Rating:  Summary: A must read for lovers of humor, romance, wit, and mystery. Review: If you've never read a Vicky Bliss novel, don't start with this one! Her adventures begin in "Borrower of the Night" and culminate in this surprises-by-the-minute romp through the tombs and relics of Egypt.
After you have read the other four, then you will be familiar with the tall, blonde, smarter-than-your-average-male, Vicky Bliss, and Anton Schmidt, her lovable, rotund boss at the museum. The fun really begins in "Street of the Five Moons" when she runs into her handsome and mysterious nemesis, "John ?", an art thief who gives her the slip throughout the series. In "Night Train to Memphis", he drops the biggest bombshell of all when she runs into him during a cruise to Egypt. Before she even gets on board to help the police stop a robbery, the mystery has begun, and the line between allies and enemies quickly become blurred as a series of "mishaps" set Vicky on guard for her life.
If you like a good mystery saturated with humor,wit and romance, then begin at the beginning and finish your journey with "Night Train to Memphis". I promise you won't be disappointed.
Rating:  Summary: I love this book! Review: It is amazing how Elizabeth Peters manages to create a story line that is both funny and entertaining time after time. Night Train is one of her finest books yet! I eagerly await the Next Vicky Bliss book.
Rating:  Summary: Pleasure Cruise Review: John and Vicky are back! This is the fourth book in the wonderful Vicky Bliss series by Elizabeth Peters. If you haven't read any of the novels, the book you should be purchasing is the Street of the Five Moons. That said, Vicky receives an assignment in coordination with the Munich Police Force to travel to Egypt under the guise of a tour guide on a small luxury cruise. One of the best men in literature, the enigmatic John Smythe, also appears on the scene. The plot is superbly exexcuted, the novel is set in the Peters' area of expertise(Egypt/Egyptology), and the story flies. Peters' characters make the novel: Vicky as our sassy and intelligent heroine, John as the mysterious and witty art thief, Schmidt-the intelligent if highly eccentrict museumcurator for whom Vicky works, and villains galore. New readers really must start at the beginning. If you've read the previous Vicky Bliss novels, after finishing Night Train to Memphis, I highly reccommend you take out Camelot Caper from your local library. John DID come before Vicky, and this shows him as Peters began to form him, and explains that "first scam" John loves to makes allusions to.
Rating:  Summary: Another Wonderful Book! Review: Ms. Peters/Michaels has done it yet again! This last installment of the Vicky Bliss Mysteries is exciting/mysterious/hilarious/romantic . . . Anything you could possibly want in a book is here! To be honest, I was slow to sample this particular series by Ms. Peters. The Emersons were enough excitment for me, and in my experiance, a writer who does wonderfully in historical settings is not always as deft at contemporary novels. But always the sport, I read "Night Train to Memphis" not knowing it was the end of the series, and I was automatically hooked! Reading the rest of the Vicky Bliss mysteries has been . . . well . . . Bliss! If you like clever humour and stunning leading men (Go John Smythe! ) then you'll love this book unconditionally!
Rating:  Summary: Serve Very Cold Review: Night Train is the best stuff ever made. It gets you drunk really fast. HANG 10
Rating:  Summary: ALL ABOARD FOR A ONE WAY TICKET TO EXCITEMENT! Review: Night Train to Memphis is my favorite book to date written by the marvelous Elizabeth Peters. Once Ms. Peters introduces a character to you, you find a new friend. This book, in the ongoing saga of Vicky Bliss and friends, is a treasure. Even if you haven't read a "Vicky" novel before, you will soon be drawn into this tale of adventure and romance amid the ancient pyramids of Egypt. With a hero to-die-for and a heroine who is as smart as she is beautiful, this book is a must read. Ms. Peters gives her readers the greatest compliment of all...she doesn't insult their intelligence. Her stories are full of historical data along with plots and twists that satisfy even the most devious of mystery lovers. Check out Night Train, or any other Elizabeth Peters novel....you'll be glad you did.
