A Murderous Procession by Ariana Franklin

Book Description:
In 1176, King Henry II sends his daughter Joanna to Palermo to marry his cousin, the king of Sicily. Henry chooses Adelia Aguilar, his Mistress of the Art of Death, to travel with the princess and safeguard her health. But when people in the wedding procession are murdered, Adelia and Rowley must discover the killer's identity . . . and whether he is stalking the princess or Adelia herself. 

I've really enjoyed this medieval mystery series by the late Ariana Franklin.  I consider A Murderous Procession to be the best - and unfortunately - it is the last of the series. I found it hard to put down, reading until all hours of the night.  Clever and evocative the story begins in England and ends up in Salerno on an agonizing cliffhanger of which we'll never know the conclusion, since the author died before she could write more.

Adelia Aguilar, a singular female doctor during the reign of King Henry II, is set up comfortably raising her precocious daughter in England.  Finally having agreed to become Rowley, the Bishop of St. Alban's mistress, she is content with her life.  But, she is unaware of the madman, Scary, who is stalking her.  Two years earlier she had killed his lover in self defense.  Scary has now returned to avenge his beloved's death.  The gist of the mystery in A Murderous Procession is - who is Scary and how does he plan on killing Adelia?

King Henry II wields his authority far and wide.  His favorite doctor is Adelia Aguilar and he insists - no, commands she escort his daughter, the young Princess Joanna to Sicily for her marriage to King William II. Of course, all sorts of problems occur en route.  First of all, Adelia does not want to leave England in the first place, especially since she will have to leave her daughter behind.  Rowley Picot, a former knight and her lover who Henry II made a bishop, wants her to leave for he has gotten wind of the threat on her life, brought to light by a series of near mishaps and fatal accidents to Adelia.  He believes she will be safer away from England and the threat on her life.  Ally, her daughter is left in the safe care of Eleanor of Aquitaine, Henry's estranged wife.  With no other choice, Adelia begrudgingly escorts the young Joanna to Sicily, unaware that Scary, blending in and disguised as someone traveling with the large entourage, is accompanying her on the journey.  Right under her nose, she has no idea - nor does anyone else - of the danger she is in.

The journey is long and soon it becomes apparent all is not as it should be.  More accidents befall Adelia and eventually she and Rowley, as well as some new and old friends realize Scary is with them.  But who is he?  She's never seen Scary before so she can't identify him.  The mystery was very well done and I guessed at one point who Scary was, but I changed my mind a few times and wound up being surprised.  This is typical of the Mistress of the Art of Death mysteries.  The culprit is always someone in plain sight - but who?  They're devious and highly clever in the way they set their traps.

I'm deliberately being coy and leaving a lot out so as not to spoil the mystery, but much happens to Adelia and her traveling companions on the journey.  She and her friends, Mansur and Ulf are nearly hanged at one point, narrowly avoiding death, though they are rescued in the nick of time.  I found the storyline riveting - a real page turner all the way up to the climatic ending in the city of Salerno at the wedding of the princess.  The author pares down the cast of suspects who are gradually removed one by one, narrowing them down to only a few possibilities.  Often I thought I knew just who it was - only to have that character absolved - paralleling how Adelia conducts her murder investigations through autopsies.  At one point during her stay for a few weeks while in hiding at a castle, she manages to solve the case of what killed an errant goat found dead.  An autopsy gave her the answer thus preventing a great kerfuffle between two neighbors!  A slight diversion from the rest of the storyline.

I highly recommend this series, the research is first rate, the plot lines are clever and not a little macabre due to the nature of the murders and motives.   Adelia is a strong and independent heroine, reminiscent of Claire Fraser in the Outlander series with her talent and knowledge of medicine.  One scene here has Adelia remove a ruptured appendix which I couldn't help but compare to when Claire in Drums of Autumn performs surgery on a grown man's testicle.  

Her love interest with Rowley Picot is the constant throughout the entire series which also delivers a bit of angst since he becomes the Bishop of St. Albans, thus preventing them from ever marrying.  They must keep their love secret for it is unseemly for a bishop to have a mistress. If only Adelia had said yes when he first asked her... but alas, they lost their chance due to her fierce independent streak and stubborn pride.  If only... if only.

I loved this book and am so sorry this is the last to be seen of Adelia, Mistress of the Art of Death. The cliffhanger ending and introduction to the Irishman, Captain O'Donnell, a possible rival to Rowley, brings up all sort of possibilities for future books in the series. It makes me wonder what the author, otherwise known as Diana Norman, would have done in her future books.  I am so, so sorry about her untimely death. Such a great loss to the literary world.

