Medieval Cambridge has fallen into chaos after three children have been murdered and the Jewish community is blamed for the grisly deaths. Henry II places the Jews in his castle for their own safety although his benevolence also has a lot to do with the fact that they bring a lot of money to his treasuries.
Henry II has no other recourse but to ask his cousin in Salerno to aide him and asks for a "master in the art of death" in hopes of finding out if a serial killer is preying on the children. Vesuvia Adelia Rachel Ortese Aguilar from Salerno is exactly the person for the job, even if she is a woman. She may not have a good bedside manner and she is as plain as her talk but when it comes to human remains she is the best.
As Adelia and her friends, Simon and Mansur, embark on the journey her first task will be to help Prior Geoffrey with a delicate and painful health issue. Unfortunately she also becomes a person of interest to Sir Rowley Picot, one of the king's tax collectors. He can't quite make heads or tails of this very unconventional woman but he plans to find out as he's also got a personal stake in the investigation.
Although Adelia's role as a physician is hidden from the populace, she still manages to aid the sick and investigate the deaths of the children. She looks into the tightly guarded secrets held by the nuns of the town's convent, uncovers the truth behind Little St. Peter's bones and even enlists the help of an astute young boy.
I liked the period details and thought Adelia was a well-thought out character. When she has to deal with humans she struggles on how to handle them but nevertheless knows that she cannot ignore the pain outside her door. Her friendship and exchanges with her mentor, Simon, were some of my favorite parts.
However, I wasn't too keen on the romance angle. If this is going to be a series I would have preferred that this be developed throughout the next books, because with so much history and action the romance aspect seemed like it didn't quite fit. Still this was a strong mystery with some great plot twists, and I particularly enjoyed some of the minor characters that served to add humor and depth to the story.
Added 04/07