Items related to The Subtle Serpent
A headless female corpse is found in the drinking well of a remote abbey in south-west Ireland. One hand clasps a crucifix; tied to the other arm is a pagan death symbol...A merchant ship is encountered under full sail on the high seas off the Irish coast. But the crew and cargo have vanished - as if by sorcery...Whose is the body in the well? Where is the crew of the vessel? Are these bizarre events connected? And if so, who is responsible?The year is AD 666, and Sister Fidelma of Kildare, advocate of the Brehon law courts, must follow a trail of clues and investigate a host of enigmatic suspects to unravel the puzzle.
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Review:
Seventh century Ireland provides the background in Peter Tremayne's newest murder mystery which begins gruesomely as two nuns pull a decapitated corpse from their drinking well. Sister Fidelma is called upon to determine who the body is and how she met her untimely end. Fidelma, as an advocate of the courts, is the appropriate person to collect evidence and determine if there is a case to be answered. Although Tremayne makes clear in his introduction that women under Irish law in the period aspired to and performed most professions on a similar footing with men, he does not neglect the opportunity to place Fidelma in situations where both her youth and gender raise the question of her suitability for her official capacity. Still, her enjoyment in convincing her doubters of her abilities and her ultimate success indicate, as Tremayne evidently intends, that this particular period, at least as Ireland as concerned, should not be characterized as a dark one.
About the Author:
En route to the scene of the crime that opens the story, Sister Fidelma encounters a second curiosity, a ship foundering in the waves without a person on board. What Fidelma does discover are hints that an old and trusted friend was aboard and seems to have met the same mysterious fate as the rest of the crew and cargo, whatever that might have been. The novel proceeds as Fidelma sets out to determine the cause of each of her mysteries, and what if any is the connection between them. Tremayne is a careful and engaging storyteller; his characters are thoughtfully drawn, and he uses the central mystery for them to discuss and reflect upon the differences between the native Irish church and that of Rome (which is becoming the more powerful--and whose ultimate success will keep women like Fidelma out of the halls of power which she has confidently and capably strode.)
The ecclesiastical period setting may remind readers of the work of Ellis Peters, but the 7th century is distinct from the 12th and Ireland distinct from England. Tremayne relishes those differences, creating a tale that has much to enlighten and intrigue his readers and make them anxious for the next time Sister Fidelma is called to perform her duties.
Peter Tremayne is the fiction pseudonym of a well-known authority on the ancient Celts, who has utilised his knowledge of the Brehon law system and 7th-Century Irish society to create a new concept in detective fiction.
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- PublisherMagna Large Print Books
- Publication date1998
- ISBN 10 075051244X
- ISBN 13 9780750512442
- BindingHardcover
- Number of pages488
- Rating
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