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13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Great concept, enjoyable read, a bit too long, October 6, 1999
This review is from: Quality of Mercy (Mass Market Paperback)
Kellerman has written an enjoyable mystery featuring a young detective named...Will Shakespeare? Yes, it's a surprising adventure with a young Will searching for his mentor's killer, and romancing a lovely young lady named Rebecca Lopez who has problems of her own (she's a secret Jew, in hiding from the Inquisition). You may also notice some interesting similarities to the film "Shakespeare in Love" and Kellerman's book came first! While it's a good read, the book does go on a tad too long (a sometime failing of Kellerman's), and the revelation of the killer seems a bit tacked on, as Rebecca's story takes center stage late in the book. Still, this is a very entertaining novel, and well worth a look.
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
An amazing historical feast-sadly lacking in promised mystery but flowing over with love, history and faith, June 17, 2008
This review is from: Quality of Mercy (Mass Market Paperback)
I had no idea what I was getting into when I first opened "The Quality of Mercy." I had wanted a historical mystery to satisfy my burgeoning thirst for the genera but was utterly surprised to find a book that was sublimely well written, a true love story and a novel that even made me, a half Jew with no ties to the community feel honored to be part of such an extraordinary race that struggled so much through out history.
This is the story of William Shakespeare, out to find his friend Henry Whitman's murderer and Rebecca Lopez, daughter to the Queen's physician. They spot each other across a graveyard when Henry and Rebecca's fiancé are buried on the same day and later meet when Rebecca, seeking to escape the confines of her house wanders the city dressed as a man. Soon the two fall in love.
But Will is being stalked by daggers as he comes closer to the truth behind Henry's death and Rebecca is a converso- a secret Jew that even in one of the most religiously tolerant countries of the time is not free to practice her faith. And to add to the danger her family is actively involved in paying the King of Spain to smuggle Jews out of the country and away from the arms of the inquisition.
Out of love Will aids Rebecca's family when they are in need even though she is soon engaged to another cousin (though her betrothed has and never will have a sexual or romantic interest in the union.) However all is not well for the Lopezes have a powerful enemy at court in the form of Lord Essex, who will do anything to bring down Roderigo, Rebecca's father, and colluding with Spain, an enemy state, is treason....
Will Shakespeare find the foul fiend who murdered his dear friend? Is there any hope for him and Rebecca? Will Rebecca and her father manage to maneuver through the deadly path that is court life in England? And what does the prolog, written in first person, have to do with the rest of the book?
This is a wonderfully written novel in terms of writing style. The language is fluid, the descriptions vivid and the dialog is (unusual for most historical fiction) fitting with the lingo of the times. It is very clear that this is a wonderfully researched novel that has fictionalized the true story of Roderigo Lopez, Elizabeth's physician and his late life in England-which may well have inspired "The Merchant of Venice." And as I said earlier, it is very moving on the subject of Jews in the middle ages and the true faith it took not to just convert for good and be done, but to stick with your traditions and your gods. And eventually the prolog fits in so well that I almost wish there would be another novel solely about the story behind and beyond it.
But the real mystery of the novel-who killed Henry?-is sadly unsatisfying. The conclusion in the end does make sense but there are hardly the clues in the book to put it together I also have trouble believing that a wealthy, well educated young woman like Rebecca, who would have been expected to make a good marriage from the moment of her birth, could have had so much sexual experience before her marriage (or failed to get pregnant from any of it!)
All in all though this novel is a treat to read. The subject matter is often horrific, but true and so I admit to putting the book down at times and despairing of going on. There was so much cruelty in the world. But overall "The Quality of Mercy" is an example of people banding across cultural lines to help put an end to injustice and to reach out in love in spite of preconceived notions.
Four stars.
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Interesting idea, but book is a bit trashy at times, December 21, 2004
The Quality of Mercy encompasses many genres. It is a murder mystery, thriller, romance and a partial history.
Rebecca Lopez and her family are conversos, Jews who practice their religion secretly and help others escape persecution. She meets and becomes romantically involved with Will Shakespeare, a struggling playwright who is trying to put together the pieces of his best friend's murder. While Will longs to find the clues to discover Harry's killer, Rebecca longs for the excitement of being an independent person who can love the one she truly is attached to. Rebecca's father, who is Queen Elizabeth's physician, leads a secret mission to help Jews escape out of Spain.
While Faye Kellerman's novel is quite unique, intertwining historical and fictional elements, it came across as being a bit too trashy. There are many times Kellerman goes into great detail when describing something graphic or less than appealing (honestly, do we need a one page description about Queen Elizabeth's old wrinkled skin or health problems). The sex scenes are quite frequent and overdone throughout the novel, and there is a good deal of profanity (I didn't know they used the "f" word so often during Elizabethan times). Perhaps these sections of the novel could have been less blatant and repulsive, as they seemed to diminish much of the quality of the plot.
While the novel irked me on certain levels, there were also aspects I found refreshing. Kellerman's ability to bring forth all of the Shakespearean and Elizabethan background, all the while telling a murder mystery, was remarkable and not an easy task to accomplish. She is able to take many aspects of Shakespeare's life and insert them into her character Will Shakespeare, making many of the connections accurate. As one reviewer noted, it reminded me a lot of how the movie "Shakespeare in Love" was done, adding fictional elements with historical elements based on Shakespeare's life. Much of the feel of the novel is Elizabethan, and the descriptions and background for the London area definitely give the novel its credibility.
Overall, this is an entertaining read, based mostly on the plot and historical quality. However, I wouldn't go out of my way to recommend it to anyone.
3 Stars.
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