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draws the true criminal out as Geoff knows that Ramses will win a fistfight; Geoff quickly shoots Jack in the leg and then aims his weapon at the others. Emerson shouts at Amelia to fall to the ground, so the bullet misses her, while
Emerson and Ramses force the gun from Geoff. Ramses punches Geoff in the face, so Geoff steps back a step and slips into the shaft. Ramses grabs hold of Geoff and David approaches to grab his other hand, while Selim grabs hold of Ramses so that Ramses will not be dragged into the shaft. Geoff refuses David's help, breaks the hold of Ramses and falls to his death.
277:. They take a villa in the area, near the tram between Cairo and the pyramids. New acquaintances Jack Reynolds, young Egyptologist, and his sister Maude, are neighbors. Geoffrey Godwin, another young Egyptologist, worked with Jack the previous season, in that area. Maude has set her sights on Ramses, from first meeting. He is not similarly attracted, still in love with Nefret, but never confessing his feelings. Geoff is attracted to Nefret. Geoff mentions meeting David, the newlywed archaeologist, last season.
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wanting money to keep the child's father private. The child has the eyes of a
Peabody. The old man blames Ramses and Ramses says it is not his child. In that moment, Nefret abruptly leaves. In another moment, the Emersons, parents and son, know Percy is the father and will not care for his child. They take the child Sennia into their home. Ramses is good with her. He met the child earlier and was already providing financial support for mother and child, but telling no one.
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collection. Thus begins the case to be solved: who wants to ruin David's reputation while selling fakes as if true antiques? The
Emersons opt not to tell David or Nefret, in this week before David's wedding with Lia Emerson. Ramses will investigate the extent of items sold under this wholly false provenance.
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says this book demands a sequel, to finish the plot. To its credit, "the book is packed with intriguing characters and dangerous situations, and the villain, who can be picked out long before the climax, is unmasked." Regarding the ending, "But there is no happy ending, and I think it only right that
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Geoff had used David's name for both his illegal businesses; Geoff had prodded Jack into believing Ramses had killed Maude when it was Geoff who murdered her. Geoff led the drug smuggling and the theft of true antiquities and selling of forgeries. Maude was the artist making the forgeries, recognized
258:
The wedding takes place at the country estate of Walter and Evelyn
Emerson, parents of Lia. Three guests travel from Egypt (Selim, Daoud, and Fatimah), and Cyrus and Katherine Vandergelt come from America. The newlyweds leave on their honeymoon, with plans to meet Amelia, Emerson and Ramses in Egypt.
369:
A third reviewer found much to like in this novel, besides naming the thief and the murderers. Character development is strong for David, for Ramses and Nefret, and for the family taking in the illegitimate child of Percy and an
Egyptian prostitute. Yet this novel is "the set-up for the next book in
338:
Percy arranged the scene of Sennia, her mother and the pimp to embarrass Ramses in front of his family. Nefret reacted by fleeing and marrying the criminal, though she did not know his true character until the end. She feels guilty and will not share why, and becomes withdrawn. The doctor recommends
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A support fails in a grave, covering Ramses in the collapse. Ramses is unhurt. When Cyrus and
Katherine arrive, the Emersons call a meeting with them, Selim and Daoud to discuss the forgery problem and the incidents so far. Cyrus suggests a focus on the dig site hiding something, which proves a wise
293:
Ramses seeks
Wardani, a leader in the Egyptian nationalist movement, to emphasize the risks to David at the moment, given the harsh British policies on the movement. Alone on the boat, Nefret is accosted by Percy; in her efforts to get rid of him, she spills a secret tied to Ramses which may lead to
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The day of resolution occurs in the pyramid, when the shaft is cleared. Jack is hidden with his rifle, emerging when all are present, demanding a fair fight with Ramses. Jack believes Ramses killed his sister Maude and is presently framing Jack for the crime. The two agree to fight with fists. This
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Work at the dig stops early, though it is clear now they have found a totally new and very old tomb, with a season of good work ahead of them. Ramses plans to work at another site for a month, keeping Sennia with him, with the help of the women in Selim's family to care for her. David and Lia will
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Nefret falls in love with Ramses, after he rescues her from an unwanted visit from Percy at the villa. Finally, they are both in love with each other, the long awaited event. The next day, as they are about to tell Amelia and
Emerson, a small child, its young Egyptian mother and an old man enter,
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After
Christmas, starting to work inside the pyramid one morning, Ramses sees trouble. The body of Maude Reynolds is at the bottom of the shaft. She had been murdered; her body was brought to their dig. Her brother is distraught. Friend Geoff makes clear to Amelia his attraction to Nefret; he has
254:
A collector of
Egyptian antiques visits the house in Kent in fall 1911, asking Emerson for a second opinion on a recent purchase. It is a fake; the visitor wants Emerson to buy it in return for silence on its source. The seller said it came from David Todros, selling his grandfather Abdullah's
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Emerson and Amelia learn of the project to get at the forger of antiquities by getting at the gang bringing illegal drugs into the country. The leader is the same man. Emerson begins digging in a new place on the site, aware that there is something at their site that the forger does not want
262:
Not invited to this wedding was Percy Peabody, offensive and evil nephew of Amelia. Percy published his memoir of one visit with his aunt in Egypt, entertaining due to his exaggerations and lies, written in grandiose style. Quotes from the fictional book open the chapters.
