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Aug 25, 2008

Gary rated it:

Start with Chaucer's "Canterbury Tales." Throw in a cameo of a calculating and brash King Henry II straight from "The Lion in Winter." Add some medieval mystery on par with Umberto Eco's groundbreaking "The Name of the Rose". And finish it off with the forensics of "CSI", and you'll have some appreciation for Ariana Franklin's remarkable achievement in "Mistress of the Art of Death", a fresh and inspired twist of historical fiction and crime thri More...

2 comments like (22 people liked it)

Dec 17, 2009

Beth (moonivy) rated it:

Read 8/23-8/29/07

Mistress of the Art of Death tells the tale of Adelia, a "doctor to the dead" in the 12th century. Dispatched from her academic existence at the University of Salerno to medieval Cambridge to investigate the gruesome death of four
children, Adelia is forced to hide her true identity and attempt to blend in with the provincial English folk. Alternately horrified and fascinated, Adelia struggles to fulfill her mission, dodging danger and deceit at ever More...

0 comments like (5 people liked it)

Oct 20, 2008

Alison rated it:

Being a feminist reader of historical fiction is to invite inner turmoil. Excessively plucky female characters seem inaccurate. Some are constantly winking at the reader, as if to say, "after graduating with my degree in women's studies, I opted to spend a few months time traveling so I could offer enlightened commentary on unenlightened times. I hope you appreciate my presence in your book!"

But, without those characters, I'd be even more annoyed (and depressed) by the f More...

8 comments like (25 people liked it)

Sep 08, 2010

Aimee rated it:

In coming to the decision to purchase this book, Mistress of the Art of Death, I did my background research first. I visited a fair few blogs that had reviewed the book, and found that the reviews were so entirely positive that I couldn't wait to get my grubby paws on the book myself. The bloggers were not wrong (thank the gods). This novel is a gloriously delicious read.

Set in the Middle Ages as a medieval mystery, our protagonist has been asked to travel to Cambridge (United Kingdo More...

0 comments like (8 people liked it)

Mar 24, 2009

Nancy rated it:

You know what I have really missed in my life? A Librarian. Not a librarian, small l, but a Librarian - that mystical, magical woman who watches what you read, and what you check out again and again, and who one day says to you: "You know what? I think you'd like THIS."

I like THIS. It's a mystery, set in medieval Cambridge; its heroine is a doctor, no, a coroner; there's a big mystery about murdered children (the Jews are being accused!), and also a charming (and unlike More...

3 comments like (8 people liked it)

Jan 05, 2009

TonyAlmeida rated it:

Um livro a medida daqueles que gostam de ler um romance histórico.

Tal como diz a autora na nota final do livro, escrever um romance histórico, em particular quando a acção decorre no século XII, pode ser complicado e por vezes os anacronismos se tornam inevitáveis. Alguns foram introduzidos voluntariamente para permitir uma melhor leitura do texto (que raio! não é um livro de História), outros poderão ter sido colocados inadvertidamente. Em qualquer dos casos, a compreensão da Idade More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Dec 21, 2011

Jackleen rated it:

Four and a half stars.
A historical thriller, The Mistress of the Art of Death, will rival modern day forensic medicine novels. The story combines medieval England in the 1200 century, crusader knights, questionable nuns, suspicious monks, and, a sly King Henry II, not to mention, four horribly mutilated dead children and the Jewish community that stands accused of these atrocities. The people of Cambridge believe the Jews have crucified their children in a passover rite. Then, add to thi More...

1 comment like (2 people liked it)

Nov 15, 2011

Jamie rated it:

This is an intriguing medieval murder mystery, set in Cambridge, England during the reign of Henry II. Several children have been gruesomely murdered, and the townspeople are blaming the local Jews. Henry is disturbed by the interruption of his revenue stream, so he sends for a medical expert to investigate the deaths and exonerate the Jews.

No one expects a female expert, of course, even if Adelia hails from the famous medical school in Salerno. We get to see how medieval Englishmen More...

3 comments like (3 people liked it)

May 04, 2011

Marleen rated it:

'The Mistress of the Art of Death' is a riveting read. It took me a while to get into it though. In my opinion that’s partly due to me being a Dutch native speaker and having to adjust the author’s sophisticated and skillful use of the English language, but once I was fully immersed, I couldn't put it down. The story really kicks off after what happens the night of the Grantchester feast (if you read it, you'll know what I mean), and from there on I read it in one night and into the early mornin More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Jul 23, 2011

Esther rated it:

I both enjoyed and was dissappointed by this story.

