the Amelia Peabody historical mysteries [are good ones for Egypt] as well."

Nefertiti and her younger sister, Mutnodjmet, have been raised in a powerful family that has provided wives to the rulers of Egypt for centuries. Ambitious, charismatic, and beautiful, Nefertiti is destined to marry Amunhotep, an unstable young pharaoh. It is hoped that her strong personality will temper the young ruler’s heretical desire to forsake Egypt’s ancient gods. From the moment of her arrival in Thebes, Nefertiti is beloved by the people but fails to see that powerful priests are plotting against her husband’s rule. The only person brave enough to warn the queen is her younger sister, yet remaining loyal to Nefertiti will force Mutnodjmet into a dangerous political game; one that could cost her everything she holds dear. Nefertiti by Michelle Moran is told from the point of view of her younger sister, Mutnodjmet.

Tomb of the Golden Bird by Elizabeth Peters, is the latest of the Amelia Peabody series. 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.

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