The Deeds of the Disturber

The Amelia Peabody Series, Book 5

By: Elizabeth Peters

Narrated by: Barbara Rosenblat

Length: 13 hrs and 58 mins

Publisher's Summary

After an adventurous season spent excavating at Dahshoor, and narrowly averting the clutches of the Master Criminal, Victorian Egyptologist Amelia Peabody Emerson and her spouse prepare for a quiet summer in England. The social and domestic routine, though interrupted by the precocious escapades of their only child, Ramses, hardly seems much of a challenge for the indomitable Emersons.

But, rest assured, dear reader...domesticity does not prevail. When a night watchman mysteriously dies in front of the mummy Lady Henutmehit in the Egyptian room of the British Museum, Amelia is on the scene with her trusty parasol, ready to do battle with the malignant mummy.

Despite the appearance of an ancient sem priest and cryptic notes in hieroglyphics, Amelia surmises that a less-ancient villain is at work, a villain with evil plans for select members of the British archeological community, including her beloved Emerson. Is the villain plotting Emerson's demise, or something even more sinister?

Don't miss the rest of the Amelia Peabody series. You can also check out more of our Most Addictive Series.

©1988 Elizabeth Peters (P)1993 Recorded Books, Inc.

Excellent Narrator

For fans of the Amelia Peabody series, I highly recommend Ms Rosenblat's narration. She provides Amelia with a lovely british accent and appropriate voices for the other various characters. From a gruff and husky Emerson to the high and childlike Ramses her narration is completely entertaining. As this is the 5th Amelia Peabody narration I have listened to, three by Ms Rosenblat, I have established a definite preference for her's.

Don't ask me!

Don't ask me! I am the last person to critique an Amelia Peabody book. That is because I am an unabashedly unashamed fan of the intrepid Feminist scholar and her dashing husband, Radcliffe's Emerson. So I refuse to critique on the ground that it will reveal me as hopelessly in love with the entire Amelia Peabody Series.

Deeds of the Disturber

I read the first of the Amelia Peabody series and really enjoyed it. Looked for another with Barbara Rosenblatt narrating since she got such excellent reviews and chose this one. I have to say that I was disappointed. Formulaic for sure. But the most irritating part was the "we have such a great sex life" and "Emerson gets my juices going" repetition. I wanted to say "All right, I've got it! You have a good sex life!". However, story was decent, narrator excellent. I am now reading an Amelia Peabody that is much later and the WONDERFUL sex life thing seems to have disappeared - so maybe it was just this book or books relatively early in the series.

Always good for a laugh

Deeds of the Disturber??? Elizabeth Peters
audio version performed by Barbara Rosenblat

4 stars
Deeds of the Disturber is the fifth book in Peter???s Amelia Peobody series. In this book, Amelia, her husband Radcliff Emerson and their precocious son Ramses have returned to England after a season of excavation and detection in Egypt. While Emerson sets about organizing his excavation notes and preparing for publication by the Oxford University Press, Amelia is burdened with the care of her obnoxious niece and nephew. The plot immediately thickens with the death of a night watchman and the desecration of a mummy at the British Museum. Investigating the crime takes Amelia, Emerson and the intrepid Ramses from the brothels and opium dens of Victorian London to Scotland Yard. The exciting climax occurs in the dark confines of the decaying, gothic Mauldy Manner.
This book is a pastiche of detective fiction and a spoof of Victorian society dramas. I adore Amelia Peobody. More than that, I adore Barbara Rosenblat???s talented interpretation of this entertaining series. Every voice, every inflection and especially every accent she employs is perfect. Rosenblat???s rendition of the young Ramses is one of the funniest things I???ve ever heard. It is worth listening to for this line alone, ???Fortunately, I???ve brought along a little nitroglycerin.???

the Amelia Peabody Series by Elizabeth Peters

I am thoroughly enjoying this series, referred to me by a dear friend. I highly recommend this series. I must admitt that the reader (Barbara Rosenblat) has truly made the series live. Also because i enjoy many "period" movies it is easy to place faces, in my minds eye, with each character due of course to the reading of Ms. Rosenblat. Therefore you will understand that when Ms. Rosenblat is not the reader it is a great disappointment. I am now on book 8 "The Hippopotamus Pool" and only one book was not the reader I am so endeared. But please donot allow this to discourage one from reading them all! Many many hours of enjoyment await you all, Robbin Wms

My favorite in the series so far!

This is the 5th book in the Amelia Peabody series that I have read and it was my favorite.

The two cousins of Ramses were added to the story, and that made the story more entertaining with the cousins different personalities. I love Ramses; so I enjoyed seeing his interactions with these children.

I loved the love story between Amelia and Emerson. They are such a great couple.

You still get the murder and the mystery in the plot, but the whole family plot is excellent too.

I thoroughly enjoyed the audible!

Barbara Rosenblat, the narrator, was also superb.

Great always!

