Audio Book Review: Lion in the Valley

Title: Lion in the Valley

Author: Elizabeth Peters

Publisher: Recorded Books

Format: Audio Book

Length: 12.33 hours

Read by: Barbara Rosenblat

Grade: A for the Book/A+ for the Reader

Reason for Re-reading: Every now and then, a girl needs a Master Criminal.

The Gist: Amelia Peabody Emerson is back in Egypt for another season with her famous archeologist husband, the irascible Radcliffe Emerson, and her precocious and “alarmingly loquacious” son, Ramses.  As is wont to happen to Amelia and crew…well her faithful reis, Abdullah, says it best:

“Another dead body. Every year it is the same. Every year, another dead body…”

Between the dead bodies, cursed inconvenient young lovers, and the machinations of one thoroughly devious Master Criminal, it’s a wonder the Emersons manage to find any time for Amelia’s beloved pyramids.

My Thoughts: I love Elizabeth Peters and I confess this is about the 100th time (give or take) that I have read this particular volume.  I have a special fondness for Amelia’s spectacularly intelligent cluelessness, and combined with my adoration of the Master Criminal, that genius of crime, this volume always makes for an engaging and entertaining read.  Elizabeth Peters has a knack for Amelia’s voice and a fine sense of play.  The Amelia Peabody series in general is pure fun, and Lion in the Valley is no exception.

My Thoughts on the Audio Performance: Okay, so Barbara Rosenblat is basically a master at her craft with eight Audie Awards to her credit.  She quite simply is Amelia Peabody.  At the same time, she shifts with ease into other characters giving a gruff, sarcastic vibe to Emerson, a youthful vitality to Ramses, a softness to Enid, and a bewildered, yet assertive quality to the aforementioned Abdullah.  As a reader, I was completely absorbed in her performance, but as an actor, I was awed.  One critic stated “Barbara Rosenblat is to audiobooks what Meryl Streep is to film.” I think it’s a fair assessment.