A Plague of Angels: A Sir Robert Carey Mystery [Paperback]

P F Chisholm (Author), Diana Gabaldon (Introduction)

Book Description

Series: Sir Robert Carey Mysteries (Paperback) | Publication Date: October 1, 2000

In 1592, dashing courtier Sir Robert Carey took up his northern post as Warden of the West March in order to escape the complications of creditors and court life. Trouble, however, dogs his heels wherever he goes. And where he goes in autumn, after the summer's misadventures in Carlisle, is back to London upon a summons from his father.

Carey is on difficult terms with his powerful sire, Henry, Lord Hunsdon. Hunsdon, son of Anne Boleyn's elder sister, Mary -- and probably of a young King Henry VIII -- swings a lot of weight as "cousin" to Queen Elizabeth. But Hunsdon needs his ingenious younger son, Carey to sort out the difficulties his elder son has got himself into as an innocent party in a plot to discredit the family.

Accompanied by the shrewd Sergeant George Dodd, who's like a fish out of water as he copes with the strange Londoners, Carey tackles Catholics, treachery, and such persons known to history and students of literature as George Greene and Christopher Marlowe who are working as spies and double agents. Most arresting is a portrait of a love-sick, snivelling hanger-on named Will Shakespeare....

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In this fourth mystery featuring Sir Robert Carey (after A Surfeit of Guns), strong writing and a wealth of detail about Elizabethan London cannot make up for a painfully slow plot. The book opens with Carey and his sidekick, Sergeant Dodd, on the road to London, a clever and lively scene that promises much more action than what actually follows. Carey, based on a historical figure of the same name, has been called to the city by his father, Lord Chamberlain Hunsdon, half-brother to Queen Elizabeth, to search for his missing brother Edmund. It seems Edmund, never the most sensible of men, has gotten himself mixed up in false alchemy and counterfeiting, a crime that is considered treason. As Carey and Dodd investigate the scheme that drew in Edmund, they discover that Thomas Heneage, the greedy and cruel vice chamberlain, is almost certainly involved. Facts, however, are as elusive as Edmund continues to be. Alternately helped and hindered by the playwrights Christopher Marlowe and William Shakespeare, and merely frustrated by the poet Robert Greene, Carey and Dodd dart about the streets of London, visiting bars and churches, literally avoiding the plague as well as the wiles of the lovely Mistress Bassano. Traitors and allies are finally sorted out in the Fleet, a debtor's prison in London that Chisholm (the pseudonym of historical novelist Patricia Finney) portrays in all its sordid misery. (Nov. 30)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

The fourth Sir Robert Carey mystery finds the Deputy Warden of the West Marshes (on the England/Scotland border) returning to London after the adventures chronicled in A Surfeit of Guns (1997). It's August 1592, and Carey, struggling to scrape together enough cash to pay off his debts, finds himself embroiled in a feud between a couple of playwrights: Robert Greene and a young fellow called William Shakespeare. Chisholm displays a real knack for comedy here, in a tale that is noticeably lighter than the earlier installments in the series. This is no lumpy, historically accurate but dramatically dull novel; it's a lively, lifelike adventure that just happens to feature some of the most famous people in the history of drama (Christopher Marlowe also takes a turn). The author's change of pace from more serious fare should please her fans and win her a lot of new ones, too. David Pitt
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Paperback: 252 pages
• Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press (October 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1890208434
• ISBN-13: 978-1890208431
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #525,561 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Delightful Series, February 20, 2001

By 

J. Mark Bertrand - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Plague of Angels: A Sir Robert Carey Mystery (Paperback)

The impression I get is that the Carey books are "fun" projects for Patricia Finney to take on between more serious books like Firedrake's Eye and Unicorn's Blood -- whatever the case, they are so worthwhile that I bought the UK editions before they were available in the States. All I can say about Finney's research is that I have made a study of swords and swordsmanship of the period, and her descriptions suggest that she has gone the extra mile in getting the details right, when many historical authors would settle for the Hollywood version. I recommend the whole series as a fine example of entertaining, well-written adventures that make the most of their Elizabethan setting.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent historical mystery, December 9, 2000

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Plague of Angels: A Sir Robert Carey Mystery (Paperback)

Short of the monarch, the only person who Sir Robert Carey would heed an order from to come to London is his father Lord Hunsdon the Queen's Lord Chamberlain. Robert knows that the big city has many individuals irate with him, as he owes them a lot of money. However, his father needs his help and thus, accompanied by his Land Sergeant Henry Dodd, Robert travels south to London.

Hunsdon informs his son that he needs his peculiar skills as a detective. Robert's older brother is missing and a scandal is brewing that could cost Hunsdon more than just his job of security for her highness if the Queen becomes upset with the family. Robert is to find his sibling, a gambler, and bring him safely home. Unbeknownst to the detective and his companion Henry, the Vice Chancellor has set in motion a plan to use Robert and his brother to discredit their father in the eyes of Queen Elizabeth.

A PLAGUE OF ANGELS, The fourth Carey Elizabethan mystery, is a fabulous investigative tale that employs real persona from the history books including the lead character. Appearances by literary figures such as Shakespeare and Marlowe add a feel of authenticity to the plot, but the story line belongs to Robert and his sleuthing, and the stunned, naive Henry, seeing the big city for the first time. Sub-genre fans will enjoy this novel and P.F. Chisholm's three other Carey books (A FAMINE OF HORSES, A SEASON OF KNIVES, and A SURFEIT OF GUNS).

Harriet Klausner

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Plague of Angels, January 9, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: A Plague of Angels: A Sir Robert Carey Mystery (Paperback)

This is the kind of book that makes life worth living.

Written in a spare yet vivid style, with outstanding dialogue, Plague of Angels features well-known characters from the first three books of Chisholm's series. But, due to a letter from Carey's father, they've had to ride south to London. Readers be encouraged: this is no Renaissance Faire.

Characterization is particularly strong in this volume because it's from the point of view of Sergeant Dodd, the tough, morose, thoroughly engaging Borderer. His viewpoints on London, the aristocracy, and Carey are not only humorous but have a certain ring of truth. I'd always liked Dodd, but in the course of this book he became one of my favorite historical fiction characters of all time. Carey, seen through Dodd's eyes, retains his notable charm and savoir-faire. And Chisholm does something nearly impossible: writes about real historical characters and does it well. Yes, Shakespeare is in this book, and yes, it works.

The plot is an exciting one, of course. Some of the twists aren't quite as well developed as they could be, but between the plague, the Fleet Prison, and our hero facing torture by the bad guys, it's hard to care.

I was particularly impressed here with Chisholm's presentation of Renaissance mentalities. The pure terror evoked by the plague, in an age when diseases were unstoppable and more or less uncurable, is very well described. It's also worth mentioning that, although her protagonists are male, Chisholm does well with female characters, making them realistic products of their time but still strong, interesting individuals.