Chaucer and the Doctor of Physic: A Medieval Murder Mystery [Hardcover]

Philippa Morgan (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 22, 2006

Poet and diplomat Geoffrey Chaucer, newly returned from a delicate mission to Florence on behalf of Edward III, is despatched to sort out a home-grown problem in the Devon seaport of Dartmouth. Geoffrey must leave his family in London and travel west, expecting to solve the theft of the cargo of a Genoese ship with comparative ease. Chaucer and his companions are lodging with a wealthy doctor of physic in his fine house overlooking the water. But there is deep hostility in the port town between citizens and sailors — accusations and daggers fly. There are tensions in the house as well, and murder occurs soon after their arrival when one of the occupants is done to death in the herb garden. Geoffrey investigates the death and its possible connection to the theft. Meanwhile, Philippa Chaucer, staying in the Palace of Savoy, is warned of a conspiracy against Katherine — her sister and the mistress to John of Gaunt, now the most powerful man in England after the king. Philippa once saved Katherine's life during an outbreak of plague when they were children. Will she again be called on to protect her sister from her equally dangerous enemies at court?

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Intrigue involving "land pirates," who plant false lights to lure merchant ships to their doom on the rocky English coast, is the focus of Morgan's atmospheric third mystery to feature Geoffrey Chaucer (after 2005's Chaucer and the Legend of Good Women). When the San Giovanni goes down oddly without casualties, the unfortunate ship's master accuses William Bailey, the arrogant mayor of Dartmouth, of plundering its cargo. Chaucer, in his role as diplomat and crime solver, investigates, since the disaster carries political and economic implications for English-Italian relations. His mission is complicated during his stay at lofty Semper House by scheming within the family of the eponymous physician, Richard Storey, who recently remarried to the dismay of his brooding son, Edgar, and wily ex-mother-in-law, Bridget Salt. An absorbing mix of history, suspense and romance, this tale brings one of Britain's most renowned literary figures to credible life. (Oct.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Who knew that Geoffrey Chaucer moonlighted as a detective? Readers of Morgan's engaging series, that's who. In his third adventure, the poet and diplomat has just returned home from a dangerous mission. After a couple of days' rest, Chaucer is sent by the king back out into the field, this time to the seaport of Dartmouth, to find out who stole the cargo of a Genoese ship. When he arrives at the scene, Chaucer discovers he now must solve a murder as well. But does the killing have anything to do with the missing cargo? Full of the sights and sounds of fourteenth-century England--and pleasingly free of tedious exposition and clumps of research--this lively novel is a fine example of how to get it right in a historical mystery. Chaucer himself is a well-realized and charming protagonist, and the series seems to be settling in for a long run. David Pitt
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Carroll & Graf; 1ST edition (August 22, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786718242
• ISBN-13: 978-0786718245
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,937,317 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a chilling and thrilling read, September 18, 2006

By 

tregatt (Portland, Oregon) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Chaucer and the Doctor of Physic: A Medieval Murder Mystery (Hardcover)

After the disappointment of "Chaucer and the Legend of Good Women," I was happy to find myself deeply absorbed with the goings-on in "Chaucer and the Doctor of Physic." Suspenseful and intriguing, this third Chaucer installment is definitely the best mystery novel in the series so far and is worth recommending as an excellent read.

Geoffrey Chaucer has only just recently returned from his diplomatic mission to Italy and is enjoying a brief respite with his family, when he is once again summoned by his king to go and sort out a spot of trouble in Devon. The captain of an Italian ship had stored his valueable cargo at the mayor of the seaport of Dartmouth's warehouse while his ship was being repaired. Unfortunately, the cargo has now been stolen, with both the sea captain and the mayor accusing each other of the theft. And because these accusations and counteraccusations could disrupt the good and lucrative relationship the English have with the Italians, Chaucer has been asked to investigate the matter and resolve it as soon as possible. Not an easy task at all given that the Mayor, rogue though he is, is a very popular figure, and the townspeople's natural hostility to foreigners and Londoners. Could that be the reason why Chaucer and his party are attacked just a few miles outside the town? Things become even more complicated and dire when a murder is committed at Richard Storey's (Chaucer's host) house and Storey's own son is implicated in the murder. Chaucer, however, is not convinced that everything is so cut and dried. There is something dark and sinister going on in the town of Dartmouth and Chaucer means to discover what it is and put and end to it...

