I want to thank Netgalley for the ARC review copy. I absolutely loved the story that has transpired and loved the first book as well. The adventure was wonderful and the relationship between the MFC and MMC is still as cute and adorable as before. I can't get enough of these two but like others have said it felt like the original main characters from book one are in the background and it made me a bit sad. The new friends were still amazing and worth the read.

Now here is my issue because the story is a strong 4.5 ⭐ but because I listened to the audiobook I needed to bring up the issue I had which is why there is 3 ⭐ s and not higher. She was so hard to understand and some of the words nearly impossible to decipher. Her cadence was also so weird that it was very difficult for me to find a good speed to listen to ( Goldilocks over here). So between the accent and the cadence I wouldn't recommend the audio version but to go with the written version.

I really liked the narrator, it took me a little bit to get used to the strong british accent for my french ears but after 1-2 chapters it was completely fine and kept me focused. Also I appreciated the accents and voices well done for each characters. The story is as good as the first book, well written and nice banter. I defended recommend it

As always, reading The Raiders of the Arcana has given me a strong desire to watch The Mummy, read some Dan Brown books, and maybe plan a trip to Egypt (or anywhere with historical ruins really). Tomb of the Sun King once again follows Ellie and Adam as they attempt to thwart Mr. Jacobs and Professor Dawson from getting their hands on a powerful relic: in this case, the staff of Moses. However. This time we also get new POVs from Ellie’s brother, Neil, and her best friend, Constance.
I always enjoy stories that play on lost artifacts or historical lore/theories (think Davinci Code) and this series is rapidly becoming a favorite for me. I love how much information we get in this series and the respect for culture Benson shows through her characters. The action is always intense, the surprises are fun, and the romantic tensions are delicious. I also like that we get the tiniest hint of background for Mr. Jacobs and am particularly interested in seeing how that plays out later. Of course, the final chapters have me eager for the next book and I cannot wait to see what happens in India!
Alex Picard once again knocks it out of the park with her narration. She finds a way to make each character have their own style and voice, she switches accents like it is nothing, and she knows how to make things sound dramatic. Simply fantastic.

I absolutely love this series! It has such The Mummy meets Victorian era vibes and I am here for it. I love the Egyptian archaeological setting. This story is full of good vs evil twists and turns that makes it hard to step away. I enjoyed the growth of Ellie and Adam’s relationship, and the addition of Ellie’s best friend Constance made the story so fun! Definitely recommend this one!

4.5 ⭐️
This has been such a wonderful story to follow. My immediate interest came from seeing book one all over TikTok (rightfully so), and this is such a novel continuation from book one as the story takes hold. Filled with adventure and all the best reading (listening) vibes. I enjoyed listening to the audio of book two and look forward to devouring more works from this author.

☆Thank you to the Author & NetGalley for the ALC in return for an honest review; all opinions are my own.☆

5⭐️
0.5-1🌶

I originally read this as an ARC last year, but I knew that as soon as audiobook arcs were sent out, that I would want to read this one again! The narrator, Alex Picard, is PHENOMENAL! She really brings the story and the characters to life.

TOMB OF THE SUN KING follows Ellie and Adam in continuing their good vs. evil fight, and are joined by Ellie's childhood best-friend, Connie, and Ellie's brother, Neil, amongst others. This is book 2, but so far it is my favorite! It was so nice to see Ellie and Adam's relationship blossom even more, and to see what the big bad of the series might be thinking.

If you're a fan of:
▪︎the 1999 film The Mummy
▪︎steamy scenes
▪︎ action & adventure
▪︎ magic
Then this is probably the series for you!

Unfortunately I did not realise that this was a second instalment of a series :(
BUT I’m so glad I found it because I am so intrigued with this series and will definitely read the first one ASAP

What fun! This is the second book in Jacquelyn Benson’s Raiders of the Arcana series of Victorian fantasy adventures with a slow-burn romance and a hint of the supernatural. This continued storyline series is best enjoyed in order, especially to prevent spoilers, but this volume can stand on its own. Although I haven’t read the first book yet, I never felt lost.

I adored the characters. Both main characters and supporting characters include admirably smart, strong, resourceful, independent ladies. The men are fun too, but I think the women definitely outshine them.

The plot is interesting and exciting, and I loved the Egyptian setting. If you enjoyed the movie The Mummy, you will probably enjoy this too, although I think the history and mythology are even more interesting here.

