The Widow's Tale

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Summary: Reply
Review: Answering Sirius Brown, there's no big mystery here. Publishers send out review copies of uncorrected proofs months in advance of publication. It's how reviews get written in time to appear in magazines and newspapers at the same time a book comes out. What's happened here is no suspicious conspiracy, just a little precipitous appreciation.

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Summary: This series just gets better and better
Review: Frazer makes 15th century England come alive: good plot, interesting characters (although Christiana is sort of wimpy/weepy ) it is hard to put down. LOVE Dame Fevrisse!

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Summary: Crystal Ball Hazy...
Review: I don't quite understand how reviews show up before a book is released. Makes you sort of doubt the source. Not that I would ever imply that all the reviews on this site aren't submitted with the purest of motives, but it does give one pause.

Don't get me wrong: I'm a big fan of the series, and I eagerly await the release of this book. Key word: await.

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Summary: a fantastic installment is a good series
Review: In the spring of 1449, a young widow is brought to St. Frideswide. Accused by her in-laws of being wanton and deranged, the widow, Cristina Helynton, has been sentenced to spend her days at St. Friedeswide's in contrition, the hope being that she will show penitence for her ways and take the veil. The nuns are in a twitter to have so scarlet a woman amongst them; but as the days pass, and Cristina proves to be both docile and quiet, a new disquiet fills some of the nuns -- Dame Frevisse especially. For something about Cristina's demeanor suggests that she's not so much penitent as bidding her time. What the nuns don't know is that Cristina is a woman deeply wronged: kidnapped, falsely charged and imprisoned, Cristina has been torn away from her home and her two daughters because of the greed of her dead husband's cousin, Laurence Helynton. Now, Cristina, torn between fear for her children, grief for her dead husband, and anger at her relatives, waits for her brother, Sir Gerveys, to rescue her and to help her regain her daughters and her former life. For Cristina has one ace up her sleeve: an incriminating letter that the Duke of Suffolk would pay dearly to have in his possession...

A gripping tale of evil and sinister doings during a period of great political uncertainty, "The Widow's Tale" was a fast paced and compelling read -- so engaging a read in fact that, once again, I found myself glued to the pages until I reached the very end of the book. Margaret Frazer does a first rate job of painting a vivid picture of both secular and religious life in fifteenth century England. And she does an equally brilliant job of giving us a good idea of what was going on politically as well. Also well done was the manner in which she brought all the characters, both primary and secondary to life. But best of all was the manner in which the mystery subplot was executed: suspenseful and full of clever twists and turns. So that in all, I'd vote "The Widow's Tale" a read not to be missed.

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Summary: fantastic medieval mystery
Review: Though he spends a lot of time at the royal court, Edward and Cristiana Helyngton have been have been happily married for years raising two preadolescent daughters Jane and Mary. However, in 1449 when Edward returns to Hertfordshire from his latest stint with the royals, he is very ill. His avarice cousin Laurence, coveting Edward's larger estate, demands the ailing man place Jane in a nunnery and marry Mary to his son Clement. Edward says no, but soon afterward, he dies.

Cristiana is unable to grieve her loss because Laurence abducts her and places her in St. Frideswide's nunnery. Dame Frevisse sees Cristiana as another dumped obligation, but soon events take deadly twists. Before dying Edward entrusted his beloved spouse with a secret that could destroy the noble inner circle. Cristiana will use that knowledge to risk her life in order to save her children from her vile in-law. The imperturbable Sister Frevisse feels caught in a growing storm in which those who know the truth are subject to murder but she realizes if revealed could lead to civil war.

The fourteenth Sister Frevisse medieval mystery is a fantastic refreshing entry as the "unflappable" nun finds even she feels overwhelmed with the momentous events swirling around the widow who will do anything perhaps even murder to protect her children. As usual Margaret Frazier provides an action-packed story line that focuses deeply at mid fifteenth century England starring a terrific protagonist. However, the machinations in a deadly game between nobles, Laurence, and Cristiana make for a fabulous WIDOW'S TALE that shows why Ms. Frazier has received Edgar nominations for this series (could this be her award winner?).

Harriet Klausner