I'm sure this book was originally recommended to me because of the Jewish aspect but although they did provide a little (a lot less than I expected) background colour, for the most part I felt their inclusion was a Macguffin, useful in that the frequent historical Blood Libels gave the author a good excuse for gory child murder.

I also found Adelia's character a little flat and distant. She kept telling me how she felt ab More...

1 comment like (3 people liked it)

May 17, 2011

Chrissie rated it:

I started this 5 days ago. I was worried from the start that it would not be my cup of tea. For five days my head is telling me: Be patient! Don't be rash. Give this book a chance. You know those books that you cannot put down? Well this belongs instead with those books that you cannot motivate yourself to pick up. That is how it has been for me. Now this is only my opinion, and I am pretty darn sure that I am the "odd ball out" here! Why? Well because generally I do not like crime sto More...

10 comments like (4 people liked it)

Sep 20, 2008

Juushika rated it:

Children are being kidnapped in Cambridge, England, and one body has been found; local Jews are being blamed for their deaths. In order to identify the true murderer, a doctor specializing in autopsies comes to Cambridge from Salerno—but the doctor, Adelia, is female, and the year is 1171. A combination historical fiction and crime drama, Mistress of the Art of Death is a mediocre example of both: anachronisms litter the 12th Century setting, and the detective work is adequately plotted but unex More...

2 comments like (5 people liked it)

Apr 18, 2008

Annie rated it:

Despite the authors note at the back about the importance of historical authenticity, this book didn't seem historically authentic at all. Jewish-raised, Greek foundling, Sicilian female doctor in 12th century England unmasks a serial-killing sexual deviant, hangs out with Henry II, and endears herself to everyone around (except the serial-killing sexual deviant...SPOILER!)? Wouldn't it be better to just say: I know this situation is totally implausible, but the setting is historically accurate? More...

3 comments like (3 people liked it)

Mar 26, 2008

Meagan rated it:

I almost didn't get this book. Rather, I almost didn't let Chris buy me this book. I wasn't sure of the present tense opening and the first person view of "we." However, this is only how the book begins (and ends.) In between is something that I would describe very much like reading an episode of CSI, only more enchanting.

The story takes place in 1170 in Cambridge. (The author uses the modern name for clarity.) Our heroine is a female doctor, something very rare, only pract More...

0 comments like (4 people liked it)

Apr 09, 2008

Sarah rated it:

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0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Jan 19, 2008

Coffcat rated it:

I really enjoyed reading this book. I'm not normally a big fan of mysteries but since this book seemed so different I gave it a shot.

First of all I was surprisingly pleased about the lack of descriptions of the people in the book. While there were a few adjectives here or there, you (as a reader) weren't bombarded with a complete description of every character from the tops of their heads to their toes. I was delighted to be able to use my imagination for a change. I think the only More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Dec 10, 2007

LJ rated it:

MISTRESS OF THE ART OF DEATH (Historical-Adelia Aguilar-England-1170) – Ex
Franklin, Ariana (aka Diana Norman) – 1st in series
Bantam Press, 2007, UK Hardcover – ISBN: 9780593056493
First Sentence: Here they come.
*** A child has been murdered and residents in Cambridge claim he was crucified by the Jews. The Jews provide Henry II with a large part of his revenue and requires that the real killer be quickly found. From Naples come Simon of Naples, an renowned investigator More...

1 comment like (3 people liked it)

May 07, 2008

Matthew rated it:

Not my usual fare, this historical fiction was recommended to me by a guy standing next to me in the bookstore while I was looking for a fantasy novel. I'm not sure why he thought that my looking for a book about elves meant connected with a historical fiction piece about a women doctor investigating a serial child killer in the time of Henry II but it worked out pretty well.

Although he doesn't make many appearances in the book I was very amused and pleased by the portrayal of Henry. More...

2 comments like (3 people liked it)

Jan 25, 2009

Bonny rated it:

Historical fiction that grabs your interest and holds on to it! A murder investigation set in the time of Henry the second where the investigators are as diverse and creative as the cultures they come from. Together they form an eclectic team using cunning, psycholohy and the very beginning of the art of forensic science.

A captivating read!

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Jan 29, 2012

itpdx rated it:

An interesting and fun read. The book is set in Middle Ages in England. Henry II of England has requested from his friend, the King of Sicily, an investigator and, what we would call today, a pathologist to investigate the murder of one child and the disappearance of three others. The Cambridge locals have decided that the local Jews are responsible for the murders. The team that arrives consists of Simon, the Investigator and a Jew, Adelia, a pathologist trained in Salerno, and Mansur her More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Aug 09, 2011

Lorna added it

If you like Ellis Peters' Cadfael novels, or any other medieval murder mystery, you'll like this - not surprisingly as it was a winner of the CWA Ellis Peters Historical Award.

