The Ape Who Guards the Balance begins in 1907 in England where Amelia is attending a suffragettes' rally outside the home of Mr. Geoffrey Romer of ...
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Dec 16, 2009
Becca
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If you've never read Elizabeth Peters, you should begin with the first in this series (Crocodile in the Sandbank) and work your way up as this is one of the later novels. Amelia Peabody Emerson is a fantastically stereotypical Victorian heroine- snappy, sharp, and utterly convinced of her own take of the world. Set in turn of the 19th/20th Century Egypt against the backdrop of the heyday of the great ancient Egyptian discoveries by the likes of Carter and his cohorts, these books are fast pace
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Feb 15, 2011
Shadee
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First off, I absolutely adore this series! Not only does it have a strong, confident and feisty female heroine but it mixes in important archaelogical finds of the period. This is one of my favorites in the series (I've read them at least twice) mainly because it's a swirl of so many evil geniuses, masters of disguise and so much more. Elizabeth Peters slyly educates us with the history of ancient Egypt while entertaining us with characters that feel like family. This particular book is based du
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Jul 18, 2011
Ryan Patrick
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Peabody and Emerson don't change much from book to book - they're kind of the solid core of any book in the series that you can always count on (except in the fourth book) - but the children are developing into interesting characters in their own right. I think Peters was right to make them important characters in the series and introduce the Manuscript H stuff into the narrative.
<spoiler>
My only real disappointment here was the scene of Abdullah's death - his end was fitti More...
<spoiler>
My only real disappointment here was the scene of Abdullah's death - his end was fitti More...
Aug 17, 2011
Ann
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This is part of the wonderful Amelia Peabody series. There are approximately 19 books in the series. Last summer, which I christened "The Summer of Amelia Peabody", I read through the first nine. It was such fun that I decided to read the remaining books in the series during this, my "Second Summer of Amelia Peabody".
As I resumed the series, I was not disappointed. It is now "the season" of 1907. Independently-minded Amelia and her equally unorthodox fam More...
As I resumed the series, I was not disappointed. It is now "the season" of 1907. Independently-minded Amelia and her equally unorthodox fam More...
Jun 01, 2010
Kaye
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Very much enjoying the young adult Ramses, David and Nefret. This adventure brings back Sethos, the master criminal who has strong feelings for Amelia. Emerson and family are bored doing very tedious work only to find that the crew near them makes a major discovery of artifacts. A dead body in the river and a few other distractions and Emerson is trying to do all he can to keep his family safe. I think these books would be hard to enjoy as just a stand alone novel. You have to follow the c
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Oct 05, 2010
Jeri
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I like the way this one has the younger generation fully involved in the adventure as old enemies come back to haunt the Emersons. The problems begin with an attack on Amelia in London, but the case follows them to Egypt where uneventful (read dull) archeological work is interrupted by attacks on various members of the family. There are clues pointing to the involvement of their old nemesis, the Master Criminal, but could he really have broken his promise to Amelia not to target those she loved?
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Apr 19, 2011
April
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Reading about the Emerson's is like visiting good friends. This story had manuscripts written by Ramses and Nefret, which sometimes made it hard to follow, but I was able to get into the rhythm and they brought more of the children into the story.
The loss of a loving member of the family was heart-wrenchingly sad and I will miss him.
I really liked seeing the children take more of an active role, which needs to happen as Amelia and Emerson can't go on forever! I hope that Ramses a More...
The loss of a loving member of the family was heart-wrenchingly sad and I will miss him.
I really liked seeing the children take more of an active role, which needs to happen as Amelia and Emerson can't go on forever! I hope that Ramses a More...
Jul 21, 2011
Robin
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Paused halfway thru to read Heartless. You should go read Heartless too. More to follow.
Okay, now I'm finished. This was a pretty good book. I don't want to go all spoiler-y on you, but there were some surprisingly sad parts to this one. As usual, there were also some funny parts, some educational parts, some dramatic parts, and some parts with characters from previous novels that I had frankly forgotten.
In my opinion, some of these characters were best left fo More...
Okay, now I'm finished. This was a pretty good book. I don't want to go all spoiler-y on you, but there were some surprisingly sad parts to this one. As usual, there were also some funny parts, some educational parts, some dramatic parts, and some parts with characters from previous novels that I had frankly forgotten.
