|
It is
London in 1386 and sixteen bodies have been discovered with
strange wounds. What can have killed them? It is the task
of John Gower, poet, uncoverer of secrets, and friend of Chaucer,
to discover this. What he finds is a new invention which is
about to change war forever, but who commissioned the weapon
and why?
Following on from series debut, A Burnable Book, this
is another case for Gower, an interesting character and one
who narrates parts of the tale. The fact that he does not
narrate all of it means that the reader can discover things
unknown to Gower, a neat solution and one that expands the
story and brings various characters to life. As well as a
complex plot, this is a good book to read if you want to know
about various aspects of late 14th century life from weapons
to medicine. It is not a fast read, being what I term "borderline
literary," and some patience is required, but the plot
moves quite fast. The problem of "info dump" never
quite appears due to the facts being part of the story, but
some interest in weapons of the period is required. Several
characters from the first book appear, and having read this
will certainly give a reader more enjoyment of the story,
but this is a separate adventure and not a continuation of
the previous tale. If you like your historical mysteries erudite,
tortuous and gritty then this ought to appeal.
|