If you enjoy the dark and atmospheric West Country mysteries that Michael Jecks pens, you will definitely enjoy "Chaucer and the Doctor of Physic." Philipa Morgan's latest effort possesses many of the same qualities that a book by Michael Jecks would possess: the dark and threatening atmosphere, the detailed descriptions of scenes, the clever layering of historical fact into the mystery at hand, an intriguing and suspenseful mystery subplot, red herring suspects, clever plot twists and turns, and credible and believably portrayed characters (I, especially liked her portrayal of Chaucer and the clever way with which she inserts characters easily recognised from Chaucer's works into her mysteries). I was hooked from the very first chapter and simply had to finish the book in one go. All in all, this was a fantastic read, and I'm eagerly looking forward to the next "Chaucer" mystery novel.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Chaucer is well-versed in murder, mayhem!, April 8, 2009

By 

Billy J. Hobbs "Bill Hobbs" (Tyler, TX USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Chaucer and the Doctor of Physic: A Medieval Murder Mystery (Hardcover)

Philippa Morgan's return to the Chaucerian series created earlier gives us another "tale" told with Geoffrey Chaucer as the principle character--it's medieval "whoidunit" by a man well versed (pun intended) into the wiles, foibles, and weaknesses of humankind, the Father of English Literature himself. Granted Morgan's Chaucer is a fictionalized version of the poet, but at least the author gives us a human side to Chaucer, a personality we can only suppose while reading "The Canterbury Tales."

Not to worry if you're not into English literature, great poetry, or "intellectual stuff," Morgan (who, I've discovered on Fantastic Fiction, is a pseudonym for Philip Gooden, whose Shakespeare series is even more exciting and worth reading (one wonders why the pseudonym, of course, but regardless, these two series are fun to read).

Chaucer, it turns out in "Chaucer and the Doctor of Physic," has just returned from a second mission, a delicate, if not deadly, inquiry that leads him to Florence ("Chaucer and the Legend of Good Women"). History, of course, tells us that Chaucer indeed was a diplomat in the service of King Edward III. With his companions from the first novel, Alan and Ned, they set off to Devon to investigate the theft of a cargo of alum that had gone missing after the Genoese ship had foundered in bad weather near Dartmouth. They are to meet up with Richard Storey, the local and prominent doctor of physic there. Before they can reach him, however, the trio are waylaid and almost killed, saved by the good doctor himself. From this point, the action, mystery, and convoluted involvements of the various characters are set in motion, with the requisite murders along the way, after all, this is a murder mystery,one dealing with the fabled "elixir of life"--need we say more.

The Storey household itself holds a number of mysteries and conundrums, not to mention dangerous moments. Morgan's characters are a widely encompassed group, just as Chaucer presents his characters in his "Tales." Some we like, some we respect, some we fear, and some we loath. At least one, of course, is a murderer. But the author is more clever than this and it takes the cleverness of Chaucer to unravel all the details, resulting in a not-so-surprising climax, but one, nonetheless, captivating, and NOT in Chaucerian rhyming couplets!

Morgan's story is readable and maintains the standards of the first two; however, this reader would like to see the character of Chaucer developed even further--goodness knows, there should be no boundaries here. There's still room to make Chaucer not only "more human," but incredibly interesting too. One does not need a strong background of Chaucer to appreciate the storyline, although Morgan is clever enough to sprinkle the book with plenty of references and allusions to the "Tales." Hopefully, there'll be a fourth (this was published in 2006) and Chaucer will become even more magically human!

5.0 out of 5 stars Fun historical mystery; you don't need to be a Chaucer groupie to appreciate, July 20, 2008

By 

Esther Schindler (Scottsdale, AZ USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Chaucer and the Doctor of Physic: A Medieval Murder Mystery (Hardcover)

I'm a fool for historical mysteries, and <gasp> I was out of any lightweight fiction to read. I grabbed this book on a whim as I passed through my local library... and now I'm putting the author's other books on my wishlist.

Basic premise: Before Geoffrey Chaucer wrote The Canterbury Tales, he was asked to do special projects on behalf of the crown... well, asked indirectly at least. He's just returned from one adventure and is asked to look into a small matter in Dartmouth involving the loss of a cargo that's important to a trade agreement. While trying to follow his instructions, he becomes distracted by other events... which include a dead body or two.

It's a well crafted tale, and the author kept my attention even with a lot of things going on. The author kept me guessing and kept me turning pages. I liked and believed the characters, and the history lessons came through with absolutely no sense of being lectured to. In short: this is a fun read.

I confess that I've never read the Canterbury Tales. I'm familiar enough with them generally to catch that in-jokes were being told; I suspect they'd have been even more entertaining if I'd bothered to take more traditional literature classes. Also, this is clearly the third (? well not the first) book in the series, but that never presented a problem. The relationships here don't hinge particularly on earlier events, so this worked fine as a standalone novel.

Good story. A fine choice for a lazy Sunday afternoon, any day of the week.