Rating:  Summary: Disappointing and annoying Review: Nothing in the descriptions or reviews I read here prepared me for the important fact that some crucial characters are left over from Peters' previous novels and that this is a sort of sequel. Although other adventures and enemies of the heroine Vicky Bliss are mentioned in passing in this story, having them turn up in this book as if the reader is supposed to be familiar with them is very annoying. One bad guy even pays back a debt incurred in a previous book without explanation to the reader. The story itself isn't too bad, but is rather lame in comparison with Dick Francis, P.D. James, Sue Grafton, Sara Paretsky, Michael Crichton, Robert B. Parker, etc. The supposedly cute bantering between Vicky and her boyfriend is forced and unpleasant and not as fetching as the author seems to intend. The heroine doesn't seem to have any particular talents to distinquish her (other than being tall) or make her interesting or clever. The country music (I listened to the audio edition) is jarring and incongruous in the Eqyptian setting.
Rating:  Summary: And you have to love John Smythe!!! Review: Of all of the books in the Vicky Bliss series, I would have to say that "Night Train to Memphis" is my favorite. Not only do we learn more about Vicky and John's true feelings about one another (finally!!!), but most of the story is set in Egypt! Elizabeth Peters is a master at winding historical fact into her novels, and "Night Train" is certainly no exception. Her knowledge of Egyptology is displayed throughout the novel--but reading it feels nothing like a history lesson! It's more like a vacation! In fact, I could not put it down until I was sure Vicky, John, and Schmidt made it through their adventure unharmed (or do they...)! Oh, and for serious fans of Ms. Peters...have you noticed yet that John Smythe and his mother appeared in another book far before they showed up in the Vicky Bliss series? Check out "The Camelot Caper"... :)
Rating:  Summary: And you have to love John Smythe!!! Review: Of all of the books in the Vicky Bliss series, I would have to say that "Night Train to Memphis" is my favorite. Not only do we learn more about Vicky and John's true feelings about one another (finally!!!), but most of the story is set in Egypt! Elizabeth Peters is a master at winding historical fact into her novels, and "Night Train" is certainly no exception. Her knowledge of Egyptology is displayed throughout the novel--but reading it feels nothing like a history lesson! It's more like a vacation! In fact, I could not put it down until I was sure Vicky, John, and Schmidt made it through their adventure unharmed (or do they...)! Oh, and for serious fans of Ms. Peters...have you noticed yet that John Smythe and his mother appeared in another book far before they showed up in the Vicky Bliss series? Check out "The Camelot Caper"... :)
Rating:  Summary: The Best Book of Elizabeth Peters! Review: This book is an amazing mystery. I am a hopelesss romantic, which makes it all the better. But for those of you aren't that into romance, don't worry. It's not only appealing to those of us who feed of romance. It also has a VERY intricate plot that must have used a very tight plot outline. Vicky is a delightful heroine: clever, beautiful, stubborn and perfect for John. John is the romantic crook who is- was- in love with Vicky. Vicky is in love with John and he was supposed to contact her every so often. Vicky is worried or should I say panicked about John; he hasn't contacted her in 6 weeks. Vicky is then asked to go on an Egyptian cruise to discover the criminals involved in a plot that I will not go into. When Vicky sees John on board, she knows instantly who the crooks must be. To her horror, she finds out that John is married to a cute bubbly young woman named Mary. When Vicky's nosy boss, Schmidt joins the cruise, Vicky is very annoyed. Schmidt though, may be more helpful than everyone thinks. I know that I am writing a review, not a summary, so I will go back to that. Schmidt is a lovable old man, a classic character. Vicky, on the other hand, beautiful as she is, actually makes you feel sorry for her for being beautiful. John would be a wonderful character, if it had been told from someone else's point of view. But Vicky is unforgivably furious with him throughout most of the book. Other characters may be much be more than they seem- Feisal, the handsome guide, Sweet and Bright, who Vicky discovers are her security, the unsociable German urologist. I am not in any way saying that these characters are necessarily special, for indeed some of them are not and others that are not mentioned definitely are very evil or very good. You would never guess who they are until Elizabeth Peters reveals it- Vicky's impressions are so fixed. Anyhow, all I'm saying is if you don't read this thriller, you're missing out on one of the greatest books of all time. Ages 13+ up
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