Egypt, 1912. Amelia Peabody and her dashing archaeologist husband, Radcliffe Emerson, are once again in danger as they search for a priceless, stolen bust of legendary Queen Nefertiti...

Arriving in Cairo for another thrilling excavation season, Amelia is relaxing in her elegant hotel suite when a man with knife protruding from his back staggers into her chamber and utters a single word -'Murder' - before collapsing on the floor, dead. It soon becomes apparent that someone has saved Amelia from a would-be assassin-someone who is keeping a careful eye on the intrepid archaeologist. And there can be only one answer: the brilliant master of disguise, Sethos.

For Amelia, this excavation season will prove to be unforgettable; one where a brilliant criminal will offer his final challenge . . . and perhaps be unmasked at last.

'Think Miss Marple with early feminist gloss crossed with Indiana Jones' The Guardian

'Elizabeth Peters' books are great entertainment' Angela Rippon

'Think Miss Marple with early feminist gloss crossed with Indiana Jones' Guardian

'The joy of the Amelia books has always been their elegant sense of humor . . . Peters manages to satirize romantic thrillers while producing some of the finest in the genre' Entertainment Weekly

'MWA Grandmaster Peters uses vivid settings, sharp characterizations, and deft dialogue to transport the reader to another time and place' Publishers Weekly

'A jewel of a series' New York Times Book Review

A joyously entertaining romp which manages to give the reader the clear impression of having been right there in the heat and the dust of the desert, besieged on all sides by diabolical scoundrels and head-strong camels