Vow of Fidelity: A Sister Joan Mystery (Ulverscroft Large Print Series) [Large Print] [Hardcover]

Veronica Black (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1997 | Series: Ulverscroft Large Print Series

Twenty years after promising to meet her art school classmates at Queen Elizabeth's tomb, Sister Joan receives a mysterious photograph of the meeting place and learns that three of her former companions have suffered terrible deaths.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Sister Joan of the Order of the Daughters of Compassion, seen before in Vow of Devotion, begins a somewhat far-fetched, seventh murder investigation outside the walls of her convent on the Cornish moors. Joan sets off for London and the 20th-year reunion with her art college classmates, hoping to promote the convent as a place for a quiet retreat and reflective seclusion?the institution's latest money-making endeavor. At Westminster Abbey, their prearranged meeting place, Joan learns that, within the last two years, two members of the class have died under suspicious circumstances; then she learns that a third was an apparent suicide only weeks before. As the surviving friends take advantage of the convent's retreat program, Joan begins to investigate and finds that one of her old classmates might be a murderer. Many of the familiar characters, including the usually fresh-witted Joan, have appeared in better light in earlier tales. Stretching credibility beyond its limits, this latest Sister Joan adventure is slack and disappointing.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Years before becoming a nun, Sister Joan and a group of her art school classmates made a pact. Now, during a reunion, Sister Joan learns that three members of their group have died in horrible accidents. When a picture arrives with a black circle drawn around Joan, she figures she is next. Sixth in the popular series.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 338 pages
• Publisher: Ulverscroft Large Print Books (March 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0708936970
• ISBN-13: 978-0708936979
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,129,204 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Pleasant, but unmemorable, February 16, 2000

By 

Stan Vernooy (Henderson, NV) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Vow of Fidelity (Sister Joan Mystery) (Hardcover)

This is a fair-to-middlin' cozy mystery about a reunion of the art class students from the school Sister Joan had attended twenty years previously. There's not much to separate it from your average British cozy mystery, and therein lies the problem. The first couple of Sister Joan books by Ms. Black were striking and memorable, with their description of Sister Joan's internal struggle to maintain a balance between her spiritual obligations and her worldly curiosity. That issue has been given short shrift in the last couple of books, including this one. I fear this series is running out of steam. I would have given it 3.5 stars if that were allowed; Amazon needs to provide more flexibility in its rating system.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable until the last chapter, February 18, 2004

By 

M. C. Crammer (Decatur, GA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: A Vow of Fidelity (Sister Joan Mystery) (Hardcover)

This is the second Veronica Black "Vow" mystery I've read, and I'd say that my problems with this book are similar to the ones I had with Vow of Sanctity -- that the final chapter consists of everything being suddenly "solved" -- lots of loose ends tied up, to make sure the reader has no unanswered questions about how it all fits together -- and a motive for murder that is not particularly credible.

However, getting to the last chapter is a lot of fun -- the book is well-written on the whole and moves right along. The characters are distinctive and although there are a lot, easy to keep track of (not one of those books where you have to take notes, maps, and charts). The convent setting interested me, and there was nothing so grizzly as to be upsetting to read (which is probably why this is considered a "cosy" mystery).

The plot involves a reunion of art students 20 years after a photograph was taken. They discover that some of the group are missing because they have died mysteriously. Sister Joan, our detective-heroine, smells a rat, and reluctantly gets drawn into looking into a possible connection between these deaths. The surviving students all end up at the convent on retreat (quite unbelievably), and Sister Joan has some concerns that she will be next on the killer's list -- if she can't discover who and why before the next killing.

All in all, a pleasant and engaging book, but not likely to be the kind of book you buy in hardbound and keep.

5.0 out of 5 stars The fidelity for God is much better than friends, November 1, 2002

By 

Milena Gomez "Milena Gomez Alvarez, Author of... (Miami, Florida USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Vow of Fidelity (Sister Joan Mystery) (Hardcover)

The mystery of Sister Joan's is amazing. As she reunites with her classmates, Sister Joan tries to solve the mystery of why out of 10 only 7 people came up.
The story is amazing and well written, you will love Joan from beginning to end.