A Feast of Poisons: A Kathryn Swinbrooke Mystery (Kathryn Swinbrooke Mysteries) [Hardcover]

P. C. Doherty (Author), C. L. Grace (Author)

Book Description

Series: Kathryn Swinbrooke Mysteries | Publication Date: June 1, 2004

Could a village blacksmith and his wife have independently, and on the same day, murdered each other with two entirely different poisons? The local medicine woman doesn't think so. And neither does Kathryn Swinbrooke, physician of Canterbury, who is in Walmer with her new husband, Colum Murtagh. Kathryn and Colum are visiting on state business: the fate of nations hinges on a meeting between the local grandee, Lord Henry, and agents of the French king. Now murder stalks the land, and only Kathryn can cut through the web of deceit that descends with the Spider King's minions.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

It's not easy being a physician, a detective, and a new bride in late-fifteenth-century England, but Kathryn Swinbrook manages. This latest entry in the series that includes A Maze of Murders (2002) is once again full of death and historical detail, the latter delivered without putting readers to sleep. Kathryn and her new husband, Colum, are caught up in a spider's web of political intrigue spun by Louis XI, known as the Spider King. Also tangled in the web are the local murders of a blacksmith and his wife, both poisoned on the same day in ways and for reasons no one understands. Grace (the pseudonym of genre veteran Paul Doherty) spins a web of his own with this well-wrought tale, which includes a nicely interwoven gay-themed subplot. Fans of the series won't be disappointed, but new readers will be able to jump right in as well. Ilene Cooper
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review

""Kathryn is an appealing heroine, a medieval Jane Ten-nison, and this quick read is chockfull of recondite information from ancient coins to homeopathic cures."

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Minotaur Books; 1st edition (June 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312310145
• ISBN-13: 978-0312310141
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #924,923 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Wickedness in Walmer, June 18, 2004

By 

L O'connor (richmond, surrey United Kingdom) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Feast of Poisons: A Kathryn Swinbrooke Mystery (Kathryn Swinbrooke Mysteries) (Hardcover)

In the village of Walmer on the Kent coast, the blacksmith and his wife both die at the same time of different poisons administered seperately. How could this have happened? Katherine Swinbrooke, physician, apothecary and reluctant sleuth, is called in to find out. Other mysterious things have happened in Walmer, the death, apparently an accident, of the wife of Sir Henry Beauchamp, and the murder of a group of Lancastrian supporters. Can Katherine sort it all out? Do you doubt it for a moment. Fans of Katherine will be relieved to know that she has finally married her hunky Irish boyfriend Colum Murtagh, and is enjoying married life very much. Inbetween solving murders, Colum lures her back to bed whenever he can. As with all the books in this series, there are enjoyable and vivivd pictures of medieval life, and a host of interesting supporting characters. I feel that there are perhaps too many murders in this one, two or three per mystery is enough I think, but Katherine can cope with it. I would just like to comment on the previous reviewer who refers to Kathereine as an independent women at a time when women were just the chattles of their menfolk. In fact there was no shortage of independent women in the Middle Ages, they were far les chattels then than they became in later centuries. Anyway, this is a fun series and kathereine is a likeable heroine, and I am so glad she has got Colum at last!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not quite up to earlier books in series, August 6, 2004

By 

booksforabuck "BooksForABuck" (Long Beach, CA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: A Feast of Poisons: A Kathryn Swinbrooke Mystery (Kathryn Swinbrooke Mysteries) (Hardcover)

While the French ambassadors visit Lord Henry, hoping to secure a permanent peace between France and England, a rash of poisonings breaks out in Lord Henry's nearby town of Walmer. Visiting physician Kathryn Swinbrooke, newly married to Irishman Colum Murtagh, suspects that the poisonings are related to the recent execution of three Lancaster loyalists after the York victories of Barnet and Tewkesbury. Of course, Walmer has a dark past--not long before, Lord Henry had broken up a gang that lured ships to the dangerous shore and despoiled them. Of course, the treacherous Frenchmen, or possibly the visiting preacher, could have something to do with it. Besides, as Colum points out to Kathryn, even Lord Henry is hardly above suspicion.

Set in War of the Roses England, A FEAST OF POISONS deals with greed, the fears that drive men to sin, and atonement of guilt. Because virtually everyone has some great guilt, some horrible secret, hanging over their heads. When one of the French ambassadors is found poisoned, Kathryn wonders whether there could possibly be a connection between the remote rural village and the high and mighty of the kingdom.

Author C. L. Grace spent a bit too much time with Kathryn and Colum admiring how much in love with one another they were and how perfect their bodies were. In mystery, I like to get a good feel for the various red herrings, their possible motives, their private guilts. I didn't feel that I got enough of that in FEAST.

The War of the Roses is a particularly fascinating point in English history and Grace's strong adherence to the Yorkist cause is a nice switch from the Shakespearian-based histories that followed the eventual Lancaster victory. A FEAST OF POISONS is an interesting story but I would have liked to see more interesting character development to add to the late-medieval atmosphere. For me, at least, FEAST did not live up to the promise set in earlier novels in the Kathryn Swinbrooke series.

4.0 out of 5 stars Feast of a Medieval Mystery, July 29, 2004

By 

S. Feicht "seefeicht" (Rensselaer, IN USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: A Feast of Poisons: A Kathryn Swinbrooke Mystery (Kathryn Swinbrooke Mysteries) (Hardcover)

Kathryn and her new husband Colum are spending their honeymoon at the manor of Lord Henry, naturally amidst murders. On the national front, the French are trying to keep King Edward from their shores and keep Henry Tudor safe. Locally, the village of Walmer has a series of deaths by poison. Kathryn uses logic to catch the murderers. The author deftly weaves history and social life of the middle ages into an intricate plotted mystery. If you like Candace Robb's Owen Archer mysteries this is one you will want to read. The plot is strong, the characters multi-faceted, and a very strong heroine.