The Mummy Case by Elizabeth Peters

Radcliffe Emerson, the irascible husband of fellow archaeologist and Egyptologist Amelia Peabody, has earned the nickname "Father of Curses" -- and at Mazghunah he demonstrates why. Denied permission to dig at the pyramids of Dahshoor, he and Amelia are resigned to excavating mounds of rubble in the middle of nowhere. And there is nothing in this barren area worthy of their interest -- until an antiquities dealer is murdered in his own shop. A second sighting of a sinister stranger from the crime scene, a mysterious scrap of papyrus, and a missing mummy case have all whetted Amelia's curiosity. But when the Emersons start digging for answers in an ancient tomb, events take a darker and deadlier turn -- and there may be no surviving the very modern terrors their efforts reveal.

So I don't have much to say about the third book in the Amelia Peabody series. What was incredibly funny was the way Peabody talks about Emerson in the story as if he were a woman, with his fussing and hysterics and sensitivity of emotion and soft heart...yet outwardly of course he is blustery, always yelling and cursing, and quite manly.  I found the more in depth description of archeological methods and techniques informative and interesting, as well as the description of the various settings, especially the Cairo's bazaars.

Normally Peter's characters are likeable or interesting even though they may be responsible for evil-doing. In The Mummy Case I did not really care for some of the secondary characters, which impeded my enjoyment of the story.  There seemed to be too much going on in the plot as well, making events confusing. Actually I got irritated and finished the book as quickly as I could...I have now moved onto Lion in the Valley, the fourth book in the series.  Maybe I moved on to The Mummy Case too soon after The Curse of the Pharaohs but I don't think so as I have been liking Lion in the Valley so much more.

My Rating: 3.5

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