In the winter of 1353, torrential rains are spreading fever to the poor and making travel especially hazardous along the town’s outlaw-infested roads. Then three members of the University die by drinking poisoned wine. College physician Matthew Bartholomew would rather not get involved in the investigation, but when his life is threatened, he stumbles on criminal activities that implicate friends, relatives, and colleagues—a deadly brew of evil intent.
| ||||||||||||||||||
Book Description
Frequently Bought Together
Editorial Reviews
Review
'A good, serious and satisfying read' IRISH TIMES
From the Publisher
Skillfully combining murder, medicine, and mystery, these intricate and engaging mysteries follow the investigations of 14th–century Cambridge physician and forensic sleuth Matthew Bartholomew. The pseudonymous author Susanna Gregory, an anthropologist and Cambridge academic, is a former coroner’s officer.
Product Details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
More About the Author
Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A great Gregory,
By
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: A Deadly Brew: The Fourth Chronicle of Matthew Bartholomew (The Chronicles of Matthew Bartholomew) (Hardcover)
A DEADLY BREW (Hist. Mys-Matthew Bartholomew-England-1353) - VGGregory, Susanna - 4th in series Little, Brown and Company, UK Hardcover, 1998 - ISBN: 0316640573 First Sentence: The afternoon had been growing gradually darker as storm clouds massed overhead. It's the winter of 1353, the plague is recently past but a worry and with the formal rains physician Matthew Barthomew is concerned about the spread of fever. That fear is over shadowed by the sudden and violent deaths by poisoning of three people. He traces the poison to wine and smuggling operations that must be stopped before more people die, including Matthew. Matthew Bartholomew has become one of my favorite characters. Trained by Arabs, his methods may raise eyebrows but they are effective. The dialogue, particularly between Matthew and his friend Michael, is sharp and has an element to wry humor. Michael is a little darker in this fourth book. He is still Mathew's friend, but he has his own agenda as well. Gregory creates such a strong sense of time and place. You can feel the cold, wet, mud outside and mustiness inside and contrasts that with the warmth and comfort of the convent at Denny. You also see the contrasts and conflicts between the religion and science, the University and the town, the wealthy and the poor. The mystery is more involved than you first think with many layers, twists and some very good suspense. I am anxious to read more of the series.
3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
These Books Just Get Better and Better,
By J. Chippindale (England) - See all my reviews
This review is from: A Deadly Brew (Matthew Bartholomew Chronicles) (Paperback)
Susanna Gregory is the pseudonym of a Cambridge academic who was previously a coroner's officer. Her series of mediaeval mysteries have gained a formidable following. This book is the second in the series and introduces the physician Matthew Bartholomew to the reader. There are now a number of books in the series and they are always eagerly awaited by the author's fans.Besides practising medicine Matthew is also a teacher at a Cambridge University and his sometimes unorthodox treatment of his patients draws accusations of heresy from his more traditional, but less skilled colleagues. A new, and very well endowed college has opened and Matthew Bartholomew is caught in the middle of some petty squabbling among the academics as they all vie for position as the new appointments are made. The town of Cambridge and its residents have still not recovered from the havoc wreaked by the plague and the winter and spring have not helped, being extremely wet. There is a fever outbreak amongst the poorer people of the town and the fact that the Cambridge colleges are gaining a reputation for their wealth is making the tension between the townsfolk and the students even more precarious. On top of all this there is a death, a student, killed it is reported by poisoned wine. Then there is a second victim, Dittone, the deputy master of the new college. But the puzzling thing is that there seems to be little or no connection between the master and the student. Bartholomew must try to solve the mystery before the town and the universities are at one another's throat. This is the fourth book in the series and Matthew Bartholomew now seems like an old friend to the reader. It was also inspirationally by the author to place the books in mediaeval Cambridge. It just seems to add some extra atmosphere to the books.
2 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Susanna Gregory Writes Great Medieval Mysteries.,
By
This review is from: A Deadly Brew (Matthew Bartholomew Chronicles) (Paperback)
Susahna Gregory is my most favourite medieval mystery author. She's a master and her Matthew Bartholemew series is great. She uses historical detail and real people in her books. Her books are long but she takes time to develop a plot. I read this book a few months ago, but it didn't appear in Amazon, so I couldn't review it then. This particular story delves into the in-fighting between two colleges situated in Cambridge. People get killed by poisoned wine. As with most of her stories, there is a lot of bloodshed, but that just makes it more fun.
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
|
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
