Meh. 2 and a half stars. [a:Margaret Frazer|57428|Margaret Frazer|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1356051263p2/57428.jpg] does it better in her Dame Frevisse mysteries.

The elements of medieval religious life were not very well integrated, and the key character and plot turns happened so quickly that it felt rather superficial to me.

Disappointing overall. ( )

I never thought I'd find a mystery set in the Medieval era that would be so plainly boring, but I have. And it wasn't just boring, it was painfully bad.

The main character is naive and full of bad choices, even though she's supposed to pass as oh! so intelligent and oh! so ahead of her times. However, in every interaction of hers, she comes across as docile, avoiding conflict with all those who plainly tell her they have the right to control her choices and her life. Her relatives, from her parents to her sister, her uncle, her brother, everyone is a complete boring brute. The only character who is remotely acceptable is Edgar. The mystery itself is not interesting at all, the twists are laughable, and I am pretty certain that the dialogue is far from the way in which French people of the era used to talk. It was outrageous to come across so many modern idioms, it was cringe-worthy.

The only elements that kept me reading until the end were Eloise and Abelárd's presence and the descriptions of Medieval France. I had high expectations for this novel, judging by the reviews, but I suppose it wasn't for me. It goes without saying that I will not attempt to start the following installments in the series. ( )

There are several medieval mystery series that I like a lot, but this book does not entice me to read any further in this one. Overly complex and not happily resolved plot, somewhat unsympathetic main character, far too much screaming and yelling, and creepy sexual innuendoes. ( )

fiction, mystery, historical, medieval, 12th century, France ( )

This is a worthy rival to the Brother Cadfel mysteries, and Sharan Newman has researched her area both spatially and chronogically, very well. ( )