Vous voulez voir cette page en français ? Cliquez ici.

 

or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
 
 
More Buying Choices
6 used & new from CDN$ 31.63
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
 
   
Mistress of the Art of Death
 
See larger image 
Share your own customer images
Publisher: learn how customers can search inside this book.

Mistress of the Art of Death [Large Print] (Hardcover)

by Ariana Franklin (Author)
4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
List Price: CDN$ 31.96
Price: CDN$ 31.63 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over CDN$ 39. Details
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
Temporarily out of stock.
Order now and we'll deliver when available. We'll e-mail you with an estimated delivery date as soon as we have more information. Your account will only be charged when we ship the item.
Ships from and sold by Amazon.ca. Gift-wrap available.

3 new from CDN$ 31.63 3 used from CDN$ 37.62

Frequently Bought Together

Mistress of the Art of Death + Serpents Tale + Grave Goods
Total List Price: CDN$ 67.95
Price For All Three: CDN$ 59.94

Some of these items ship sooner than the others. Show details

  • This item: Mistress of the Art of Death by Ariana Franklin

    Temporarily out of stock.
    Order now and we'll deliver when available. We'll e-mail you with an estimated delivery date as soon as we have more information. Your account will only be charged when we ship the item.
    Ships from and sold by Amazon.ca.
    Eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over CDN$ 39. Details

  • Serpents Tale by Ariana Franklin

    In Stock.
    Ships from and sold by Amazon.ca.
    Eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over CDN$ 39. Details

  • Grave Goods by Ariana Franklin

    In Stock.
    Ships from and sold by Amazon.ca.
    Eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over CDN$ 39. Details

Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought

Serpents Tale

Serpents Tale

by Ariana Franklin
3.3 out of 5 stars (3)  CDN$ 10.79
Grave Goods

Grave Goods

by Ariana Franklin
4.7 out of 5 stars (3)  CDN$ 17.52
City Of Shadows

City Of Shadows

by Ariana Franklin
4.2 out of 5 stars (4)  CDN$ 9.89
Medicus

Medicus

by Ruth Downie
3.7 out of 5 stars (3)  CDN$ 12.05
The Black Tower: A Novel

The Black Tower: A Novel

by Louis Bayard
4.6 out of 5 stars (5)  CDN$ 13.86
› Explore similar items

Product Details

Product Description

From Publishers Weekly

Had Ellis Peters's Brother Cadfael been born a few decades later, he might have found a worthy associate and friend in Dr. Vesuvia Adelia Rachel Ortese Aguilar of Salerno, a short and short-tempered medieval coroner hired in secret by King Henry II to find out who's behind the horrific murders of Christian children in Cambridge, England. Prominent local Jews stand accused; Henry wants them freed, mostly for the sake of their tax revenue. As Adelia examines the children's bodies and gets to know the people of Cambridge, she has no trouble assembling a long list of suspects, but she encounters considerable difficulty trying to narrow it down, a struggle in which the reader gladly joins her. Not all of the plot twists are surprising and the romantic subplot is an unnecessary afterthought, but Franklin (City of Shadows) has developed a skillful blend of historical fact and gruesome fiction that's more than sufficient to keep readers interested and entertained. (Feb.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.


From AudioFile

Rosalyn Landor narrates a complex story that merges history, mystery, human rights, feminism, and a touch of romance. Adelia, who is educated in forensics of the period, is sent with a Jewish detective and Muslim eunuch bodyguard to clear the Jews of Cambridge, England, who are accused of murdering Christian children. Landor navigates the tension and tenderness of a headstrong Italian woman caught between cultures and the clash of science and religion. Landor steers listeners skillfully through Adelia's desire to understand what has taken place and her horror at the deeds of a mass murderer. Landor's portrayal reflects Adelia's struggle to maintain scientific detachment in the face of disease, death, and her attraction to a Crusader whom she suspects. S.W. © AudioFile 2007, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.
See all Product Description

Suggested Tags from Similar Products

 (What's this?)
Be the first one to add a relevant tag (keyword that's strongly related to this product)
 
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)

Your tags: Add your first tag
 
See most popular tags

What do customers ultimately buy after viewing this item?

