Can't Wait Wednesday: Murder on the S.S. Cleopatra by Sara Rosett (Lady Traveler in Egypt Book Two)

 

For this week's Can't Wait Wednesday hosted by Tressa at the book blog, Wishful Endings, I'm featuring, Murder on the S.S. Cleopatra, by Sara Rosett. I have wanted to start this series before and hadn't gotten around to it. I love all things set in Egypt and the first book, Murder Among the Pyramids, is one I keep forgetting about! So now there is a new one to catch up with as well. I really need to add these to my TBR pile for winter. It is very Agatha Christie like in that our heroine is cruising down the Nile and encounters a murder. Set in the 1920's it should be a fun read. I hope you've found something you can't wait for! Happy reading ya'll!

Cozy Mysteries

 October 21, 2025

Book description courtesy of Goodreads

Luxury, lies, and murder on a Nile cruise

Join Blix Windway, an adventurous lady traveler, on a journey down the Nile in 1924. An eclectic mix of passengers boards the steamer, including a captain of industry, a former stunt-girl reporter turned lady of the manor, an archaeologist, an American teacher, a British doctor and his invalid wife, and a German photographer.

When a passenger is found dead, the elegant cruise turns into a floating crime scene. With everyone confined on board, tensions rise and secrets surface. Even her traveling companion, Hildy Honeyworth, is behaving as if she has something to hide. Blix must navigate the treacherous waters of the investigation and uncover the truth.

Set against the stunning backdrop of the Nile River and the ancient wonders of Egypt, this classic whodunit is the second book in the 1920s Lady Traveler in Egypt series from USA Today bestselling author Sara Rosett.

The Last Camel Died at Noon by Elizabeth Peters (Amelia Peabody Book 6)

 

Publication Date:

September 1, 1991

Genre:

Cozy Mystery

Length:

 448 pages

Series:

Amelia Peabody Mysteries

Book description courtesy of Amazon books:

If Indiana Jones were female, a wife and mother who lived in Victorian times, he would be Amelia Peabody Emerson, an archaeologist whose extraordinary adventures are guaranteed entertainment. This time Amelia, her handsome, fearless husband, Radcliffe, and their precocious 11-year-old son, Ramses, are in the Sudan, searching for archaeologist Willoughby Forth, who disappeared 14 years earlier with his new wife. Rescued in the desert after every camel in their caravan dies, the Emersons are taken to a lost city where ancient Egyptian customs have been carried into modern times. 

There, entangled in two half-brothers' battle for the throne, Amelia and family fight for the freedom of the slave class while ferreting out the fate of Forth and his bride, and arranging to escape with their lives. 

Peters ( The Deeds of the Disturber ), who also writes as Barbara Michaels, laces her usual intricate plotting with Amelia's commonsense approach to hygiene and manners, and coyly delicate references to vigorously enjoyed connubial pleasures. Combining a fierce affection for her family with indefatigable independence, stalwart Amelia proves once again an immensely likable heroine.

My Thoughts:

Having finished the previous book in the series in which the family is in England, I was anxious to get back to their usual pyramid digs in exotic places. This time the Peabodys go to Sudan on an epic adventure. They are looking for a man and his wife who have disappeared into the desert 14 years ago and only have a map and their wits to guide them. Facing heat, lack of water and supplies and dying camels the odds are really against them. When they stumble upon an ancient society that has maintained Egyptian customs they are intrigued but soon realize they are also prisoners. The civilization does not want to be discovered and the Peabodys, along with their son Ramses are now coming to understand this is not just a fun history re-enactment but a kidnapping. 

This was truly a wild ride! I honestly enjoyed the first half of the book more, the part where they are asked to search for the Willoughbys, the clues, and just the amazing authentic details that Peters includes as they prepare for the journey and make their way through the desert. I was so excited to know where the map would lead them and was really invested in what they would find. Add to that Amelia and Radcliffe and Ramses banter and it was very entertaining.