Rating: 
Summary: Quincy redux....
Review: Justin de Quincy, the likeable hero in CRUEL AS THE GRAVE, is the sleuth fashioned by Sharon Kay Penman in her first mystery novel THE QUEEN'S MAN. Penman has written a number of non-mystery works of historical fiction and set them in the 12th and early 13th Centuries in England. In her author's note in CRUEL AS THE GRAVE, she says she will remain happy as long as she can write about Queen Eleanor of Aquataine. And, I as the reader will be happy as long as I can read about Queen Eleanor, the grandmother of European royalty. Justin de Quincy works for Queen Eleanor, wife of Henry II (deceased) and mother of King Richard and his brother John. CRUEL AS THE GRAVE is set in 1193. King Richard is being held hostage (for an enormous ransom) by the German Emperor, following his capture enroute home from the Holy Land and the First Crusade. In Richard's absence, brother John covets the throne to the point of entertaining thoughts of treason. Eleanor wishes to preserve the throne for son Richard, and prevent John from committing an act that will land him in the Tower. She calls on De Quincy to help her in her efforts to deal with her family problems. In the hours when he isn't serving the Queen, De Quincy is frequently called upon to help various common folk in the Cheapside neighborhood where he keeps a room. In CRUEL AS THE GRAVE, a merchant's sons have become implicated in the death of a young woman from Wales and De Quincy is asked to help exonerate the boys. I find the storyline in CRUEL AS THE GRAVE interesting because Penman explores the psychological effects of parental love or lack thereof with a great deal of honesty. And, she has done a credible job of contrasting Queen Eleanor's difficulties with her two conflicted offspring, with the tortured relationship of the merchant father and his two sons. In the background hovers De Quincy's own questionable relationship with his father. I find De Quincy an incredibly likeable hero and I want to know him better. I hope Penman continues to write books in this series.
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent Fun
Review: Ms. Penman has written a clever second installment in her series with Justin de Quincey. These books are even more interesting if you've read her trilogy (Here Be Dragons, Falls The Shadow and The Reckoning) which has a great deal regarding the ascencion of John to the throne. It is not a prerequisite, however, and the book stands on its own admirably. It would be especially helpful for young readers trying to get a sense of what everyday life was like in these times.
Rating:
Summary: Well written mystery with not many surprises
Review: Ms. Penman writes a pleasant little mystery amidst an historical setting. While well written the plot is pretty predictable. The characters are a pleasant bunch. Good reading for an airplane ride.
Rating: 
Summary: Part Two Two Medieval Mystery Sleuthing
Review: Penman wrote these medieval mysteries to take a break from her more flowery medieval prose. Unlike the latter, she didn't necessarily know what the outcome would be to various mysteries so it gave her a new stretch in her writing career. The dialogue and descriptions are sparse compared to her more Historical works. If anything, this series focuses on movement
and pacing. I would say this is more of a fun and quick read than the usual elegant, flowery and heart breaking Historical pieces Penman is usually known for in her works.
Rating:
Summary: A little thin
Review: Penman's books are well written and thus a pleasure to read. Additionally, she has researched what life was like in 12th century England and so her historical fiction, including this mystery, are great fun if for no other reason than to learn what everyday life was like. The mysteries are particularly good for this in that they allow Penman to write about everyday people rather than just the Court. Thus I must say I enjoyed Cruel As the Grave. But... as historical fiction, there is very little plot here and the mystery will disappoint mystery fans. Even stranger (and unlike the first of Penman's mysteries) there is no connection between the events surrounding Eleanor and her son, the future king John, (i.e. the historical fiction if you will) and the murder her protagonist must solve (the mystery). It left me wondering what the point was except as an excuse to write another book in which Eleanor appears.
Rating:
Summary: A little thin
Review: Penman's books are well written and thus a pleasure to read. Additionally, she has researched what life was like in 12th century England and so her historical fiction, including this mystery, are great fun if for no other reason than to learn what everyday life was like. The mysteries are particularly good for this in that they allow Penman to write about everyday people rather than just the Court. Thus I must say I enjoyed Cruel As the Grave. But... as historical fiction, there is very little plot here and the mystery will disappoint mystery fans. Even stranger (and unlike the first of Penman's mysteries) there is no connection between the events surrounding Eleanor and her son, the future king John, (i.e. the historical fiction if you will) and the murder her protagonist must solve (the mystery). It left me wondering what the point was except as an excuse to write another book in which Eleanor appears.
Rating:
Summary: Ms. Penman Does it Again!
