Customer Reviews

A Play of Dux Moraud (Joliffe, Book 2)

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The destitute playing troupe of performers made up of Joliffe, Basset and his daughter Rose, her son Piers and her love Ellis, had a stroke of very good luck. After years of traveling the countryside hoping for a few coins that would allow them to survive, they come under patronage of generous Lord Lovell. Their prayers had been answered, thought the actors. The only request Lord Lovell made was that the troupe takes on Gil Densell, the young son of one of Lovell's bailiffs, as an apprentice. How could their generous patron be denied such a small favor?
Lord Lovell added to the troupe's good fortune by providing them with a very good job. The son of Lord Lovell's landholder and daughter of his friend, Sir Edmund Deneby, were to be married. The troupe was asked to go to Deneby Manor and perform as a betrothal present for the young couple. And while there, Lord Lovell says, "I wanted to be able to call on your wits if need be."
The bride-to-be was recently betrothed to another man - a man who died under suspicious circumstances shortly before the wedding. And her current marriage seemed rushed. Lovell wants to know what is going on behind the scenes.
While at Deneby Manor and during the readying for the celebration, the actors had a warm dry place to stay, good company and regular, meals. All considered luxuries to the once struggling actors. Joliffe, who was very popular with all who lived at the manor and the townspeople, found it easy to gather information about the Denebys.
Not hard to uncover was the evident distaste the promised bride and her mother, Lady Benedicta, had for each other and the wall of ice that stood between the bride's parents. Other mysteries, however, are harder to unravel.
The story is slow to start, but the delay is well worth it. Frazer holds your interest with deftly drawn characters acting in a stage of intricate and accurate details of medieval life. The author's attention to the factual events and trimmings of a performance troupe from that period, add to the delight of the story.
As the book ends, the answers to the mysteries are exposed and answers that one would never imagine appear.
History and mystery buffs alike, will enjoy A Play of Dux Moraud.

Joliffe and his fellow actors arrive to entertain guests at the wedding a knight in medieval England. This should be a happy occasion and an easy acting job but something is not right. The last man to be engaged to the bride died a little too suddenly and there are quiet fears that something might happen to the new groom. There are troubling whispers and old rumors that won't stay dead and Joliffe, who's no prude is shocked to discover despite a respectable veneer there seems to be a sexual carnival going on at the estate. Things rapidly turn ugly and it takes all of Joliffe's wits to solve a particularly gruesome mystery. It's a very satisfying mystery and the ending is a shocker.

Since they acquired Lord Lovell as their patron, players (actors) Basset, Joliffe, Elis,Rose and her son have a feeling of security that was missing in their lives and they intend to do everything in their power to please his so he will keep on supporting the troupe. After performing in his home for Michalmas, Lord Lovell asks them to journey to the manor home of his vassal Sir Edmund

Sir Edmund's daughter is getting ready to wed a wealthy merchant but Lord Lovell is uneasy because her first betrothal ended when her bridegroom to be died quite suddenly. He wants the players, to see if there is any sense of wrong doing going on in Deneby Manor. When they arrive, they find a husband and wife barely talking to one another, a mother and the bride at each others throats and Sir Edmund's heir having "accidents". Joliffe discovers there is corruption in the Deneby finally that has led to one murder and very will might lead to others.

Set in the same universe as Margaret Frazier's Dame Frevisse mysteries, A PLAY OF DUX MORAUD is a meticulously researched, well written historical mystery that brings to life a bygone era. The working of society as seen through the eyes of the players is entertaining and full of unexpected surprises that add drama and color to the storyline. Historical mystery fans will love this series.

Harriet Klausner

This is the second in a series of new mysteries by the author of the Dame Frevisse series set in 15th century England. Joliffe the actor appeared in a few of the previous series, and the new stories set with him as mystery solver are quite good. I look forward to getting to know him better.

This was not the best of the Joliffe series and a foray into sexuality that I hope she does not continue. What I and other readers like about her books is the detailed descriptions of ordinary life of the time period and the thought processes of those characters involved in working out the mysteries. I was not expecting a pages-long, detailed description of a sexual encounter along with other sexual situations. The resolution of the mystery at the end left me with a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach. I hope her writing does not take this direction in the future.