Overall - a memorable and well done historical mystery series that I've enjoyed immensely! I will miss it!

4.5/5

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Grave Goods by Ariana Franklin (audio)

Book Description:
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.

Another interesting foray into the middle ages with forensic expert, Adelia Aguilar.  Adelia, with her precocious daughter, Allie, and the ever faithful Gyltha and dear friend, Mansur leave their home in Cambridge with Emma, Lady Wolvercote, the young widow who is now a wealthy woman after the demise of her dastardly husband (from the last book) whom she was forced to marry.   While en route with Lady Emma's entourage, Adelia is called away by King Henry II to investigate old bones found in Glastonbury rumored to be the bones of legendary King Arthur and his wife, Guinevere.  Of course, all is not as it seems.  The usual macabre medieval doings involve the disappearance of Lady Emma, her young son and an injured German knight.  There are loads of twists and turns with some really creepy characters - villains in the wood, in particular.

I found the plot itself a bit hard to follow, there were several.  The main one was trying to find out what happened to Emma and her entourage.  Were they killed on the road?  Is so, where are their bodies?  Another plotline is the one about who started the fire at Glastonbury Abbey and whose bones are really buried there and why.  As usual, it's the last person you think it is, but i guessed correctly early on, now that I'm familiar with the author's style.  Some tender words and romance between Adelia and Rowley, the Bishop of St. Albans - and the father of her child. This made me happy, especially with her decision in regard to him.   Finally we get some regret on Adelia's part of her decision way back when he wanted to marry her.

All in all, a good mystery, though I felt it was all over the place in parts with the different branches of the story leading to all sorts of revelations.  Kate Reading, the narrator does a great job, I know her voice so well.  She is the voice of Adelia to me.  I like her men's voices as well, the high sing song voice of Mansur, in particular. Her Rowley is good too - just masculine enough to make him sound realistic - he's pissed off most of the time with Adelia.  I like it how he complains that he's always rescuing her from some hole!  I don't blame him - he does seem to be rescuing her in every book - always showing up just in the nick of time! 

This is a really interesting series if you're into this time period with Henry II.  She touches on some of the political aspects of Henry's woes with the church as well as medieval forensics.  She writes a good mystery with some added romance and suspense, enough to keep the reader's attention.  The last sentence, which gears up for the next book is particularly ominous. I'm afraid Adelia has made a mortal enemy.  One that is not going to rest until he gets his revenge. 

3.5/5

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The Serpent's Tale by Ariana Franklin (audio)

Book Description:
Rosamund Clifford, the mistress of King Henry II, has died an agonizing death by poison-and the king's estranged queen, Eleanor of Aquitaine, is the prime suspect. Henry suspects that Rosamund's murder is probably the first move in Eleanor's long-simmering plot to overthrow him. If Eleanor is guilty, the result could be civil war. The king must once again summon Adelia Aguilar, mistress of the art of death, to uncover the truth.

Adelia is not happy to be called out of retirement. She has been living contentedly in the countryside, caring for her infant daughter, Allie. But Henry's summons cannot be ignored, and Adelia must again join forces with the king's trusted fixer, Rowley Picot, the Bishop of St. Albans, who is also her baby's father.

Adelia and Rowley travel to the murdered courtesan's home, in a tower within a walled labyrinth-a strange and sinister place from the outside, but far more so on the inside, where a bizarre and gruesome discovery awaits them. But Adelia's investigation is cut short by the appearance of Rosamund's rival: Queen Eleanor. Adelia, Rowley, and the other members of her small party are taken captive by Eleanor's henchmen and held in the nunnery of Godstow, where Eleanor is holed up for the winter with her band of mercenaries, awaiting the right moment to launch their rebellion.

Isolated and trapped inside the nunnery by the snow and cold, Adelia and Rowley watch as dead bodies begin piling up. Adelia knows that there may be more than one killer at work, and she must unveil their true identities before England is once again plunged into civil war . . .

Another clever medieval historical mystery involving mistress of the art of death, Adelia Aguilar, who, now a mother, still uses her doctoring skills and winds up investigating the poisoning of the lady Rosamund Clifford, King Henry II's mistress.

I was a bit taken aback at first, since a lot has happened since the first book in the series ended. Adelia is now a mother, and the father of her baby, Rowley has taken an oath of celibacy to be one of the King’s bishops! Huh? But, I kept telling myself, hah! He’ll never keep that oath! (I was right.) When the Lady Rosamund becomes ill from poisoned mushrooms, Rowley is dispatched to fetch Adelia by King Henry. She is an expert on poisons, death and forensic medicine. It is an awkward reunion for them, the first they’ve seen of each other since the baby’s birth. They remain at arm’s length, though Rowley, unabashedly, coddles and dotes over their baby, Allie, speaking “baby talk” to the infant as any proud papa would –priest or no!