Set in twelfth-century Cambridge, the story begins with the appointment of a young woman called Adelia to investigate the murder of a young boy. Adelia hails from Sicily, possibly the one place at the time where it's possible for a woman to become a doctor. Adelia's specialism is as a 'mistress of the art of death' - or, More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Apr 20, 2010

Joyce rated it:

The time is 1170-1171 C.E., after the disastrous civil war between Maude and Stephen that left England shattered, and well into the reign of Maude's son, Henry II, a year after the murder of Thomas Beckett. [return][return]In Cambridge, children are disappearing, turning up brutally murdered. Since the first child was murdered at Easter time, the townspeople are whipped into a frenzy against the Jews with the cries of "Ritual murder." Two Jews are dead at the hands of the mob; the ot More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Mar 23, 2009

April rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

1 comment like (2 people liked it)

Nov 29, 2011

Toni rated it:

I think I’ve found another series which features a strong and unusual woman who is ahead of her time. Her name: Vesuvia Adelia Rachel Ortese Aguillar (a.k.a. Dr. Trotula), Adelia Aguillar for short. She’s not unusual in her native city of Salerno, Italy, home of the famous medical school that admits women as well as men. But when called to England in 1171 to investigate the horrendous ritual murders of four children, she is behooved to hide her expertise in the sciences of deduction and medi More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Oct 26, 2011

Richard rated it:

"Mistress of the Art of Death" by Ariana Franklin was a group read here on LT...The Highly Rated Book Group sponsored it, with the game-though-gravid Vintage_Books leading us through some very trenchant questions about our impressions of both the book and the world it's set in...and thank goodness for that! It's a lot more fun to read a book in a group of like-minded people, ones who read on multiple levels like our brethren and sistern here on this site.

Adelia Vesuvia, our More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Oct 16, 2011

Irene rated it:

CSI 12th Century Cambridge could be the alternative title of this book. A young, brilliant, polyglot forensic coroner is sent by the King of Naples to Cambridge to assist King Henry identify the individuals abducting, torturing and killing young children. Despite being hampered by the superstitious ignorance of the common people, the selfish ignorance of the institutional Catholic Church, the prejudices against women and the danger of the killer, Adelia is successful. This was an interesting More...

1 comment like (1 person liked it)

Oct 08, 2011

Deborah added it

Loved this book!

I'd looked at it a couple of times and thought it wasn't a book for me. It's a mystery, which I always like, but a woman doctor in the 12th century in England seemed not my sort of thing. But it was! It was totally my thing. It has lush writing and terrific interesting characters and an off-beat romance. The mystery wasn't terribly mysterious, but it was a pleasure getting there.

The characters are well-drawn and sympathetic and the author takes her t More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Aug 28, 2011

Marcus rated it:

I guess that one could describe 'Mistress of the art of death' as a run of the mill criminal story with strong influences from Patricia Cornwell's Scarpetta series. Main character is a female doctor and pathologist that is sent to city of Cambridge to assist in investigation of a series of brutal child murders. Story unfolds in familiar pattern, there are twists and turns and small clues finally leading to satisfying solution of the 'whodunit' riddle. The story that unfolds is engaging and keeps More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jul 27, 2011

Emily rated it:

This is a great book. This is the first book that I have wanted to finish in a long time. The story had it all: Murder, Mystery, and Love. The author did a great job of weaving a fairly unlikely plot into something that was engaging. The main character, and all of them for that manner, are well written and developed. I found myself laughing out loud on more then a few occasions and it was hard to put down because I kept wanting to see what would happen next. It was not perfect though, some of th More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jul 25, 2011

Carina rated it:

Meinung:
Der Einstieg in dieses Buch erwies sich für mich als relativ schwierig, weshalb ich den Prolog und das erste Kapitel (insgesamt 26 Seiten) zweimal lesen musste. Die Autorin versucht hier den Leser mittels einer Wir-Erzählperspektive in die Handlung einzuführen, was meiner Meinung nach jedoch völlig misslingt und eher zu Verwirrung führt. Danach wechselt sie zu einem Alles-Wissenden-Erzähler und legt überraschender Weise einen sehr flüssigen und gut zu lesenden Schreibstil an den Tag More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)