In my opinion, some of these characters were best left fo More...
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Sep 17, 2010
Jenifer
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Ramses finds himself in a dire situation; Captured and restrained, beaten and bloody, waiting and wondering if a way of escape will present itself when someone arrives ominously at the door.
"His aches and pains were forgotten in anticipation of what was to come next. The figure that stood in the doorway was not that of an enemy; worse. It was that of his mother."
At one point in the story an acquaintance wonders why the Emersons fall into the same kinds of trouble y More...
"His aches and pains were forgotten in anticipation of what was to come next. The figure that stood in the doorway was not that of an enemy; worse. It was that of his mother."
At one point in the story an acquaintance wonders why the Emersons fall into the same kinds of trouble y More...
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May 18, 2010
Stephanie
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
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Nov 30, 2008
CJ
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I must admit, sometimes when I'm reading a book that's part of a series, I read it, but I don't really read it. That is, I don't really pay a lot of attention to the details because the characters are such old friends. Not with this book. Yes, the characters are old friends, but there was so much going on, I couldn't just sail through. I had to pay attention because I was afraid to miss anything.
It is amazing to me that Elizabeth Peters' Amelia Peabody series keeps getting bett More...
It is amazing to me that Elizabeth Peters' Amelia Peabody series keeps getting bett More...
Sep 03, 2011
Librarianforhim
rated it:
Plot: Emerson is at odds with an Egyptology enthusiast, the children find themselves in danger from a criminal organization, and Sethos is back in teh picture. It's up to Amelia to sort it all out with the help of her wits, and of course her trusty parasol. This season turns out to be anything but dull.
Why I picked it up: After coming this far in the series, how could I not?
Why I kept reading: The action, adventure, humor, and romantic angst.
Again it was a wild and More...
Why I picked it up: After coming this far in the series, how could I not?
Why I kept reading: The action, adventure, humor, and romantic angst.
Again it was a wild and More...
Aug 13, 2011
Bridget
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This is the tenth Amelia Peabody mystery, set in 1906-07, about 3 years after the last book, Seeing a Large Cat, and Ramses is now about 20 or 21 years old. This is one of my absolute favorites since I read mainly for the characters, and is the second part of the four-book mini-series than began with Seeing a Large Cat and continues in The Falcon at the Portal and He Shall Thunder in the Sky.
The relationship and interaction with Ramses, David, and Nephret is wonderful. They have so More...
The relationship and interaction with Ramses, David, and Nephret is wonderful. They have so More...
Dec 27, 2011
Angela
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
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Apr 26, 2010
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
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Jul 13, 2011
Rach
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I am beginning to get more and more used to hearing Ramses' perspective, and I definitely appreciate it. The mystery in this particular novel was rather confusing - part of it was centered on this parchment the kids got their hands on, but then it was more about them being abducted. And then you add it the fuss about Akhenaten/Tiya's tomb and the horrible Mr. Davis, and at times it was hard to figure out what the focus was.
So here are some things I did and didn't like from this book: More...
So here are some things I did and didn't like from this book: More...
Feb 17, 2008
UPDATE: After almost 6 weeks of slogging through this horrible book, I finished it just to see it through to the end and to make sure my first impression was correct. I dreaded bedtime each night when I would have this badly-written mystery standing between me and a good night's sleep. I am glad it is over and will not read another one like it! Yuck!
I have just started reading this book, and I loathe it. I hate to be so utterly negative about The Ape Who Guards the Balance, More...
I have just started reading this book, and I loathe it. I hate to be so utterly negative about The Ape Who Guards the Balance, More...
Apr 01, 2009
Stacy
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This one was a little hard for me to get into, but I still enjoyed it. Peabody is an amusingly written character. I usually try to read books like this in order, and I think that might have been part of my problem this time. I've only read the first one in this series, but I picked this up at the Y for a buck and I didn't have another book in the house that I hadn't already read. I think I will pick up at book two. There is not much to them, but they are entertaining.
Dec 07, 2010
Jamie
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Very entertaining. I'm enjoying the later books in this series even more than the earlier ones. I am entirely amused by the teen-aged Ramses, now sometimes addressed as "Mr. Emerson" and sometimes dressed in the height of fashion for an Edwardian English gentleman. But mostly he is in Egypt with his parents and his adopted sister and cousin, excavating ancient Egyptian tombs and investigating murders.
