Customer Reviews

Our Lady Of Darkness

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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!

Our Lady of Darkness is the ninth novel in the Sister Fidelma series. Sister Fidelma of Cashel, a town in Ireland, lived in the seventh century A.D. Although most of Europe was suffering the Dark Ages, Ireland was a progressive land where gender discrimination was rare. In Ireland any citizen could aspire to any profession. Sister is a very talented and accomplished woman. Fidlema has a graduate education where she earned the degree of anruth, similar to a masters degree today. Fidelma works as a dalaigh, an advocate in the courts. As an advocate she investigates problems and crimes and advises both church and civil authorities. A dalaigh may prosecute, defend, or even serve as judge in a criminal proceeding.

This story begins when Sister Fidelma returns from a "retreat" to a shrine of Saint James in Iberia. Sister abandons her retreat because she hears that Brother Eadulf, her close friend, has been arrested for a serious crime. Fidelma rushes to Fearna, where Eadulf is imprisoned, in hopes of defending him. Fearna is the capital city of Laigin, an enemy of Cashel. Although Fidlema is a dalaigh, with status in all of Ireland, several high officials in Fearna dislike her due to previous cases she won against Laigin's interests.

When Sister arrives, she discovers that Eadulf has already been tried and convicted. She learns he is sentenced to hang very soon. So Fidelma persuades Fianamail, the King of Laigin, to delay execution of sentence so that she might investigate whether there are grounds for appeal. The King gives her 24 hours.

Sister first learns that the Kingdom of Laigin has changed their law from the laws of the Brehons, the common law of Ireland, to the "penitentials", the law being advocated by the church of Rome. While the Brehon laws seldom call for capital punishment, the penitentials frequently assign death as a punishment for felony crime. Eadulf is accused of a serious felony, the rape and murder of a 12 year old girl. Fidelma immediately sends Aidan, one of her guards, to Tara, the city of the High King to request that Barran, the Chief Brehon of all Ireland, come to judge her appeal.

The investigation is wrought with difficulties. The primary witness has disappeared, the victim's blood and a piece of the victims robe were found in Eadulf's room. Four officials oppose Fidelma's efforts: the King, Abbess Fainder, Abbot Noe, and Bishop Forbassach, the Chief Brehon of Laigin. Could one of them have plotted against Eadulf out of vengeance against Fidelma? Could Eadulf have been framed by one of the merchants or town people to remove themself as a suspect. Could a foreign force be involved? Fidelma struggles to even imagine a motive for falsely accusing Eadulf, since he probably was, to the people of Fearna, simply a traveler making his way to Britain.

Fidelma struggles to find her way through a maze of information, much of it contradictory and some of it disproving her case. Several times during Sister's labors she encounters threats to her career, her freedom, and her life. The information Fidelma receives is confusing

Our Lady of Darkness is a fun mystery. The characters are well drawn and their emotions, intentions, and personalities are vivid and vital. The plot is full of suspense and political intrigue. I enjoyed this novel, it is a very entertaining book.

This is the best Sister Fidelma mystery that I've read since the first one. Like Absolution By Murder, it's about more than the case at hand. It deals with the issue of capitol punishment. I thought it was interesting that capitol punishment had not been part of the ancient Brehon law code of Ireland. There are pro and con arguments on capitol punishment presented, but they are integrated into the plot without being excessively preachy. This is a well-written novel that has an important theme.

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.

The Sister Fidelma novels are taking on almost cult proportions and are becoming ever more popular with each offering from the author, whose obvious knowledge of the times and subjects he writes about shines out like a beacon on the shore.

Arriving home from a voyage of pilgrimage, Sister Fidelma is shocked to hear that her Saxon companion, Brother Eadulf, a man who has assisted Fidelma on more than one occasion on her search for the truth, is under sentence of death for the murder of a young woman.

Fidelma finds it impossible to even contemplate the accusation and rushes the the capital of Laigin, determined to appeal against the sentence and to do everything in her power to defend the honour and the life of Eadulf.

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

Peter Tremayne's books have interesting plots and the stories are told well. But beware, if you're looking for a satisfying, historically accurate view of seventh-century Ireland. Tremayne (a pseudonym of the popular historian Peter Berresford Ellis) certainly knows about Irish law. But widening circles show more and more ignorance. The physical environment of a monastery in this period is simply wrong, ranging from construction to scale (the evil monastery of this volume sounds more like a great Benedictine monastery of the twelfth century than anything of the likes of Clonmacnois or Glendalough). There's extreme oddity in terminology, such as the plural French word "religieux" to describe a single monk, or "noviciate" in place of "novice," both of which suggest he knows little of monastic life. But most disturbing about this book is the utterly false picture it paints of "Roman" Christianity in the early Middle Ages---stating specifically that ecclesiastical authorities suppported and enforced death penalties, regularly engaged in corporal punishment, etc., through a bizarre law system labeled as "the Penitentials." This stuff just isn't true.

This is the first book in Peter Tremayne's series of historical mysteries that I have read. It was very good and I recommend it.
First, the heroine and her friend caught my attention and sympathy at once. All of the main players were sketched around one distinctive characteristic (such as devotion to the rule of law, greed, or arrogant ambition) but were still complex enough to be worth reading about.
Second, the historical detail was rich, interesting, and convincing. I knew about the intellectual flourishing of Ireland during the Dark Ages that engulfed the rest of Christian Europe around the 8th century. However, I did not know about the tension between traditional Irish law and the harsh Penitential rules being imported from monasteries on the continent. The historical controversy was as interesting as the mystery.
The author is described as an expert in Celtic history. If there were historical errors, I didn't catch them (as I often do in books set in the 19th century).
Some people might find that medieval Ireland was portrayed a bit idealistically but I didn't find it annoying. Other readers may be disappointed in the identity of the villain.
A great read and an entertaining and informative view of Irish history.

I appreciate this series the more it goes on. Eadulf was little more than a incredulous Watson early on, and graduated to a full blown partner. Finally, they admit they like each other!
it's about time!

While this book is for the most part reasonably well-written, there are some strange lapses in accuracy in it. For example, the two girls are consistently referred to as 'novitiates' by the characters. The proper word is 'novice.' 'Novitiate' refers to the period of time during which a novice learns to live a monastic rule. I noticed several other, less frequent, inaccuracies. Well-plotted, though.