The audiobook production was excellent, and Alex Picard’s narration was a delight. She was fun to listen to, with good pacing; clear pronunciation; wonderfully distinctive voices, accents, and speech patterns to suit each character; and the ability to convey mood, emotion, and humor effectively. The story works very well as an audiobook, and I highly recommend it. I also look forward to listening to the rest of the series.

Thanks to Vaughan Woods Publishing for providing me with a free advanced review copy of the audiobook through NetGalley. I volunteered to provide an honest review.

Tomb of the Sun King is the second book in the Raiders of the Arcana series by Jacquelyn Benson. We still follow Ellie and Adam as they arrive in Egypt to warn Ellie's brother Neil of the shadowy organisation that is trying to find magical artifacts and use them for nefarious purposes. And it seems their next goal is connected to Neil's excavation in Saqqara.

With the new location come new and old characters that get more spotlight in this second book. No only is Neilp art of the team, but also Ellie's friend Constance and Neil's foreman Sayyid. This opens up the narrative quite a bit and since they all bring their own strengths and flaws to the table, the book makes for a very engaging read.

After the first book dove into mesoamerican history, the second concentrates completely on Egyptian history and makes it its own. I loved the different historical sites and figures.

The audiobook is narrated by Alex Picard - just like Empire of Shadows. She does a great job of using different accents and voices so that it's always easy to differentiate between the various characters. I read the first book physically and felt that the second book was even better with the narration. It added so much feeling and emotion to the story and the characters and made everything come to life.

In the end, I loved this book as much as the first one - maybe even a little bit more since I really enjoyed the characters that were added. This series is perfect for fans of The Mummy or Indiana Jones - especially with this second book. And you can't go wrong with the audiobook. I'm very much looking forward to the next book in the series since it promises another great adventure.

Book 2 did not disappoint. It was full of the same attention to historical detail as book 1. I personally love Egyptian history and I love the focus on women impacted history. Ellie and Adam's relationship is everything and I love the tension there. I'm curious how Connie and Neil will evolve in book 3. I liked the revelations this book and how it sets you up for book 3.

Book is even better as an audiobook. The narrator is great. It really brought the words to life. I read this book twice because of the narrator being wonderful and wanting to read the story again. So many details. Beautifully done.

The world building is beautifully done and I felt like I was there. I like the depth of the characters and felt that they were realistic. I felt that this story is adventure/questing more than romantasy. It does have magical and romantic elements, but it's not the main storyline.

It felt there were multiple POVs and I think the chapters would have benefited from labeling the POV it was in. I liked that it was multi-POV and the different perspectives gave a richness since there was many layers to the story.

Overall, I feel this story is perfect for anyone who loves Indiana Jones, Egyptian culture, strong female leads, historical fictions, and adventure/questing. There is kissing and sexual tension, but no graphic scenes. You do not need to read book 1 to enjoy this book, however, some things will make more sense if you read book 1 first. Worth reading book 1.

Excellent read. Highly Recommend.

Ellie & Adam must race to Egypt to beat Jacobs & Dawson to finding the tomb that hides the staff of Moses. Teaming up with Ellie’s friend Connie, her brother Neil, and his friend Sayyid, they hope to protect a lost tomb that will redefine Egypt’s history.

No sequel slump here! The relationship of Ellie and Adam stayed solid as they communicated and stuck together, the Egypt archaeology had me totally hooked and had me researching things as the story progressed (always a positive sign, for me).

In addition, we get some absolutely delightful new characters. We get more of Connie, whose brief appearance in the first book was a delight. And getting more depth on her character, while she also sweeps in to save the day was fantastic. Ellie’s brother Neil, as the slightly bumbling expert, was fun, but where he truly shined was the development he undergoes as he really starts to process the discrimination both Ellie and Sayyid are subjected to. And Sayyid! What can I say about home, but then I want a whole spin off novel of him and his wife, Zeinab, as they work together fighting for Egypt’s independence.

While I still was a huge fan of the romance between Ellie and Adam, I’m less invested in Neil and Connie, who seem remarkably ill suited for each other, which saw its foundation in this book. Hopefully, book three will give them more time to grow. But I find myself also hoping not. We don’t need every main good character paired off in a romantic relationship.

And I am so invested to finding out more of Jacobs’s history. Taking the more overtly villainous character and opening up so many questions about him has really sealed me in for book three.

This series also seems to be falling into a pattern of the White Savior trope with Ellie and Adam and Neil being the driving forces behind saving the world, which makes me very interested in book three as we will be getting Connie and the gang going to India, where her family is from. I’d love to see her take more center stage.

