THE PAINTED QUEEN

When Elizabeth Peters (Egyptologist Barbara Mertz) died in 2013, she left a partially finished manuscript. Thanks to mystery writer Joan Hess, who completed the manuscript, and the remarkable Barbara Rosenblat, fans can rest assured that the Peabody-Emerson clan is in more-than-capable hands. The family gathers in Cairo for the season and, as Amelia soaks in her bath, a man with a knife falls into her boudoir--dead! Rosenblat is sublime delivering Amelia's caustic observations, especially when husband Emerson flings himself bodily upon several possible assassins. Her "harumph" is priceless. Whether dealing with a mystery surrounding a bust of Nefertiti, avoiding "master criminal" Sethos, offering a refreshing tea break--with pastries and cucumber sandwiches--or dispatching an assortment of monocled villains, Rosenblat delivers a delicious blend of love and mayhem. S.J.H. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2017, Portland, Maine [Published: JULY 2017]