Review: Sharon Kay Penman is a very good author. Her writing is wonderful and her research faultless. Her love of the Aquitaine era in England is very apparent since that is where she concentrates her research and her novels. This second book in the Justin de Quincy series, I think was actually better than the first. I do hope that she writes more in this particular series. The characters in this book are wonderful as always, and her craftsmanship ensures that the reader is placed right into the era and the plot. In this book Justin is asked by his friend Nell to find the killer of a young Welsh girl who was found dead in a church graveyard. Justin sets out to find this killer while at the same time he is asked to undertake a very dangerous mission for his queen, Eleanor of Aquitaine. He doesn't have to look far for suspects in his murder case as it appears that there were only two - two brothers from the same family. Justin tries to prove their innocence, and instead uncovers a situation and a homelife that mirrors ones that he is familiar with - his own and his queen's.
Rating:
Summary: Ms. Penman Does it Again!
Review: Sharon Kay Penman is a very good author. Her writing is wonderful and her research faultless. Her love of the Aquitaine era in England is very apparent since that is where she concentrates her research and her novels. This second book in the Justin de Quincy series, I think was actually better than the first. I do hope that she writes more in this particular series. The characters in this book are wonderful as always, and her craftsmanship ensures that the reader is placed right into the era and the plot. In this book Justin is asked by his friend Nell to find the killer of a young Welsh girl who was found dead in a church graveyard. Justin sets out to find this killer while at the same time he is asked to undertake a very dangerous mission for his queen, Eleanor of Aquitaine. He doesn't have to look far for suspects in his murder case as it appears that there were only two - two brothers from the same family. Justin tries to prove their innocence, and instead uncovers a situation and a homelife that mirrors ones that he is familiar with - his own and his queen's.
Rating:
Summary: Justin de Quincy Undergoes the Tribulations of Success
Review: Sharon Kay Penman's "Cruel as the Grave" continues her foray into medieval murder mysteries. In "The Queen's Man," her first such novel, Penman introduced Justin de Quincy to the world. The bastard son of a bishop, Justin is a man of talent but no means until fate brought him into the confidence of England's Queen Eleanor. Through courage, wit, and loyalty, Justin rose mightily in the eyes of both the royal court and with several of his "more common" friends . . . and made a few enemies in the bargain.
In "Cruel as the Grave," set in the early spring of 1193, immediately after "The Queen's Man" ends, Justin reaps the fruit of his success. Now an honored and trusted member of the Queen's inner circle, Justin must undertake several risky ventures to help Eleanor ransom her beloved kidnapped son, Richard Lionheart, king of England -- held in an Austrian prison cell. He must also help Eleanor in a high-stakes chess match --with the throne of England as the prize -- with her cunning younger son, John (dubbed by many, "the Prince of Darkness," and deservedly so). Since John is one of the enemies Justin made in "The Queen's Man," Justin's life is in considerable peril.
Justin must also cope with his new-found fame as a crime solver par excellence with his less-royal but no less demanding friends. A beautiful young woman is found murdered in a local churchyard, and the sons of a local merchant are implicated. Justin is forced to look into the murder, and soon learns that suspects and motives abound in this grisly affair.
Penman balances these two plot lines expertly, and the action sweeps from the streets of London to the courtroom of the palace to the siege of Windsor Castle. Penman writes with her trademark clarity, equally at home with a battle scene as with friends bantering over drinks in the alehouse. (Although fans of carnage would be better suited reading Bernard Cornwell's various works - Penman does not linger long over the violence.)
True to her last murder mystery, Penman injects "Cruel as the Grave" with more humor than her historical epics, and the novel is much shorter, as well (230-odd pages). While these novels are (almost) entirely fictional, they are fantastic opportunities to delve deeper into Penman's captivating treatment of Queen Eleanor's England. Check it out!
Note -- while some "sequels" can be read without reading earlier novels in the series, "Cruel as the Grave" will be much more enjoyable for those who have already read "The Queen's Man." (I would also recommend reading "While Christ and His Saints Slept" and "Time and Chance" first, so the reader can learn the back-story of Queen Eleanor before reading these murder mysteries, which are set in the twilight of her reign -- but reading those two novels is not as essential as reading "The Queen's Man," because Justin de Quincy does not play a role in the other works.)
Rating: 
Summary: Readable, but not as good as Penman's historical novels
Review: This is another Justin de Quincy mediaeval thriller, a series which started with "The Queen's man". Justin de Quincy is a young mediaeval knight in the service of Queen Eleanor of Aquitaine who solves crimes in his free time. For those who liked "The Queen's man" this is along the same lines if slightly better. Whereas I feel Penman is the queen of mediaeval historial romance, she is just a mediocre mystery writer. The characters are rounded and without depth, the plot pedestrian, the pace too slow. I do wish she did not waste her time in fictional murders and went back to do what she does better than anybody else: Historical fiction. After all she still has the "When Christ and all the Saints slept" (brilliant book) saga to complete.
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