I was thrilled for the chance to read THE PAINTED QUEEN. Before I started to read this book I didn't know that this is the last book in the Amelia Peabody series. Elizabeth Peters never finished it before she died and her good friend, Joan Hess, took over and spent three years working with it before it was released. I have to admit that reading about Elizabeth Peters made me a bit sad about the fact that she never got to finish this book. She was a wonderful person who was a dedicated author who loved writing.

As a big fan of reading about archaeology in books, I was intrigued by the premise of THE PAINTED QUEEN. As this was my first Amelia Peabody and Radcliffe Emerson book, I have no previous knowledge about the characters and I was amused at first by their relationship. Emerson was especially amusing, he seems to be a bit of a hothead, particularly when his wife is being threatened, which is pretty much the first thing that happens in this book. While Amelia is taking a bath, an assassin stumbles in and then, for some strange reason, collapses with a knife in his back. Is someone keeping an eye out for Amelia? Could it be Sethos, Emerson's nemesis?

This is just the start of an adventurous story with assassins, suspicious characters, a lost bust of Nefertiti, and sightings of Sethos, who seems to be there to help Amelia. I have to be honest, that, despite the promising beginning, I felt less and less entranced with the characters and the plot as the story progressed. I even had a moment when I wondered what was the point of this book? It just kept going on and on with the fake Nefertiti bust and assassins that were quite bad at their job. Seriously, if that storyline was supposed to be funny it missed its marks with me. I would have preferred a more serious tone. The thing that annoyed me the most was the whole "Father of Curses" and "Brother of Demons" thing. That's Emerson and his son Ramses nicknames, and apparently, they are widely feared and everyone in Egypt seems to tremble before them. Honestly, I got more and more annoyed as the story progressed and the Egyptians kept calling them "Father of Curses" and "Brother of Demons."

So, THE PAINTED QUEEN started off good for me, but as the story progressed the plot more and more irritated me. But, for some strange reason did I quite like Sethos, the master of disguises. To be honest, I like him more than Emerson, who more or less of behaved like a child with tantrums. However, if you love this series, and all the things that bother me is what you like about the books in this series, then you will probably love this book.

Book Summary

Egypt, 1912—Amelia Peabody and her dashing archeologist husband, Radcliffe Emerson, are once again in danger as they search for a priceless, stolen bust of legendary Queen Nefertiti and Amelia finds herself the target of assassins in this long-awaited, eagerly anticipated final installment of Elizabeth Peters’ bestselling, beloved mystery series.

Arriving in Cairo for another thrilling excavation season, Amelia is relaxing in a well-earned bubble bath in her elegant hotel suite in Cairo, when a man with knife protruding from his back staggers into the bath chamber and utters a single word—"Murder"—before collapsing on the tiled floor, dead. Among the few possessions he carried was a sheet of paper with Amelia’s name and room number, and a curious piece of pasteboard the size of a calling card bearing one word: "Judas." Most peculiarly, the stranger was wearing a gold-rimmed monocle in his left eye.

It quickly becomes apparent that someone saved Amelia from a would-be assassin—someone who is keeping a careful eye on the intrepid Englishwoman. Discovering a terse note clearly meant for Emerson—Where were you?"—pushed under their door, there can be only one answer: the brilliant master of disguise, Sethos.

But neither assassins nor the Genius of Crime will deter Amelia as she and Emerson head to the excavation site at Amarna, where they will witness the discovery of one of the most precious Egyptian artifacts: the iconic Nefertiti bust. In 1345 B.C. the sculptor Thutmose crafted the piece in tribute to the great beauty of this queen who was also the chief consort of Pharaoh Akhenaten and stepmother to King Tutankhamun.

For Amelia, this excavation season will prove to be unforgettable. Throughout her journey, a parade of men in monocles will die under suspicious circumstances, fascinating new relics will be unearthed, a diabolical mystery will be solved, and a brilliant criminal will offer his final challenge . . . and perhaps be unmasked at last.