357:
found the plot unresolved, "incomprehensible". The setting of the story is well-written, the characters are interesting, but the novel moves to a "melodramatic and violent denouement that sheds little light on an ever more muddled story."
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Someone shoots at Amelia as she rides on horseback from villa to the dig. Ramses adds that the perpetrator of the forgeries is living locally. He wants to seek more help from friends in finding the culprit, which is agreed.
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Nefret opened a clinic for women, particularly those forced into prostitution. A female physician staffs it. Nefret and Ramses meet Percy outside the clinic, where Nefret explodes at Percy about men's role in prostitution.
244:"The worst of the storm is yet to come, Sitt. You will need all your courage to survive; but your heart will not fail you, and in the end the clouds will blow away and the falcon will fly through the portal of the dawn."
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by David when he saw the gift Maude gave to Ramses at Christmas. When she shifted her romantic interest from Geoff to Ramses, she became a liability to Geoff. All the crimes belong to Geoff.
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Reviewers of this novel found it well-written with rich characters, and the mystery was solved, yet found the ending unsatisfactory, or in the words of one, the novel demands a sequel.
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They begin listing possible suspects, narrowing to a man who is young, English or European, archaeologist, familiar with the Emerson family. A talented artist may also be involved.
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Amelia has one more dream of talking with the late Abdullah, who tells her there are more hard challenges to come, but she does have the strength to face them.
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Several days later, Nefret announces that she has married Geoff Godwin, on the rebound. The pressure on Ramses is huge but he says nothing.
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stay with him. Evil Percy is still in Egypt, and is still a threat to Ramses.
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213:, first published in 1999. It features fictional archaeologist and sleuth
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she go to a clinic in Switzerland, and Amelia will take her there.
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Emerson and Amelia meet Karl von Bork, again working at a dig.
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217:. The story is set in the 1911–1912 dig season in Egypt.
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The title of the book refers to Harakhte, also known as
205:(1999) is the 11th (in order of writing) in a series of
451:"Once You've Opened `THE PORTAL,' A Sequel Is A Must"
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They settle in quickly, in the villa and at the dig.
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421:"The Falcon at the Portal by Elizabeth Peters"
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366:readers demand the sequel posthaste."
624:The Snake, the Crocodile, and the Dog
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733:Amelia Peabody's Egypt: A Compendium
480:""The Falcon at the Portal" Re-read"
449:Hall-Balduf, Susan (July 9, 1999).
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273:, south of the great pyramids of
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224:Explanation of the novel's title
110:Print (hardback & paperback)
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645:The Ape Who Guards the Balance
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484:The Library's Home on the Web
269:Emerson chose to excavate at
478:Wolff, Lia (June 11, 2014).
659:He Shall Thunder in the Sky
617:The Last Camel Died at Noon
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808:Historical mystery novels
589:The Curse of the Pharaohs
582:Crocodile on the Sandbank
294:more trouble for Ramses.
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20:The Falcon at the Portal
694:The Serpent on the Crown
652:The Falcon at the Portal
510:The Falcon at the Portal
202:The Falcon at the Portal
33:The Falcon at the Portal
31:First edition cover for
818:Novels set in the 1910s
701:Tomb of the Golden Bird
687:Guardian of the Horizon
828:Avon (publisher) books
610:Deeds of the Disturber
680:Children of the Storm
631:The Hippopotamus Pool
563:Amelia Peabody novels
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62:Amelia Peabody series
16:Book by Barbara Mertz
798:1999 American novels
232:of the Dawn, son of
823:Novels set in Egypt
813:Fiction set in 1911
168:PS3563.E747 F3 1999
21:
708:A River in the Sky
666:Lord of the Silent
638:Seeing a Large Cat
603:Lion in the Valley
361:A reviewer in the
207:historical mystery
178:A River in the Sky
73:Historical mystery
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715:The Painted Queen
505:Peters, Elizabeth
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209:novels by
156:813/.54 21
83:Avon Books
489:April 21,
460:April 21,
431:April 21,
302:insight.
79:Publisher
64:mysteries
507:(1999).
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350:Reviews
53:English
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
