Valley of the Shadow: A Celtic Mystery (Celtic Mysteries) [Hardcover]

Peter Tremayne (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Sister Fidelma and Brother Eadulf, her Saxon monk sidekick, are on their way to Gleann Geis, a remote pagan community in southwest Ireland, when they run across a horrible massacre: 33 young men have been ritually killed, their bodies laid out in a pattern peculiar to the ancient Druid faith. (As her fans know from the five novels in this well-researched series, most recently The Spider's Web, religious and political tensions simmer in seventh-century Ireland, though with its sophisticated legal system and fair treatment of women, it is one of Dark Age Europe's more civilized societies.) At Gleann Geis, the pair stumble on another murder, for which Sister Fidelma is arrested. The meek Eadulf has an easier time mounting a clever defense of his mentor than he does fending off the advances of the local chieftain's precocious 14-year-old niece. Released from confinement, Sister Fidelma is free to make full use of her sharp analytical powers to figure out who is behind the massacre and the seemingly unrelated murder of which she was unjustly accused. She does not disappoint. At the climax, the religieuse explains all, untangling a complex web of intrigue that moves from one surprising revelation to the next. While adept at plotting, Tremayne has an annoying habit of overusing adverbs. A door opens "boisterously," a mouth droops "pessimistically," while characters smile "thinly," "wanly," "warmly," "gravely," "grimly," "apologetically" and "maliciously." In the future one hopes that the author--or his editor--will put as much faith in plain verbs as Sister Fidelma does in her God. (Mar.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Seventh-centruy Irish princess Fidelma (The Spider's Web), late of the sisterhood at Kldare, negotiates witha pagan worrror-chieftain on the behalf of her king/brother. Hidden Valley, however, she and companion Brother Eadulf discover 33 ritually slaughtered young men laid out in a circle. Since her object is to establish a Christian church and school in the area, Fidelma vows to investigate the crime. Firmly set in a wild, dangerous time but featuring well bred and educated protagonists, this historical teaches as it entertains. Recommended.
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Minotaur (March 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312209398
• ISBN-13: 978-0312209391
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.8 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #905,970 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great storyteller-makes the past come alive, February 17, 2000

By 

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

This review is from: Valley of the Shadow: A Celtic Mystery (Celtic Mysteries) (Hardcover)

In 666 AD, Chieftain Laisre rules over Gleann Geis, an isolated valley where the people revere Druid Priests. Over the years, many of the villagers married outsiders, which has allowed Christianity to gain a foothold in the area. The Christians demand their own church and school, which forces Laisre to ask his liege, the King of Mumar to negotiate with the Church. The King sends his emissaries, Sister Fidelma and Brother Eadulf to Gleann Geis.

However, a few miles from the village, the traveling duo comes across the grim sight of thirty-three dead men laid out according to a pagan death ritual. Sister Fidelma, an advocate of the Ireland law courts, wants to know who executed these people. The villagers swear they know nothing about the abomination. They want the Sister to begin negotiation instead of starting her own investigation. However, Sister Fidelma quickly concludes that an evil lurks in the valley, but before she can prove her charges, another murder occurs. The evidence points towards Sister Fidelma. To clear her name and stop a potential bloody battle from turning a happy valley into the valley of death, Sister Fidelma begins to search for the malfeasance that covets power at all cost to others.

VALLEY OF THE SHADOW is a work rich in Irish myths that allows the audience to catch the beauty of seventh century Ireland. The charcaters are well drawn, seem genuine, and make the era appear before the audience,s eyes. The fast moving plot provides a wonderfully designed mystery interwoven inside a meticulously researched history that brings insight into the past. Sub-genre fans will fully enjoy this tale and the other works of artist Peter Tremayne

Harriet Klausner

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very Well Written Book, June 29, 2000

By 

"animri12" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Valley of the Shadow: A Celtic Mystery (Celtic Mysteries) (Hardcover)

One of the best things about Peter Tremayne's Sister Fidelma mysteries are the well-drawn plots. This installment certainly lives up to expectations. Valley of the Shadow is a book steeped in Irish history and the different opposing religious and ideological factions that existed in that era. The author combines a deeply textured and fascinating background with multi-dimensional characters and a fast-paced, twisting plot in which you can't guess the solution to the mystery until the very end. I especially found the historical background very interesting. Tremayne has obviously done a great deal of research for this book. I greatly enjoyed reading Valley of the Shadow, and I suggest it as a wonderful read for any history buff or mystery enthusiast out there- and even if you are neither, I think you will find this novel intriguing.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Great detail on little known history, June 6, 2000

By 

Lynn Harnett (Marathon, FL USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Valley of the Shadow: A Celtic Mystery (Celtic Mysteries) (Hardcover)

While a bit over-written for my taste, British author Peter Tremayne's Sister Fidelma series paints a vivid, surprising picture of seventh century Ireland and England. Ireland, recently converted to Christianity, had a highly evolved system of laws and education and an elected monarchy. Women enjoyed personal and professional freedoms they would not see again for more than 1200 years.

In this latest, Tremayne, pseudonym for Celtic scholar Peter Berresford Ellis, sends Sister Fidelma to an isolated Druidic outpost as an emissary for her brother, the King of Muman, to negotiate the construction of a Christian church and school in the pagan village. But near the village, Fidelma (who is also an advocate of the law courts, a combination lawyer and investigator) and her series companion, the Saxon Brother Eadulf, come upon a grisly sight. Thirty-three slaughtered men lie naked in a sunwise circle, killed and arranged according to ancient pagan ritual.

Before the mystery is solved, several more people will die and Fidelma herself will stand accused of murder. Full of historical detail about ancient law and life, with a quick-witted heroine, Tremayne's seventh should please old fans and win new ones.