The second series following Joliffe Ripon and the band of performers is a bit of a let-down, which disappointed me since Margaret Frazer is one of my favorite authors. Set in fifteenth-century England, Joliffe's Lord Lovell sends his performers to one of his feofees, whose daughter is soon to be married as a wedding gift. The daughter Mariena was betrothed earlier but her fiancé, hearty and hale, took ill and died suddenly. Lord Lovell has reason to believe that all may not be well at Sir Edmund Deneby's household. Joliffe is instructed to find out what he can.

The rest of the book is a slow moving story with Joliffe asking many questions but getting few answers. There was little suspense in any of Joliffe's experiences. Even the "accidents" Mariena and her younger brother add little to the sense of mystery. Unfortunately, these few events were all there was for any intrigue, and did not entertain. Joliffe spends most of his time pondering the same questions over and over, that we heard from Lord Lovell at the beginning of the story.

The final solution is revealed, but it is rather unsatisfying, since we are already given a strong sense of what may come through Joliffe's musings. There are very few surprises at all through out the book.

Although the book was disappointing, Frazer still tells a great story, bringing fifteenth century England to life, with historical facts as the backbone of the novel, embellished with Frazer's own brilliant imagination.

Her Dame Frevisse is far better than what we've seen of Joliffe so far. As she develops this character and his friends, perhaps this off-shoot of Frevisse will improve.

The story here is so ugly that we find ourselves ready to wring everybody's neck once we get an inkling of what may be happening in the household where the players come to exercise their craft. However, the storyline is magnificently developed by the author and the characters appear true to the period and their various personas.
The lessons Bassett, the playmaster, imparts to Gil (the new troupe member) are priceless, particularly with the thoughts of his own beginnings with the company that they evoke in Joliffe. Not true to life is the ending, when Lord Lovell asks Joliffe to join him when confronting the family of evil doers. As a mere lowly player, no lord would ever involve him in such event! However, how else would Ms. Frazer let us know what happened? So... I forgive her for that small faux pas.
Altogether a good story, but less of a mystery than her others and definitely a dark downer.

As the author of this series, I of course enjoy reading praise of my books, but critical remarks frequently provide me with amusement of another kind. The review that forgives my "small faux pas" of having Joliffe at Lord Lovell's confrontation of the villains because no lord would have a "lowly servant" present at such a time tickles me, because would Lord Lovell really be fool enough to confront the villains alone, without -- in modern terms -- back-up? (He's not a gothic heroine, after all.) And for the sake of damage-control -- limiting who knows what about a nasty situation that could only get worse, the more widely it's known -- who better to have with him than the person who has clued him in to what has been going on? Besides,there were gradations of servants as well as of other ranks; Lord Lovell had used Joliffe as a specialist in the matter, rather than as a plain, all-purpose servant, so "lowly" doesn't seem quite appropriate anyway. Not to mention what Joliffe would say about being called "lowly"!

The small company of players of which Joliffe Ripon is a member has had a streak of luck. Lord Lovell has become their sponsor and added a member to their company.
Their new status acquires responsibility when the lord asks them to present themselves to a young couple as a brothral gifts. While there they are requested to keep their eyes and ears open to under currents as an aspect of the marriage rings trouble more than bliss.
A great intermingling of mediaeval entertainment and mystery.
The begining slow pace picks up as the story unfolds.
Nash Black, author of SANDPRINTS OF DEATH

In this second book of the Joliffe series, Joliffe and his fellow players, now under the patronage of Lord Lovell, are asked to perform at a wedding as a gift to the couple. But Lord Lovell has an ulterior motive for playing patron to the troupe - he asks Joliffe to spy on the household of the betrothed Mariena, whose first fiance had fallen ill and died before the wedding, and determine if there is something to be suspicious of in this second marriage before it is finalized. What Joliffe uncovers is a tangle of sordid secrets that can only end in tragedy.

Frazer's writing has always impressed me, but this one was staggering in its weaving of a cloud of darkness and evil. Though the revelations do not come as a shock as she provides enough clues for the reader to guess at them, still the unraveling of the tangle to reveal the final picture has a strong impact that leaves a muted horror and lingering uneasiness at the depravity that can exist in the world.