The Nun's Tale : An Owen Archer Mystery (An Owen Archer Mystery)

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful
Review: I have enjoyed all of her books. If you like historical fiction that is light reading but entertaining this is the book you want.

Rating:
Summary: I thoroughly enjoyed reading this mystery.
Review: In fact, I liked The Nun's Tale more than Robb's first two Owen Archer mysteries. (Actually, I sat down and re-read the first two books in the series before I read the third one because it had been such a long time since I had read them that I didn't really remember the stories. I found that I liked the first two books more this time than I did the first time I read them.) The Nun's Tale did such a good job of holding my interest, that I could hardly put it down. The history was interesting, and the characters were believable and very strong. The only part that I wondered about was why the characters who were suppose to be so good at unraveling mysteries - and seemed to be pretty discerning people - didn't catch onto the brother/sister thing that was going on much sooner than they did. This was something I picked up on fairly early in the story. And I also have to say that I didn't really find Dame Joanna to be a very likeable character - and, in many ways, she wasn't suppose to be very likeable.

Rating:
Summary: I thoroughly enjoyed reading this mystery.
Review: In fact, I liked The Nun's Tale more than Robb's first two Owen Archer mysteries. (Actually, I sat down and re-read the first two books in the series before I read the third one because it had been such a long time since I had read them that I didn't really remember the stories. I found that I liked the first two books more this time than I did the first time I read them.) The Nun's Tale did such a good job of holding my interest, that I could hardly put it down. The history was interesting, and the characters were believable and very strong. The only part that I wondered about was why the characters who were suppose to be so good at unraveling mysteries - and seemed to be pretty discerning people - didn't catch onto the brother/sister thing that was going on much sooner than they did. This was something I picked up on fairly early in the story. And I also have to say that I didn't really find Dame Joanna to be a very likeable character - and, in many ways, she wasn't suppose to be very likeable.

Rating:
Summary: A dark tale, but an intriguing one.
Review: Though The Nun's Tale is one of the darker stories in the series, I enjoyed the book very much. It dealt a little more with the ramifications of warfare and how it was conducted during the 14th Century but there were enough twists and turns of plot to keep the mystery going as well. As in some of her other works, Robb again brings the ending of this one to a realistic conclusion. Above all, it gives monastic life at this time very realistic look.

Again the notes to the back of the book are a great help with the history of the period. In each novel the author introduces some of the background material: religious and political personalities of the time, historic events, pertinent social information, etc. One of the more unique facts I discovered were that soldiers who were taken to the European mainland during wartime were not always returned to their starting point. They were merely abandoned when the nobility returned home unless they could pay their own way back. This left freebooters to run rampant in the countryside of the invaded country and contributed to the hardships suffered even after the war.

The book is a good source of learning about this period in history, and might make a good starting point for students who find history a "dull" subject. The is thoroughly readable and comprehendible to anyone from junior high to adults. It might, however, be a little more mature than some parents may prefer for their junior high students. The test would be to read it oneself.

Rating:
Summary: A dark tale, but an intriguing one.
Review: Though The Nun's Tale is one of the darker stories in the series, I enjoyed the book very much. It dealt a little more with the ramifications of warfare and how it was conducted during the 14th Century but there were enough twists and turns of plot to keep the mystery going as well. As in some of her other works, Robb again brings the ending of this one to a realistic conclusion. Above all, it gives monastic life at this time very realistic look.

Again the notes to the back of the book are a great help with the history of the period. In each novel the author introduces some of the background material: religious and political personalities of the time, historic events, pertinent social information, etc. One of the more unique facts I discovered were that soldiers who were taken to the European mainland during wartime were not always returned to their starting point. They were merely abandoned when the nobility returned home unless they could pay their own way back. This left freebooters to run rampant in the countryside of the invaded country and contributed to the hardships suffered even after the war.

The book is a good source of learning about this period in history, and might make a good starting point for students who find history a "dull" subject. The is thoroughly readable and comprehendible to anyone from junior high to adults. It might, however, be a little more mature than some parents may prefer for their junior high students. The test would be to read it oneself.