And now for the narrator! I had already read and reviewed an eARC of this book last year. But when I saw the audiobook go up I immediately had to request it purely because of Alex Picard’s work on the first book of the series. She does a fantastic job giving each character such a strong and unique individual voice that I know whose POV we’re in without any other clues. And the emotion she conveys throughout is amazing. I’m ready to seek out books she’s narrated without any more context.

My thanks to both NetGalley and Vaughan Woods Publishing for this arc!

This is the 2nd installment of the Raiders of the Arcana Series. It picks up shortly after the first book left of, with Ellie and Adam travelling to Egypt to visit her brother Felix’s dig site. They enlist the help of Ellie’s best friend Constance, who also happens to be in Egypt. I LOVED the first book and the second did not disappoint! Ellie and Felix, along with several interesting local Egyptians, use their extensive knowledge of history to pull together clues that tell a story that no other archeologist of their time would consider as possible.

It's amazing that the author continues to tell the hard truths about past and how Europe’s fascination with archaeology and poor practices often led to important historic items being sold away or stolen from the places and people they belonged to. It also brings up how poorly local experts were treated in the process.

There is also a lot of action and funny moments. Various new and interesting characters were introduced. My favorite was definitely Connie, the thrill-seeking martial artist and debutant, who also happens to be the granddaughter of an Indian princess!

The audiobook is narrated by Alex Picard, who yet again did an amazing job. She seamlessly swapped back and forth between the various character’s accents. The pacing and rhythm was spot on!

I can’t wait to read/listen to more in the next book!

In Tomb of the Sun King by Jacquelyn Benson, we are once again following Ellie Mallory an archivist and suffragette as she seeks out an arcanum - a powerful ancient artifact with powerful magic properties. Ellie and Adam Bates once again team up to find this ancient object. This time we are in Egypt and we run across Ellie's best friend, Constance and then, Ellie's stepbrother, Dr. Neil Fairfax. Neil and Adam were at Oxford together. This is a a historical fantasy blending together historical fiction and fantasy and I loved it. It is narrated by Alex Picard and her narration is perfection. She handles mens and womens voices and multiple accents immaculately. If you are looking for a story that gives you vibes of The Mummy (with Brendan Fraser) or Indiana Jones - this book is it. I love the writing, the characters, the pacing, the plot and the narration. This is a five star listen - and read because I read the arc for the e-book as well. I absolutely love this story and cannot wait for book 3! Thank you to NetGalley for my advance listener copy.

Alex Picard delivers an absolutely stellar performance in Tomb of the Sun King! Her narration brought this story to life in a way that felt like experiencing it for the first time. The tension, humor, and adventure were all perfectly conveyed, keeping me completely engrossed from start to finish.

One standout highlight was Neil’s internal exclamation of “danger gnome” every time he found himself thinking something positive about Constance. Every instance had me laughing out loud, and Picard’s portrayal of Neil’s growing distress was pitch-perfect. Her ability to switch between accents and characters was seamless, adding so much depth and charm to the audiobook.

Alex Picard is quickly becoming a favorite narrator of mine. Her talent for capturing the essence of every character and infusing the narration with energy and emotion is unmatched. If she’s narrating, I’m listening!

For audiobook lovers, Tomb of the Sun King is an absolute treat. Highly recommended for fans of historical fantasy, romance, and action-packed adventures!

This book is just plain fun! There is so much adventure and suspense alongside a surprisingly well-explained history. Benson succeeds in taking what could be a boring history lecture and making it exciting within the context of the plot of the story. And, of course, there is the swoon-worthy romance that takes on a deeper, more emotional level in this second book of the series.

What made this book even better was the expansion of characters from the first installment in the series. This book might have felt redundant had it just been the two main characters back at it, but Benson introduces the reader to Ellie's very proper, rule-following brother Neil, and Ellie's best friend Constance becomes a main cast member. The addition of these two characters adds another dimension to the book and to Ellie and Adam as people. Seeing the two main characters interacting with other people they count as important adds facets to their story both as individuals and as a couple. It carries the series arc along nicely.

I also cannot forget the spectacular Egyptians who played a vital role in protecting their own history. Benson did a fantastic job drawing in these characters to tell the story of Egypt (both the ancient history and the "current" state of Egypt in 1898) from the perspective of those who belong there. Benson educates the reader on the prejudiced processes of Egyptian excavation at the time, calling out the unjust practices that prevented Egyptians from excavating their own land in a way that empowers the characters and creates empathy in the reader.

