Adelia, her daughter Allie, her nurse Gyltha, and her Arab
protector Mansur, begin their next adventure with the
providential appearance of Lady Emma Wovercote. Lady Emma
wants Adelia to keep her Champion, Master Roetger in good
health using the medical training her parents gave her.
Roegter is representing Lord Philip, who's only two, in
Trial by Combat. When Roegter wins a fight it is meant to
prove Pippy's the true Wovercote heir and should be
respected as such. Injured during a successful battle,
giving Adelia a welcome challenge, Roetger's experimental
treatment is just begun when King Henry II sends an armed
guard to fetch her, and her party, to him. King Henry has
an important job for his Mistress of the Art of Death. He
wants Adelia to prove two skeletons found in the aftermath
of Glastonbury Abbey's fire are the remains of King Arthur
and Queen Guinevere. If Henry can claim the certain death
of the legendary Welsh King Arthur and his Queen, rebels in
his Kingdom would stop clinging to the hope that Arthur
would rise to their aid. But Adelia can't agree to
identifying the remains as Arthur or anyone else, she will
only agree to check that the skeletons are not from a more
recently deceased person.
Traveling to Glastonbury,
the group are set to lodge at the
most habitable inn and hope to find word of Lady Emma and
her entourage. Lady Emma was headed for Wovercote Manor
near Glastonbury, but when they stopped at the Manor the
Dowager Lady Wovercote told Adelia she had received no
guests. Could Emma, Pippy, and Roetger have fallen victim
to the local band of highway thieves? While continuing to
make enquires about her dear friend, Adelia and Mansur go
to work on the remains at the Abbey. Adelia is almost sure
from the start these bones are not old enough to belong to
Arthur or his Queen, but her determination to discover
their true identities almost costs Adelia her life. Can
Adelia find the truth behind the secrets of the Abbey, can
she find her missing friends, and can she please the King
well enough that this time he may let her return home to
Salerno? And would she truly want to leave the Englishman
she loves?
There's so much going on in this book and
it's all so rich
in detail, there's almost no satisfying way to describe
each of the story lines. The historical medical facts, the
legal changes King Henry II initiated, and the impact of
secular life in religious orders are just the tip of
story lines iceberg. There's also how being a woman or being
from a different country create waves or Adelia's
illegitimate child and the father who may be out of reach
now that his been made a Bishop, also add to the
mix.
After
reading this book, you'll be a fan for sure. This is the
third book in the Mistress in the Art of Death series but a
reader can start with GRAVE GOODS and not be lost. Just be
aware past choices effect the current status of characters,
so it you might want to read them in order.
Combining the best of modern forensic thrillers with the
drama of medieval fiction, New York Times–bestselling
author Ariana Franklin returns with the third title in the
Mistress of the Art of Death series.
England,
1176. Beautiful, tranquil Glastonbury Abbey— one of
England’s holiest sites, and believed by some to be King
Arthur’s sacred Isle of Avalon—has been burned almost to the
ground. The arsonist remains at large, but the fire has
uncovered something even more shocking: two hidden
skeletons, a man and a woman. The skeletons’ height and age
send rumors flying—are the remains those of Arthur and
Guinevere?
King Henry II hopes so. Struggling to put
down a rebellion in Wales, where the legend of Celtic savior
Arthur is particularly strong, Henry wants definitive proof
that the bones are Arthur’s. If the rebels are sure that the
Once and Future King will not be coming to their aid, Henry
can stamp out the insurgence for good. He calls on Adelia
Aguilar, Mistress of the Art of Death, to examine the
bones.
Henry’s summons comes not a moment too soon,
for Adelia has worn out her welcome in Cambridge. As word of
her healing powers has spread, so have rumors of witchcraft.
So Adelia and her household ride to Glastonbury, where the
investigation into the abbey fire will be overseen by the
Church authorities—in this case, the Bishop of St. Albans,
who happens also to be the father of Adelia’s daughter.
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