Adelia reluctantly agrees to go with Rowley, she doesn’t have much choice in the matter. Upon arrival at the abbey where Rosamund lives, it’s apparent she is dead, only they find a macabre death scene. Rosamund the fair, is no longer so fair. In fact, she is fat. That’s a surprise. But the real kicker is, her body is sitting up at a desk, as if she died while writing, stiff with rigor mortis. In front of her are letters she had been writing to Queen Eleanor, expounding on how much Henry is in love with her and how one day she will be the rightful queen. Very odd. No sooner does Adelia begin to examine the dead body but Eleanor of Aquitaine, Henry’s queen shows up herself! The whole scenario is very bizarre, and becomes even more so when Rosamund’s faithful housekeeper, Dame Dakers, tries to kill Eleanor of Aquitaine by jumping out from a hidden garderobe! Adelia prevents the murder, thus granting herself a bit of good will from the queen, though the rest of Eleanor’s followers have no love for Adelia, nor Rowley.

A full cast of characters enters onto the scene and it’s up to Adelia to figure out which one of them is behind the poisoning of Rosamund. Henry’s wily queen is the obvious mastermind behind the murder, but that’s too obvious for Adelia and Rowley. Rowley believes it’s someone else, who wants to make it look like Eleanor in order to start a Civil War between Eleanor’s followers and Henry’s. Eleanor has been under house arrest by Henry for several years and has just escaped from France to join forces with her eldest son, Prince Harry to overthrow Henry II. The time is ripe for rebellion and Adelia is smack dab in the middle of the snake pit of political intrigue and murder that surrounds Eleanor's retinue.

Who is the real culprit? In the dead of winter, Eleanor insists on taking everyone to Godstow, a nunnery. There they spend Christmas. At least Adelia is reunited with her baby, Allie and her friend and servant, Gyltha. Adelia begins her inquiries which puts her in even further danger from the real assassin and his employer. Plus, Allie’s life is threatened as well, which completely scares Adelia to death! The killer is warning her – don’t get too nosy! Meanwhile, Rowley has snuck off, faking his death in order to enlist the help of Henry II and his men. Can they make it to Godstow in time before the assassin responsible for Rosamund’s death - and the ensuing death of her maid – does away with Adelia as well?  The bigger and burning question is - does Rowley ever break his vow in this book? ;)

It’s a clever mystery and no matter how much I love them, I’m awful at figuring out who the real villain is in mysteries. I’m the worst at picking up clues and mannerisms, probably because I’m listening to this on audio, instead of reading it, so I do miss things while emptying the dishwasher and making dinner. To say the least, I was stumped again about who was the mastermind, though I did guess the assassin. Kate Reading was the narrator on audio and she did a great job, as always. Her accents are believable for the men as well as the women.

This is a really interesting and absorbing series and I recommend it. Modern forensics and medieval history combined in one detailed and, at times, suspenseful novel. All the characters have their own macabre and detailed character flaws that bring them to life. I hear the next one, Grave Goods, is even better, I’m eager to get to it now.

4/5

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Mistress of the Art of Death by Ariana Franklin (audio)

Book Description:
A chilling, mesmerizing novel that combines the best of modern forensic thrillers with the detail and drama of historical fiction. In medieval Cambridge, England, four children have been murdered. The crimes are immediately blamed on the town's Jewish community, taken as evidence that Jews sacrifice Christian children in blasphemous ceremonies. To save them from the rioting mob, the king places the Cambridge Jews under his protection and hides them in a castle fortress. King Henry II is no friend of the Jews-or anyone, really-but he is invested in their fate. Without the taxes received from Jewish merchants, his treasuries would go bankrupt. Hoping scientific investigation will exonerate the Jews, Henry calls on his cousin the King of Sicily-whose subjects include the best medical experts in Europe-and asks for his finest "master of the art of death," an early version of the medical examiner. The Italian doctor chosen for the task is a young prodigy from the University of Salerno. But her name is Adelia-the king has been sent a mistress of the art of death. Adelia and her companions-Simon, a Jew, and Mansur, a Moor-travel to England to unravel the mystery of the Cambridge murders, which turn out to be the work of a serial killer, most likely one who has been on Crusade with the king. In a backward and superstitious country like England, Adelia must conceal her true identity as a doctor in order to avoid accusations of witchcraft. Along the way, she is assisted by Sir Rowley Picot, one of the king's tax collectors, a man with a personal stake in the investigation. Rowley may be a needed friend, or the fiend for whom they are searching. As Adelia's investigation takes her into Cambridge's shadowy river paths and behind the closed doors of its churches and nunneries, the hunt intensifies and the killer prepares to strike again . .

