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mermahoney's review against another edition
1.0
It truly pains me to give 1 star to an Elizabeth Peters book but this book was... not good.
crownoflaurel's review against another edition
2.0
There's a reason why I don't reread this one as often as her other standalones. Rather than a fun, little mysterious escapade with a historical treasure at the center, this is grim and centered around drugs. Very contemporary to it's time, in the approach to drugs/drug use, politics, morals. A bit convoluted, and unsatisfying in the end: her original BF is a selfish ass; the dad barely says three words on page except to push away the MC; and the final romance is very rushed (and the dude is kinda offputting).
duffgt06's review against another edition
3.0
I liked that this didn't quite follow the usual formula a lot but the 70s drug shaming was a bit much. As always I enjoyed the vivid setting - this time Mexico City and Teotihuacan.
pussreboots's review
5.0
My mother gave me this book right after I got back from Mexico City. And I stubbornly waited 10 years (!) to read the book. It was wonderful. What the heck was I thinking?
glyptodonsneeze's review against another edition
1.0
Yuck. I love Barbara Mertz but I cannot stand Elizabeth Peters. This was garbage. Compelling garbage, I finished it, but that was morbid curiousity, plus I spent six sevenths of this book waiting for the mystery to start.
This book was brought to you by a 1968 Life magazine article that made your grandma worry about drugs.
Carol is a weird robot who believes in Freud, calls her parents George and Helen, and attends a Midwestern college where her boyfriend Danny is a douche who likes talking about drugs. They go to Mexico City because Carol is worried that her estranged father is in danger, and after a super-awkward first meeting, Carol's common-law step-brother Ivan gives Carol and Danny a tour of the principle sights of Mexico City that looks a lot like what happened when Barbara Mertz went on vacation to Mexico City with her friend Carol, per the dedication. Danny keeps talking about drugs, because the youth of today are like that. Meanwhile, a schlubby, drunk American is following Carol around. Carol goes out at night and schlubby dude tries to grab her. Carol fights him off and goes back to the hotel, post-attempted rape/kidnapping-traumatized, and has to babysit Danny who's having a bad trip. The next day, Carol is toodling around being a tourist at a pyramid when schlubby dude turns up, and, instead of screaming "rape" or telling an adult, she lets him follow ten steps behind her while she shops for souvenirs. This whole book is a study on how bad sexual harassment must have been before the second wave, and how acquiescent women had to be to survive it. It's chilling. Thought experiment: If a man tried to kidnap another man on the street in 1968 (heterosexuality of both assumed), would the attempted kidnappee be okay with it the next day? Fuck no.
Carol's father invites her to stay with him and Inez, the woman he's living with but, it's heavily implied, not boning, and her family. Ivan and Danny start hanging out because bullfighting. It's all a horrible vacation. Carol thinks somebody in the household is up to something, and she thinks Danny is cheating on her, so she sets up a sting that leads her to some pointless vignette in a dark, spooky room. She gets drugged and kidnapped the next day, and the villain explains themself somewhat. (They're smuggling heroin!) It still makes NO sense why they brought Carol to Mexico in the first place. There's a lot of exposition about why drugs are bad, and they are, but so are after-school specials. In the end, it's over. The drug dealers are bad, the people who abandon their family and are rude to their guests are good. Kidnappers are sexy.
Bad book. Do not read.
This book was brought to you by a 1968 Life magazine article that made your grandma worry about drugs.
Carol is a weird robot who believes in Freud, calls her parents George and Helen, and attends a Midwestern college where her boyfriend Danny is a douche who likes talking about drugs. They go to Mexico City because Carol is worried that her estranged father is in danger, and after a super-awkward first meeting, Carol's common-law step-brother Ivan gives Carol and Danny a tour of the principle sights of Mexico City that looks a lot like what happened when Barbara Mertz went on vacation to Mexico City with her friend Carol, per the dedication. Danny keeps talking about drugs, because the youth of today are like that. Meanwhile, a schlubby, drunk American is following Carol around. Carol goes out at night and schlubby dude tries to grab her. Carol fights him off and goes back to the hotel, post-attempted rape/kidnapping-traumatized, and has to babysit Danny who's having a bad trip. The next day, Carol is toodling around being a tourist at a pyramid when schlubby dude turns up, and, instead of screaming "rape" or telling an adult, she lets him follow ten steps behind her while she shops for souvenirs. This whole book is a study on how bad sexual harassment must have been before the second wave, and how acquiescent women had to be to survive it. It's chilling. Thought experiment: If a man tried to kidnap another man on the street in 1968 (heterosexuality of both assumed), would the attempted kidnappee be okay with it the next day? Fuck no.
Carol's father invites her to stay with him and Inez, the woman he's living with but, it's heavily implied, not boning, and her family. Ivan and Danny start hanging out because bullfighting. It's all a horrible vacation. Carol thinks somebody in the household is up to something, and she thinks Danny is cheating on her, so she sets up a sting that leads her to some pointless vignette in a dark, spooky room. She gets drugged and kidnapped the next day, and the villain explains themself somewhat. (They're smuggling heroin!) It still makes NO sense why they brought Carol to Mexico in the first place. There's a lot of exposition about why drugs are bad, and they are, but so are after-school specials. In the end, it's over. The drug dealers are bad, the people who abandon their family and are rude to their guests are good. Kidnappers are sexy.
Bad book. Do not read.
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