This is the first book I've read recently that I have been so excited to tell you about. This is a fantastic mystery set in 12th century England. A series of gruesome murders of children have occurred in Cambridgeshire and the villagers believe the Jews are to blame. As a result, the Jews have been secured in the castle for their protection against the angry mob of villagers. King Henry II is anxious to have this matter resolved, as the Jews provide him with a large source of income. The king sends to the renowned medical school in Salerno for a master of the art of death (like a modern-day medical examiner), but what he gets is a mistress of the art of death-Vesuvia Adelia Rachel Ortese Aguilar, or Adelia. As Adelia examines the bodies of the murdered children, she finds that she is facing an evil and cunning murderer. Along with her guardian, an Arab named Mansur, her partner Simon of Naples, the local tax collector Rowley Picot and a young local boy named Ulf, the group sets out to track down the murderer.
I thoroughly enjoyed this well written mystery with its likable cast of characters. Adelia is a stubborn, intelligent, independent woman, who reminds me of Elizabeth Peters' Amelia Peabody. The descriptions of the methods of practicing medicine in the 12th century are interesting, as are the obstacles Adelia faces as a woman practicing medicine during this time. With many mystery novels, I find I can usually guess the killer well before the end, but with this one I was guessing until the very end. She even throws in an unexpected twist. I also appreciated that despite being in love, Adelia chooses her career over marriage, which in the 12th century was not very common. I'm definitely looking forward to Adelia's next adventure, The Serpent's Tale, which was just released earlier this year.
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