I really enjoyed this - what shall I call it - an historical thriller?   The lengthy description above pretty much gives an accurate account of what the book is all about.  Adelia is an intelligent woman, a spinster by choice, she has no interest in attracting a man, she's a doctor, one of the few educated and classically trained women doctors in the world.  What's her specialty? Corpses - they "talk" to her.  Salerno has the only university that admits women in the study of medicine.  Pretty amazing what she can glean by examining the body of a corpse back in the middle ages during the reign of Henry II.  With no modern day accoutrement's she figures out over the course of her investigations where the children were murdered, how and most likely what was the motivation and background of the killer.

Adelia is summoned to Cambridge, England at the behest of Henry II who has a few crucial and entertaining cameos in the story.  One of the first people she meets is Sir Rowley.  At first we're not enamored of Sir Rowley.  He's a tax collector.  Images of the evil tax collectors in the legends of Robin Hood come to mind, so I took an instant dislike to him.   He unexpectedly assists Adelia while she conducts her autopsies on the bodies.  Is he the killer?  His reaction to the autopsies is one of genuine horror and over the course of time we learn that Sir Rowley is not a bad guy and he begins to grow on us - as well as Adelia.

There are many interesting and rich characters.  I particularly liked Prior Geoffrey, who she helps by relieving him of a prostrate problem.  I also liked the young boy, Ulf and his grandmother, Gyltha.  Throughout the story there are several red herrings as to who is the killer and why he killed these poor innocent children in such horrible ways, it's obvious he must be mad.  Yet, the most interesting part of this novel is how Adelia narrows down the list of suspects of who is the murderer.  Is it a monk, the prioress, one of her nuns, one of the knights returned from the Crusades?  There are many possibilities all under Adelia's acute observation.  Unfortunately, whoever the killer is, he's onto her and is determined to scare her off the case, as well as her friends who have come with her from Salerno to investigate.  What's another murder to add to his list?  At this point, the story ramps up and became hard to put down. 

The writing in this novel is first rate, the descriptions, although gruesome were realistic and the grime and filth and dirt of this period rang true.  Although I cringed in parts due to the horrific nature of the crimes, especially with children involved, I was engrossed with the story, and surprised to find out who the culprit was by the end.  I was sure I had it figured out, but then I realized I was wrong and had to keep listening to find out who the killer was and if he'd try to capture little Ulf or Adelia herself!

I also found it interesting why Henry II was so concerned with the safety of the Jews in England (money, of course.) It was vastly entertaining near the end how Henry saw right through the Prioress, revealing just how greedy she was!  I felt like clapping, for she was the worst!  He also had the opportunity to show up the Church in retort to the whole Becket debate, which led to Becket's assassination and canonization, probably the most famous thing Henry II was ever known for and never lived down.  Becket's obstinacy in not giving in to Henry's desire to give secular courts jurisdiction over clerical trials and disputes was at the heart of the matter in the debate.  Here, the author manages to give Henry his chance to rub it in the church's nose, making it crystal clear why he insisted on being able to try churchmen - and women - who are convicted of crimes, rather than letting the church try their own.  I won't reveal what happens or how exactly, but you'll know what I mean when you read the book and get to the end.  Frankly, I loved it!

In addition, I loved the side story of Adelia's romance - it gave the story a richer and broader appeal and made her more human in my opinion.  I was happy the way it all ended up for her, I won't reveal who her love interest is, but you might be able to guess anyway *grin*  I rejoiced to see how she makes up her mind and goes with her conscience, even if it doesn't exactly coincide with her common sense.

As an audiobook, Rosalyn Landor did an excellent job with the narration, she's one of my favorite narrators, giving it all just the right accent and flavor of the times. 

If you are a fan of forensic themed stories or a CSI devotee, as well as lover of medieval fiction - this book is for you!  I rarely watch TV (except for some Seinfeld and Everybody Loves Raymond reruns) but from what I hear, forensic shows are really popular!  I imagine this is sort of like a medieval version of them.  I'm glad I read it, something different for me and I was pleasantly surprised!  I highly recommend Mistress of the Art of Death and I'm eager to listen to the rest of the series now, the next one sounds even better than the first - featuring Eleanor of Aquitaine!

4/5

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