The Falcon at the Portal (Amelia Peabody Murder Mystery)
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Amazon.co.uk Review
"'Really', I thought in mounting exasperation, 'there never was a household in which so many people felt free to offer their unsolicited opinions!'" This, of course, is the eminent Egyptologist and dedicated crime solver Amelia Peabody, setting the stage and the tone (an updated Oscar Wildean irony) for Elizabeth Peters' 11th book. And it's true that there are no shrinking violets in this particular household, from the redoubtable Amelia and her hot-tempered archaeologist husband Emerson (his native diggers call him the Father of Curses), to their dashing, unpredictable son Ramses (born Walter). Also, let's not forget their lovely ward, Nefret (rescued from a desert tribe several books back) and their butler, Gargery, "who wields a cudgel as handily as he carves a roast."
As she has so many times before, Peters presents us with this quaint--even campy--little group of people, plops them down in an exotic Egyptian setting and then surprises us by involving them in a story of great strength and emotion.
It's 1911 and David Todros, a young Egyptian who has just married into the Peabody family, is suspected of dealing in forged antiquities, possibly to help support a rising nationalist movement. Amelia, Emerson, Ramses and Nefret all take various actions to help David and there are serious, dangerous consequences for everyone involved. Despite the melodramatic setting and the theatrical language, Peters' story is--as always--modern, believable and exciting.
Other books in the Peabody series available in paperback are The Ape Who Guards the Balance, The Crocodile on the Sandbank, The Curse of the Pharaohs and The Hippopotamus Pool. --Dick Adler --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
The Guardian
"Dastardly deeds, whirlwind romances, curious mummies and all the fun and intrigue of Egyptian excavations, with a heroine who wields a sturdy parasol rather than a magnum. Accomplished entertainment."
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
...and want to shake some sense into them. Part of the appeal of the Amelia Peabody mysteries is that after reading the preceding books in the series the characters become so real that you begin to feel that you know them personally - and, like Amelia, long to give them the benefit of your own wisdom and experience. Accordingly, Falcon at the Portal is, in turn, appealing, appalling, frustrating, maddening, and thoroughly enjoyable. And as always, it is an education in Egyptology and the modern history of the region. Presumably Ms. Peters knows where she is going with all this. At this book's close she has them on the eve of WW1. What next?
5 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Ok, ok... I bought this book by chance in a bookstore in London that had the infamous '3 for 2' deal that always gets me into trouble! Desperate not to let a good deal go, I grabbed the first book I found on the shelf, and it was 'The Falcon at the Portal' by Elizabeth Peters. The book stayed on my shelf for nearly a year, every time I picked it up I thought it might be a bit 'silly' seing how it dealt with Egypt and archeologists... Thinking it might be a disappointing literary exercise, I let the months drag on. But finally, a few weeks ago, I started reading.
Let me dissipate any doubts, the book is exquisitely written. I like verbose books, I like to swim in clear and engaging language and Elizabeth Peters writes in a manner that seems inherited from 19th century English literature! She has a good prose, I never got bored, not even when she described archeological terms and endavours in detail. The characters are so appealing, each with his/her own very loud particulars and the story is beautifully weaved around romance, mystery and murder! I believe that being able to engage the reader on all these levels, language, characters and plot, is a very rare talent indeed in these times! One is usually sacrificed for the other, but Peters seems to be able to perfect them all!
I couldn't put the book down, and that is a 5 star to me. I am definitely purchasing the whole series... I feel like someone who just won the jackpot!!!
Let me dissipate any doubts, the book is exquisitely written. I like verbose books, I like to swim in clear and engaging language and Elizabeth Peters writes in a manner that seems inherited from 19th century English literature! She has a good prose, I never got bored, not even when she described archeological terms and endavours in detail. The characters are so appealing, each with his/her own very loud particulars and the story is beautifully weaved around romance, mystery and murder! I believe that being able to engage the reader on all these levels, language, characters and plot, is a very rare talent indeed in these times! One is usually sacrificed for the other, but Peters seems to be able to perfect them all!
I couldn't put the book down, and that is a 5 star to me. I am definitely purchasing the whole series... I feel like someone who just won the jackpot!!!
2 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Elizabeth Peters' skills as a writer, not exactly paltry to begin with, have grown over the course of the Amelia Peabody books. The series was always fun to read, but the latest few have an emotional impact most mystery writers cannot match. The characterizations, especially of the younger generation, are much deeper than they used to be; Amelia and Emrson are forced to grapple with events that challenge their composure more than anything since Emerson's amnesia (in The Snake, the Crocodile, and the Dog). This does demand more from the reader, who can no longer be confident that everything will be tied up in a nice neat happy ending by the end of the book.
I almost subtracted a star, because Nefret acts in a way that I believe to be out of character, but I left it in because presumably Peters knows her characters better than I do, and anyway it may be wishful thinking on my part. At any rate, she has promised to tie up some loose ends in her next book -- thank goodness!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Unbelievable
Unbelievable people, unbelievable situation, and unbelievable dialogue.
This is the only Elizabeth Peters that I read. I believe it will be my last. Read more
This is the only Elizabeth Peters that I read. I believe it will be my last. Read more
Published on 10 April 2010 by bernie
The Eleventh Book in a Wonderful Series
Elizabeth Peters was born and brought up in Illinois and earned her Ph.D. in Egyptology from the University of Chicago's famed Oriental Institute. Read more
Published on 23 July 2007 by J. Chippindale
Peabody & Emerson adventuring again
Denied the chance to dig in the Valley of the Kings. The Emerson family with additions tackle a grave yard. Read more
Published on 22 Oct 1999
Amelia Peabody is back again in this exciting mystery.
The irrepressable Amelia is once again on the trail of the master criminal and their mutual attraction is the cause of much confusion. Read more
Published on 27 Aug 1999
I looooved this book. Cannnot wait for the next one.
I really loved this book. I am a fairly new fan, as I have just made a full perusal of the series in about two weeks, and am starting on an- other. Read more
Published on 14 Jun 1999
Please lock her in her office until the next one is finished
What a great read. I was so disappointed with the last Barbara Michaels books that my usual impatience for a new Peters book--particularly an Amelia book--was greater than... Read more
Published on 14 Jun 1999
Life gets even more complicated for the Emersons
Some reviews have already given away too much, so I don't think that I will summarize the book any further. Read more
Published on 12 Jun 1999
Surprising plot twists, and very, very funny.
After 9 books in the series, I was worried this one might not live up to my expectations. But it is one of the best, with the usual cast of characters, and with my all time... Read more
Published on 12 Jun 1999
I couldn't put this down!
I read this book in about six hours. I love what Peters' is doing with Manuscript H and assorted letters and "books" in fleshing out her novel. Read more
Published on 11 Jun 1999
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