The books themselves are great, but Barbara Rosenblat's interpretation makes them come alive. It still amazes me how she can make you see the characters in your minds eye. I have listened to the series many times over the years and never get tired of the Emerson's adventures.

Love Elizabeth Peters!

Her books are wonderful, and having Barbara Rosenblat read them is even better. My first audiobook of hers was the ‘Curse of the Pharaohs’. She is Amelia Peabody, and I wouldn’t listen to any other person read it than Ms. Rosenblat. :)

The Reader Matters

I was not at all happy with Ms.Rosenblat's reading.
It wasn't that she was bad.....it is more like she put too much effort into the reading of "Deeds of the Disturber". Elizabeth Peters' work just didn't need the heavy sighs or overwrought inflections Ms. Rosenblat put into the words. That being said, I could live with "Amelia" but the other characters just sounded awful.....I hate saying that but it is my feeling. I'm throwing my cds with Ms. Rosenblat of "Deeds of the Disturber" into the trash. I have bought the version with Susan O'Malley instead. No, she doesn't have a proper British accent. Surprisingly she doesn't need it. Rather Ms. O'Malley allows Ms. Peters words to illuminate the very Britishness of Amelia's soul as well as giving a voice to the masculine character in both Ramses and Emerson. She is terrific. She also pronounces Abdulah correctly!!

Change of Pace

This Amelia Peabody book takes place mainly in England, rather than the adventurous Egypt. I was not sure I would enjoy it in a differnt locale, but the story was fast paced, exciting, and entertaining. Once again, Barbara Rosenblat lends excellent narration to the story. I have thoroughly enjoyed the British accent she uses with these characters. Much more so than the versions by Susan O'Mallay. Of books 1-6, this is by far my favorite.

The Emersons in London

Even away from her beloved Egypt Amelia manages to practice her 'detectival skills'. Encountering murder, mayhem and mummies, not to mention decadent aristocrats, an opium den and a possible rival for Emerson's affections ... Amelia merely grips her parasol tighter and deals with them all. Emerson growls, the police are baffled, journalists are everywhere and Ramses has his own problems coping with his revolting cousins. However, this doesn't stop him donning disguises, joining forces with the butler and of course, saving the day. As usual, Barbara Rosenblat lends her own inimitable style and has you laughing out loud. Elizabeth Peters manages to take every mystery and romantic cliche and turn them on their heads - taking us on a wonderfully erudite and entertaining romp through the streets of Victorian London with characters we want to meet again and again.

witty, fun and gloriously read!

Am I right in thinking Barbara Rosenblat is American? You'd never know it - she does the voices impeccably: Victorian posh , Cockney, Irish, Arabic, male, female, children's ....They are great fun, these Amelia Peabody books, with a satisfying amount of erudition and background research underlying the sparky narrative. The formidable, parasol-wielding heroine is frequently forced to yield to erotic and tender impulses when dealing with her wily husband and precocious son, two more excellent comic creations.

The Deeds of the Disturber

This was something of a surprise, being set in England this time. A good story read by a great narrator.

Great fun all round

The story rattles on at a good pace, the narration is excellent, and a thoroughly enjoyable listen.

Ok, if a fan

This book is not as enjoyable as the other Peabody novels because it is set in London rather than Egypt. I missed Abdullah and his family, and found Percy Peabody extremely irritating. However it is necessary background for fully understanding the later storylines. I am a fan and have actually listened several times. I'm just saying stick with it for the sake of the other books if you struggle with this story as I did.

Tremendous fun and so authentic sounding

If Amelia Peabody could speak she would sound just like Barbara Rosenblatt! She really brings this book (and all the other Peabody books) to life. A wonderful listen which brings out the humour in the original.

Very Enjoyable! Superb Narrator

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Narrator was excellent as usual, truly one of the best narrators I have heard giving life and character to everyone she reads.

This book was based in England, a nice change from Egypt and I enjoyed the plot and the way the story developed. A certain amount of 'willing suspension of disbelief' is required with all Amelia Peabody books, but the language is rich, intelligent and rewarding and the characters both interesting and portrayed with a sense of humour. A very enjoyable listen.

However, such a pity that Audible does not have book 4 of this series available in their listings as it is referred to frequently in this and subsequent books in the series.

Have you listened to any of Barbara Rosenblat’s other performances? How does this one compare?

I have listened to several of this narrators books, and she is consistently superb throughout.

Any additional comments?

Please can you ensure that you have the full Amelia Peabody series available, from start to finish. Book 4 missing and others I think.

I was skeptical about this one .. but..

Don't be like me and think of skipping this one , it's yet another brilliant novel! it maybe set in England but it still has everything we have grown to love!

Even better

One of the best of this series yet. Delightful! Interesting characters and as usual, wonderful narration.

Old friends to enjoy again

It was a nice surprise to realise there was just one “Emerson” adventure left to purchase on Audible. I have read all the books years ago and listened to a number of the audiobooks from the library some years ago. It was so enjoyable to listen to them all again. Better still to have them in my library should I feel I’d like to listen to their exploits again. They never fail to make me smile.