Presenting my reactions to Elizabeth Peters’ The Deeds of the Disturber, the fifth Amelia Peabody novel, in epistolary format:
Dear Amelia Peabody Emerson,
Allow your son to finish his sentences, please.
Very truly yours, etc.
Dear Elizabeth Peters,
Permit me to introduce you to the concept of “the idiot plot,” which is a plot that only exists because the characters act like idiots. An excellent example would be a domestic subplot which could be resolved at its first appearance, in Chapter Four, if only Amelia had allowed Ramses to finish his sentence.
As the name might suggest, idiot plots are best avoided. I hope this information is useful.
Respectfully, etc.
Dear self,
Even when you are in that difficult mood of “we own three thousand books and I don’t want to read any of them,” don’t take an Amelia Peabody book out of the library, because even on a fast skim you’ll give up halfway through out of annoyance and skip to the end. Not only will you have wasted your time, but you’ll have Prince Humperdink saying “skip to the end” stuck in your head all day.
You may have an exception, if there is a single book in which Ramses becomes human, just out of curiosity to see how it’s managed.
Love and kisses,
Me