I felt a wave of mixed emotions as I opened the cover of THE PAINTED QUEEN. I knew it was the very last time I would be reading a new Amelia Peabody mystery, and yet I was so very grateful to hold it in my hands. I knew Barbara Mertz, aka Elizabeth Peters, had been working on a book when she died but didn't realize until recently that Joan Hess had taken on the gargantuan task of finishing it.

THE PAINTED QUEEN is set in 1912, and falls in timeline between THE FALCON AT THE PORTAL and HE SHALL THUNDER IN THE SKY. It is set in one of my favorite time periods within the span of the series, after Ramses is grown but before his marriage to Nefret. As is to be expected, it is not exactly as Peters might have written in, but is supremely enjoyable nonetheless. An occasional turn of phrase of a well-loved character seems slightly out of sync compared to how the character spoke in other volumes, for example, but nothing that detracts from the flow of narrative and action.

Considering Joan Hess's long-standing friendship with Peters, I doubt they could have found anyone better to tackle the outline and notes she left. Hess battled through personal health challenges to complete THE PAINTED QUEEN, and I can't be anything but grateful to have the series completed by someone who loves it as much as Amelia's other fans.

I mourn the end of the series; I really doubt anyone can add to the body of work with the same verve and spirit Elizabeth Peters brought to it. I sincerely thank her family, and especially Joan Hess for bringing us this final tribute to a woman who helped inspire many other writers to bring forward their own strong female characters for us to love. Whenever I read a book where a main female character reaches for a sturdy umbrella, I wonder if I have found another fan of Amelia.