This book is the first in a series about Amelia Peabody, and one of my favorites of all time. It has become a "comfort read" for me when I need to escape for a little while and don't want to be too taxed.

Amelia inherited a large sum of money and decided to see the world. She considered herself an old and unmarriagable spinster and decided to enjoy herself and do the things that she had not done as her father's "keeper".

In Rome, she picks up a "stray" gentle Englishwoman on the edge of death and takes her along to Eqypt as a companion and friend. They soon meet up with the Emerson brothers, and enjoy a great adventure while living (camping) in a tomb at an archeological site. Mobile mummies, two faced relatives, and affairs of the heart move this book nicely along.

One of my favorites. Interestingly enough, the books are set in England, but the author is actually an American. And, she has a degree in Egyptology so the historical aspects of this series of books are essentially correct.