Xenia Navarre Historical Romance

I don’t often blog about series books, but this is the Egyptian-set historical mystery series that singlehandedly introduced me to the genre and made me love it, and I devour these books with such unabashed pleasure! Amelia Peabody is a redoubtable Victorian spinster on her first tour of Egypt when she meets fiery Egyptologist Radcliffe Emerson in a Cairo museum, and sparks fly. While the reluctant companions excavate an intriguing Egyptian ruin, a murder is committed, and Amelia must work with Emerson to solve the crime. Of course they fall in love, and the remaining books in this glorious series of twenty or so contain the tales of their archeological, romantic, and crime-solving adventures from Victorian through 1920s Egypt.

These books are EXQUISITELY well written, interweaving danger and mystery with Egyptian culture and some absolutely fascinating archaological explorations. The whodunits are so well developed you can NEVER guess who the real villain is. And the chemistry between the well-bred Victorian Peabody and the tempestuous, devil-may-care Emerson is written with Victorian restraint, yet makes the page smolder! Speaking as an explorer who’s spent a fair amount of time in Egypt myself, I can say Elizabeth Peters does a brilliant job of evoking the dusty mystique of this exotic land.

I’ve also recently discovered the author’s Vicky Bliss mystery series, which is a bit lighter but positively charming and effervescent, featuring a contemporary art historian, the brainy but beautiful Miss Bliss, and her crime-solving adventures through Europe.

Anyway, Elizabeth Peters has singlehandedly transformed me into a lover of mysteries, though my tastes remain highly selective. I need a deeply sympathetic sleuth, an evocative setting, and not too much graphic violence or…God forbid…police procedural. A dash of history and culture is always welcome. So a hearty, enthusiastic recommendation from me for these splendid books. The first Amelia Peabody mystery is CROCODILE ON THE SANDBANK, which is a great place to start. Trust me. You’re going to want to read all of them.

In this unusual Regency historical romance, impoverished Frenchwoman Camille Marchand is the illegitimate daughter of a disgraced noblewoman and a cruel-hearted scoundrel. An unexpected bequest from a distant relative becomes Camille’s hope for an independent future, but she must marry within six weeks or forfeit the inheritance. Scarred and haunted by the tragedy that caused his brother’s death, melancholy plantation owner Kieran, Baron Rothewell, wins the mysterious Camille from her dissolute father in a lucky hand of poker. But Kieran is ill–perhaps dying–and wants nothing to do with this marriage bargain. Both Camille and Kieran must confront the painful secrets of their past in order to grasp any chance for a happy future.

This dark and sensual romance was beautifully conceived and elegantly executed. Camille is a highly sympathetic heroine–smart, resourceful, and vivid. Kieran is initially difficult to like, but his suffering and strength of character gradually create a strong rapport–both with Camille and the reader! Carlyle skillfully conceals the secrets in both characters’ past, so the eventual revelations are both surprising and poignant. The bond between these two characters is moving, without being trite, clichéd or sentimental. The ending is highly satisfactory, with both physical and emotional healing for the couple.

I gladly recommend this one for lovers of historical (especially Regency) romance who are looking for a slightly different spin on this familiar period.

Happy reading from
Xenia

In this sci-fi novel set on near-future Mars, American biologist Julia Barth and her Russian astronaut husband Viktor are among the lucky few sent on a risky first-ever expedition to Mars. In the profit-fuelled race to explore the red planet and return before their German/Chinese competitors to win the $30 billion prize, corners are cut, and suddenly the planet turns deadly. Only by working together can the remnants of both teams hope to survive, and make it back to Earth before their food and water run out.

As I’ve mentioned before on this blog, I enjoy sci-fi, but I have to be in exactly the right mood to read it, and it has to be exactly the right book. Enough action and a pretty brisk pace, some science but definitely not too much (I don’t want Mitchener when I’m in this mood), but also complex and sympathetic characterization, some depth to the plot, and a good love story with a happy ending certainly doesn’t hurt.

This one turned out to be such a story. This is the second Benford book I’ve read, after HEART OF THE COMET (the Halley’s Comet story I recently reviewed), which was one hell of a good read. One aspect I loved about both books, speaking as someone who lived in Russia for years, is that both stories have strong Russian characters who are absolutely on the mark. I’ve read so many books (written by non-Russians) where the Russian characters are just not right—even basic goofs like male-gendered last names on female characters are frequent errors, and often the Russian characters just don’t “sound right” when they speak. Benford gets it SO right, and it makes me believe in his authorial credibility throughout.

I’m still in that sci-fi mood though, still looking for another good Mars book. For some reason, I seem to have a craving…perhaps because I’m writing a dark medieval at the moment. Does anyone have a good suggestion?