Benson also does a great job at introducing depth to the main villain of the story. I love a good bad guy that I can just hate, but having a villain whose motivations run deeper than just money or a thirst for violence is even more thrilling. Benson does a fantastic job breadcrumbing this larger story arc to get the reader intrigued for the next book in the series.

The narrator did a phenomenal job, giving distinct voices to each of the four points of view in the narrative. They also does a wonderful job giving proper accents to different characters. Their voice was pleasant and animated, and their cadence was wonderfully smooth. They maintained consistency of pronunciation with Ancient Egyptian words and names.

All in all, I will be waiting on the edge of my seat for the next installment of Raiders of the Arcana (she definitely set it up for more)!

We are back in action! I loved this book from the moment I started listening to it. It's such a refreshing and mysterious adventure you get into. If you're a fan of The Mummy or Indiana Jones, this series has not failed to keep me trapped for hours. I'm so excited for the next book already. Alex Picard did such an amazing job narrating I was entranced. I'm so going to be looking into Jacquelyn Benson's other works. Ah, I need more!

Rating
☆☆☆☆.5/5 rounded up to 5

-Quick Description-
Ellie and Adam now in Egypt are attempting to rescue another artifact from falling into the hands of the antagonist from the previous book. And this time they have a few new characters along for the ride. We get to see multiple POVs including Ellie's brother Neil. Travel around historical Egypt on a magical treasure hunt you're sure to enjoy if you are fans of The Mummy and Indiana Jones.

-My thoughts-
Although this is the second book, l'll admit I had not read the first before this one, I was still able to dive straight into the story and will definitely be picking up the first book. This book screams romance and adventure think Indiana Jones and The Mummy vibes. I have really enjoyed spending time with the characters who are definitely loveable and who l will remember for a long time. This book is choc full of history, banter, romance, and adventure as well as being a lighthearted and entertaining read. I'm looking forward to catching up with Ellie and Adam in the next book and can't wait to read book one to see how it all began.
I was able to listen to this on audio and thoroughly enjoyed the narrator who brought the characters and story to life.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for my ARL and a huge thank you to Jacquelyn Benson.
Also reviewed on Goodreads, StoryGraph,Fable and Instagram (post coming soon) @read.with.rue

Ellie always felt the best place to put her scholarly skills to the test would be in the land of Sand: Egypt! The unexpected escapade, however, led her to save peculiar artefacts from notorious villains. Accompanying her is her brother's hot best friend, adding a layer of romantic angle to the story. This is the 2nd book in the Arcana series and even when I read this directly without the 1st one, I still enjoyed it. So it's safe to say that you can read it as a standalone too though now I want to read book 1 as well.

I was listening to the audiobook version of this story & may say the narrators did a fab job of the British accent. The writing style was another factor that I loved, giving me so much Jane Austen vibe & the witty exchange of dialogues between the 2 main protagonists was delightful. The pacing is fast, so you won't get bored despite the book's length, there is a constant sense of adventure, risks and standing on the edge of a disaster - perfect for the fans of The Mummy Series.

For years I've been looking for adventure romances like Indiana Jones and The Mummy, and could barely find any until recently. I was so so excited to stumble upon the Tomb of the Sun King and it didn't disappoint! It's lighthearted and fun with a great smattering of history, fantasty, adventure and romance - the perfect combination. This is the second in a series, but I haven't read the first and that's OK - the stories are separate and can stand alone. Anyway if you loved The Mummy/Indiana Jones you'll love this!

I absolutely adore Ellie’s character, so I couldn’t wait to dive back into this series. While the first book felt very Indiana Jones, this book brought back all The Mummy nostalgia. Benson truly shines with her world building and really immersing readers in the setting as well as attention to historical details. I enjoyed the opportunity to meet Ellie’s half brother Jacob and friend Connie. I find family and friend dynamics to be so interesting in stories. Although, I do believe this story stumbled a bit with trying to balance fitting in new characters and keeping a strong storyline. Aside from that, I really enjoyed the story pacing and the adventure the characters found themselves going on. I also love the relationship between Ellie and Adam. Their banter, tension, and chemistry is purely delightful. I also really enjoyed how Benson set up the next book in the series. I read this via audiobook and loved the narration. Alex Picard is a great choice and adds so much energy and emotion to the role. Picard does a great job at keeping my interest while reading, and I highly recommend checking out the audiobooks for this series.