Mistress of the Art of Death
77% buy the item featured on this page:
Mistress of the Art of Death 4.4 out of 5 stars (7)
CDN$ 31.63
Serpents Tale
7% buy
Serpents Tale 3.3 out of 5 stars (3)
CDN$ 10.79
Dissolution
6% buy
Dissolution 4.5 out of 5 stars (13)
CDN$ 12.59
The Black Tower: A Novel
5% buy
The Black Tower: A Novel 4.6 out of 5 stars (5)
CDN$ 13.86
Explore similar items
 

Customer Reviews

7 Reviews
5 star:
 (5)
4 star:    (0)
3 star:
 (2)
2 star:    (0)
1 star:    (0)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.4 out of 5 stars (7 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most helpful customer reviews

 
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars Morbidly Entertaining, Mar 31 2009
By Toni Osborne "The Way I See It" (Montreal, Canada) - See all my reviews
(TOP 100 REVIEWER)   
This review is from: Mistress Of The Art Of Death (Paperback)
With this story we are hurtled back in time to Medieval England. This is a morbidly entertaining novel that depicts human cruelty with details of sexual torture and the sacrificing of innocent children. Employing modern narration to weave historical figures and events into the plot, Ms Franklin provides us with a view of how things were in the 12th century during the reign of Henry11.

Set against a rich background the story begins when four children are found dead and mutilated casting suspicion on the local Jewish population. King Henry 11 implores the King of Sicily (his cousin) to dispatch one of his most trusted and experienced to solve the crime. Sent to England are Adelia Aguila, a doctor specialising in death, Simon her protector and Mansur her Arab servant, their mission is to find the guilty before they kill again. From the start, the trio struggles to understand the horrors and furies that lie behind the gruesome murders.

The author exploits brilliantly the contrast between the 12th century barbaric England and the more modernistic way of thinking Adelia represents. Emotions are vividly portrayed with well-drawn characters.

This is a well crafted novel with numerous twists and continuous surprises throughout
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)



 
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars Good but annoying, Jul 5 2009
By Prairie Pal (Winnipeg, Canada) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   
This review is from: Mistress Of The Art Of Death (Paperback)
During the reign of Henry II, Ariana Franklin tells us, the Jews of Cambridge are accused of ritual child murder -- a not uncommon accusation in the Middle Ages. Since Henry wants to keep on good terms with the financially helpful Jewish community he sends abroad for a medical investigator to prove them innocent. What he gets is a feisty female pathologist from the Kingdom of Sicily, the remarkable Vesuvia Adelia Rachel Ortese Aguilar, who proves indeed to be a "mistress of the art of death". Franklin's plot is engaging, her heroine is given a clear and memorable personality of her own and the historical setting is generally accurate. So far, so good. What annoys me about this book and, in fact, many other historical mysteries involving medieval women, is that the authors cannot resist making their heroines into 21st-century feminists. Not only is Adelia a very rare bird -- a female doctor -- but she is religiously liberal (a proto-Unitarian if not an outright atheist), an animal-rights supporter, sexually unburdened by contemporary morality, gay-friendly, a dispenser of birth-control advice and one who believes that a woman's profession takes precedence over romantic attachments. All quite unremarkable in a woman of 2009 but just not believable in a character set in the 12th century. Can we please have a resourceful medieval protagonist capable of solving the crimes of her time without recourse to techniques and attitudes that are jarringly anachronistic?
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)



 
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Intriguing Novel, Jun 10 2008
This review is from: Mistress Of The Art Of Death (Paperback)
Since two of my favorite authors endorsed this book (Kate Mosse, and Diana Gabaldon), I didn't think that I'd wind up unhappy with my purchase. The first few chapters of this book are EXTREMELY slow. I wondered what the heck I had bought...scenes from a pilgimage "Chaucer" style, and the introduction of so many characters that you couldn't keep track of who was who, made the first chapters almost unbearable, BUT it redeemed itself before I was a third of the way through, and after that point it was impossible to put down. I now can't wait to read the next book containing the same protagonist...but must say that this romantic was sorely disappointed when Adelia declined her offer of marriage.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)


Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
 
 		 Most recent customer reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars The best medieval mystery heroine out there!
Unless a book is one of the great literary works, I usually buy it, devour it or discard it if it's boring, and then sell it. Read more
Published 8 months ago by R. D. Agnillo

5.0 out of 5 stars A Great Read!!
I *loved* this book and would highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys a good mystery or wants to step back into medieval England. Read more
Published 17 months ago by Readalot

5.0 out of 5 stars Cross the forensic science of a Kay Scarpetta with the historical background of Judith Tarr
In 1171 England, the Jews were given a haven under King Henry's rule, not because he liked them but they paid one seventh of the monies in the royal treasury. Read more
Published on Nov 5 2007 by Lester Stark

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic read
Interesting, entertaining and well researched. I loved this book from beginning to end. History, science and mystery intermingled without dragging the story. Read more
Published on Oct 1 2007 by L. Miller

Only search this product's reviews


Listmania!

Create a Listmania! list

Look for similar items by category

Look for similar items by subject











i.e., each book must be in subject 1 AND subject 2 AND ...

Feedback

Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?

Your Recent History

 (What's this?)

After viewing product detail pages or search results, look here to find an easy way to navigate back to pages you are interested in.