Amelia Peabody is still deservedly the star of the story, but I think the More...
Amelia Peabody is still deservedly the star of the story, but I think the More...
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Apr 14, 2008
Celia
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The character development in this 10th book of the Amelia Peabody series was great fun - I've skipped a couple, and it was lovely to see Ramses & Nefret as adults (and David, whom I'd never met as a child). There's a nice love story, a realistically tense family reaction, arguments between Amelia and her growingly independent children... I enjoyed these aspects of the story. I also liked the excerpts from "Manuscript H", being Ramses' diary, so that we get to see events not solely fr
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Feb 01, 2011
Jimmy
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One thing I like about this series is that the different books are based in succeeding years and show a development and aging of the characters. This is not true in all series. Sara Paretsky's lead character, VI Warshawski, never seems to get old and the Patrick O'Brian books have 11 different novels that encompass 5 years of action in only 1 chronilogical year. It doesn't actually make sense to me. In the Amelia Peabody mysteries, the kids grow up from youngsters to adolescents to young adu
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Jun 07, 2009
Carol
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I downloaded this one from the Henrico library to my MP3. There was a great surprise at the end: an interview with the author and the narrator. This was both interesting and funny. Elizabeth Peters (really Barbara Mertz) said that Barbara Rosenblatt doesn't read the character's lines, she performs them. So true! Peters also begs, pleads, and sends fudge so that she gets an early copy of the audiobook.
I'm trying to pace myself so I don't run out of this series, but I'm very eager More...
I'm trying to pace myself so I don't run out of this series, but I'm very eager More...
Sep 30, 2010
Kathy
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Lots of action in this one...I now know where Lia fits in; I'm curious as to how they get around Evelyn and Walter. Sethos screws up resulting in a very-much-loved character dying. Ramses makes a life-altering decision and the rest is the usual fun and games of all those strong personalities pursuing mysteries, cursing archeological incompetence, and the complex human interactions...that Sir Edward..!
Aug 08, 2010
Lindsay
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Just to put it out there, I love the Amelia Peabody series. This book exemplifies Elizabeth Peters's aptitude for capturing both Victorian priopriety and a rebellion, while Amelia Peabody and her damnably independent family seek to unveil the meaning Egyptian remains and avoid getting wound up into too many murder mysteries.
Mar 21, 2010
Heidi
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This is always a tough one...the Emersons' world tilts on its axis and it is a bumpy ride. Whew! As an added bonus, if you listen to this on Recorded Books read by Barbara Rosenblat, you get to listen to an interview with Barbara Mertz (aka Elizabeth Peters) and Barbara Rosenblat.....Indeed, life is VERY good!
Sep 19, 2010
Tracy
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I love Elizabeth Peters and Amelia Peabody! This is my second book to read in the Peabody series, and I think I'll start the whole thing from the beginning. I really enjoy Peters's strong, passionate characters. They take the world by storm, work tirelessly day and night, and end with a win.
Jun 01, 2011
Carrie
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The characters in Elizabeth Peters books are just wonderful. Each character has a tenacious and colorful personality which adds true vigor & vitality to each & every story by this author. LOVE THEM. If you like Indiana Jones, you will LOVE these books.
Dec 03, 2008
Nichole
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Loved it!!! This is definitely a book to read after reading some of the earlier books in the series. Peters brought together characters from several of the earlier books. If I didn't know there was another book to follow, I would say that this was a great way to end the series. I'm curious to see what happens in the next one.
Dec 13, 2010
Deanna
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Ah, Amelia, your flaws are showing -- fighting for the rights of women, you forget to explore your own prejudices that might come back to hurt those you love. And then there's that mysterious master criminal who loves you desperately -- enough to save your life and perhaps reform? The death of a major character made me cry -- again -- and will likely do the same for you.
Aug 31, 2010
Patti
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Once again, Elizabeth Peters (aka Barbara Mertz) delivers an amazing and intelligent read. I started this series when I was twelve (thirteen?) borrowing a couple at a time from the few times I saw my cousins. These books are definitely brain-challenging! I love them! They have progressed with age and Peters skillfully develops the characters of David, Nefret, and Ramses. They are by far my favorite characters! My only problem with this series is the lack of REAL villains. The only really ruthles
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