Our Lady of Darkness: A Celtic Mystery [Hardcover]

Peter Tremayne (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 21, 2002

In mid-seventh-century Ireland, Sister Fidelma of Cashel-sister to the King of Muman, an advocate of Brehon Courts, and religieuse of the Celtic Church-returns hastily from a pilgrimage to the Shrine of St. James. The news that brings her back is that her companion and friend, the Saxon monk Brother Eadulf, is under arrest for a serious crime in the neighboring kingdom of Laigin. Riding furiously through hostile territory, she arrives only to find out she is too late. Eadulf has already been tried and found guilty of the murder of a young girl. Even worse, Laigin's king has abandoned the traditional judicial code of Ireland in favor of the ecclesiastical Penitential from Rome-and under this code he is to be executed the following morning.

Convinced that her friend is innocent, Fidelma has only twenty-four hours before his execution to come up with evidence persuasive enough to sway the king into allowing an appeal of Eadulf's conviction. Facing a king determined to make an example of Eadulf and an old adversary of her own, Fidelma soon realizes that nothing is as it was portrayed, and behind the heinous crime is an even more shocking conspiracy. Now, Fidelma must unravel her most perplexing puzzle before time runs out for her closest companion.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In Our Lady of Darkness: A Celtic Mystery, by British author Peter Tremayne (the pseudonym of Celtic historian Peter Berresford Ellis), Roman Penitential law and traditional Irish law come into conflict as Sister Fidelma finds herself defending her good friend, Saxon monk Brother Eadulf, from a rape and murder charge. This is another solid installment in this well-established medieval series.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Series protagonist Sister Fidelma of Cashel (Act of Mercy) attempts to save her Saxon monk friend, Brother Eadulf, from wrongful execution. A faithful rendering of life and justice in seventh-century Ireland.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Minotaur Books; 1st edition (September 21, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312272952
• ISBN-13: 978-0312272951
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 6.4 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,170,946 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Peter Tremayne is the fiction pseudonym of Peter Berresford Ellis, a renowned Celtic scholar who has written over 30 books on the Ancient Celts and the Irish. As Tremayne, he is best known for his stories and novels featuring 7th century Irish religieuse Fidelma of Cashel. He lives in London.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars strong Sister Fidelma mystery, September 14, 2002

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Our Lady of Darkness: A Celtic Mystery (Hardcover)

Ireland in the middle of the seventh century is a beacon of light in a world of darkness. Scholars from all over the world go there to study and women are considered the equals of men. Sister Fidelma of Cashel, the sister to the king of Muman, a religiouse and a dalaigh wields considerable power, which she doesn't hesitate to use when her friends are in trouble.

When she learns that her friend Brother Eadulf, is going to be hung for the rape and murder of a twelve year old girl, she cuts short her pilgrimage to the tomb of St. James in Iberia and rushes to defend him. It will be one of the most difficult jobs Fidelma has ever undertaken because there is an eyewitness account and plenty of circumstantial evidence.

The Sister Fidelma mysteries are always a treat to read and OUR LADY OF DARKNESS is no exception. Readers really empathize with the strong-willed heroine who fears for her very dear friend. The who-done it is very complex and enthralling with a cast of believable suspects that are all guilty of something. The audience will get a good feel for the culture of Ireland in the seventh century and feel as if they are in twenty-first century America.

Harriet Klausner

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a fantastically suspenseful read, September 1, 2002

By 

tregatt (Portland, Oregon) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Our Lady of Darkness: A Celtic Mystery (Hardcover)

"Our Lady of Darkness" takes place on the heels of the previous Sister Fidelma mystery novel, "Act of Mercy." "Our Lady of Darkness" opens with Fidelma's breath-neck journey to the kingdom of Laigin, in order to meet with King Fianamail (the boorish young King of Laigin) in order to get him to allow her to investigate the charges against her good and close friend, Brother Eadulf. For those of you not yet familiar with this series, Sister Fidelma is not just any religieuse -- she also happens to be the younger sister of the King of Cashel, as well as an advocate of the courts (a dalaigh). And in spite of the somewhat hostile relationship that seems to flourish between Cashel and Laigin, Fidelma is fairly confident that she can clear up the mess Eadulf seems to have gotten himself into fairly quickly. So that she is both shocked and angry to discover that 1) Eadulf has been accused of raping and murdering a twelve year old novice from the Abbey at Fearna (the Abbey of the Blessed Maedoc); and that 2) the usual (and proper) Irish laws of investigation and passing judegement were not observed, and that Eadulf was judged according to the Roman Rule of Penitentials -- laws that are not yet accepted or observed by the Irish courts. (Not only that, but the Brehon also seems to have conducted a very shoddy investigation and to have bent many laws in order to convict Eadulf of the crime).

Using her legal expertise, Fidelma is able to persuade Fianamail to give her 24 hours to investigate things. With time decidedly against her, Fidelma makes for the Abbey; where she finds that not only does the uneasy relationship between Cashel and Laigin work against her, but also the clash between the Roman Rule of the Penitentials (which the Abbess stringently champions) and the Irish Rule of Colmcille. Add to that the fact that the Brehon of Ferna, Bishop Fossbach, happens to be an old adversary of Fidelma's, who would dearly love to see her fall from grace, and who seems to be completely in the thrall of the Abbess. But Fidelma is nothing if not determined. And in spite of the fact that there happens to be a witness to Eadulf's guilt, Fidelma is determined to get to the bottom of everything, and to clear Eadulf of all charges. Obviously, Eadulf was set up. But by whom, and why? As her investigation progresses, Fidelma comes across a great deal of evidence to support her suspicion that the case against Eadulf was very meticulously arranged, and that there is something truly evil and unwholesome at work at the Abbey. As the hours pass, so too does Fidelma's determination grow to both vindicate Eadulf and to root out the evil at the Abbey.

This is one of Peter Tremayne's more suspenseful efforts. The entire novel unfolded at a swift and brisk pace, though I will admit that things did bog down a little somewhere in the middle of the book. Other than that, I can safely report that this is a rather clever and intriguing plot, complete with a good number of red herring suspects and unexpected plot twists. And the final scene, where Fidelma, like Christie's Hercule Poirot, gathers all the suspects and untangles the mystery for all to see, was a real gem. "Our Lady of Darkness" turned out to be a truly fantastic read.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Probably the Darkest Book So Far!, June 2, 2003

By 

S. Schwartz "romonko" (alberta canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Our Lady of Darkness: A Celtic Mystery (Hardcover)

This book is probably the darkest book I've read in this series. As usual the book is well-written and engaging. Sister Fidelma is asked to cut short her pilgrimage so that she can return home to Ireland to save her friend Eadulf who has been accused of the rape and murder of a very young novitiate at the abbey in the kingdom of Laigin. Not only that but she finds out that Eadulf has received a sentence of death for his supposed involvement with this crime. It becomes a real race against time and we wait with bated breath to see whethe or not she can make it in time to save him. The question of capital punishment becomes the cornerstone of this book. The plus and minus issues on this all important topis are all issues that we still deal with today. Fidelma hurries there as fast as she can with three warriors that her brother has assigned to help keep her safe. And these warriors are indeed necessary. When Fidelma arrives she finds a sinister and dark abbey where she finds unspeakable crimes have been committed in the name of lust and of greed. The characters in this book from Laigin are wondefrully depicted. They all seem sinister and menacing. Fidelma's search for the truth becomes desperate and a race against time in a land where she can find no allies. An excellent book!