Ariana Franklin

Tess Garritsen calls this one my favorite book of the year! In 1176, King Henry II sends his daughter Joanna to Palermo to marry his cousin, the king of Sicily. Henry chooses Adelia Aguilar to travel with the princess and safeguard her health. But when people in the wedding procession are murdered, Adelia and Rowley must discover the killer's identity, and whether he is stalking the princess or Adelia herself.

Adelia Aguilar is to accompany 10-year-old Princess Joanna on her thousand-mile journey to marry the King of Sicily. They must take with them the legendary sword Excalibur.And so Adelia sets sail with the golden princess and her lavish procession of nobles, musicians, servants, laundresses, grooms, luggage and treasure. But when members of the procession begin to die and it looks as though Adelia is to blame, there are dangerous accusations of witchcraft.Meanwhile one traveller, armed with a brilliant disguise and a personal vendetta, has been watching Adelia all too closely. He wants Adelia dead . . . but he wants her to suffer first.

Ariana Franklin combines the best of modern forensic thrillers with the drama of historical fiction in the enthralling second novel in the Mistress of the Art of Death series, featuring medieval heroine Adelia Aguilar. Rosamund Clifford, the mistress of King Henry II, has died an agonizing death by poison-and the king's estranged queen, Eleanor of Aquitaine, is the prime suspect. Henry suspects that Rosamund's murder is probably the first move in Eleanor's long-simmering plot to overthrow him. If Eleanor is guilty, the result could be civil war. The king must once again summon Adelia Aguilar, mistress of the art of death, to uncover the truth. Adelia is not happy to be called out of retirement. She has been living contentedly in the countryside, caring for her infant daughter, Allie. But Henry's summons cannot be ignored, and Adelia must again join forces with the king's trusted fixer, Rowley Picot, the Bishop of St. Albans, who is also her baby's father. Adelia and Rowley travel to the murdered courtesan's home, in a tower within a walled labyrinth-a strange and sinister place from the outside, but far more so on the inside, where a bizarre and gruesome discovery awaits them. But Adelia's investigation is cut short by the appearance of Rosamund's rival: Queen Eleanor. Adelia, Rowley, and the other members of her small party are taken captive by Eleanor's henchmen and held in the nunnery of Godstow, where Eleanor is holed up for the winter with her band of mercenaries, awaiting the right moment to launch their rebellion. Isolated and trapped inside the nunnery by the snow and cold, Adelia and Rowley watch as dead bodies begin piling up. Adelia knows that there may be more than onekiller at work, and she must unveil their true identities before England is once again plunged into civil war . . .

In Cambridge, a child has been hideously murdered and other children have disappeared. The Jews, made scapegoats by the all-powerful Christian clergy, have been forced to retreat into the castle to avoid slaughter by angry townspeople. Henry, King of England, is displeased. The Jews provide a large part of his revenue and therefore the real killer must be found, and quickly. A renowned investigator, Simon of Naples, is recruited and he arrives in town from the continent accompanied by an Arab and a young woman, Adelia Aguilar. There are few female doctors in twelth century Europe, but Adelia is one of them, having qualified at the great School of Medicine in Salerno. What's more, her speciality is the study of corpses; she is, in fact, a mistress of the art of death, a skill that must be concealed in case she's accused of witchcraft. Adelia's investigation takes her deep into Cambridge, its castle and convents and in a medieval city teeming with life, Adelia makes friends and even finds romance. And, fatally, the attention of a murderer who is prepared to kill again...

Inglaterra, año del Señor de 1171: en Cambridge aparece el cadáver de un niño horriblemente asesinado. Otros muchos han desaparecido. Los judíos, directamente acusados de estos crímenes por la todopoderosa jerarquia catolica, buscan refugio entre los muros del castillo para evitar las iras de los soliviantados ciudadanos.Al rey Enrique esta situacion dista de complacerle: necesita a los judios para llenar sus arcas y debe encontrarse al verdadero culpable para aplacar al pueblo, que ha elevado a la categoria de santo al niño asesinado.Para esclarecer la situacion aparecen en Cambridge un reputado doctor, Simon de Napoles, acompañado de una misteriosa mujer de origen arabe, Adelia Aguilar, y de un enigmatico hombre, Mansur.La especialidad de Adelia, doctora en la celebre escuela de medicina de Salerno, es el estudio y la diseccion de cadaveres. Se trata de una maestra en el arte de la muerte, algo que debe disimular cuidadosamente si no quiere correr el riesgo de ser acusada de brujeria.Las investigaciones conducen a Adelia hasta el ultimo rincon de Cambridge. Encontrara amigos que la ayudaran y hallara el amor... pero tambien tendra que luchar denodadamente con un terrible asesino dispuesto a seguir matando y con las supersticiones y prejuicios de los habitantes de la ciudad.

Ariana Franklin combines the best of modern forensic thrillers with the drama of historical fiction in the enthralling second novel in the Mistress of the Art of Death series, featuring medieval heroine Adelia Aguilar. Rosamund Clifford, the mistress of King Henry II, has died an agonizing death by poison-and the king''s estranged queen, Eleanor of Aquitaine, is the prime suspect. Henry suspects that Rosamund''s murder is probably the first move in Eleanor''s long-simmering plot to overthrow him. If Eleanor is guilty, the result could be civil war. The king must once again summon Adelia Aguilar, mistress of the art of death, to uncover the truth. Adelia is not happy to be called out of retirement. She has been living contentedly in the countryside, caring for her infant daughter, Allie. But Henry''s summons cannot be ignored, and Adelia must again join forces with the king''s trusted fixer, Rowley Picot, the Bishop of St. Albans, who is also her baby''s father. Adelia and Rowley travel to the murdered courtesan''s home, in a tower within a walled labyrinth-a strange and sinister place from the outside, but far more so on the inside, where a bizarre and gruesome discovery awaits them. But Adelia''s investigation is cut short by the appearance of Rosamund''s rival: Queen Eleanor. Adelia, Rowley, and the other members of her small party are taken captive by Eleanor''s henchmen and held in the nunnery of Godstow, where Eleanor is holed up for the winter with her band of mercenaries, awaiting the right moment to launch their rebellion. Isolated and trapped inside the nunnery by the snow and cold, Adelia and Rowley watch as dead bodies begin piling up. Adelia knows that there may be more than one killer at work, and she must unveil their true identities before England is once again plunged into civil war . . .

The monks of Glastonbury have discovered two strange skeletons buried in their graveyard - one is tall, the other small and delicate. Are these the remains of King Arthur and Guinevere? King Henry II, on hearing of the discovery, demands evidence that the legendary Arthur is dead in order to stop his belligerent Welsh subjects believing that their Once and Future King will return to lead them against him. And it is his Mistress of the Art of Death, Adelia Aguilar, who he calls upon to examine the bones. But someone doesn't want the skeletons identified - and is prepared to kill in order to prevent it.

Since solving a particularly nasty case of child murder using her forensic skills, Adelia Aguilar is deemed too valuable to send back to the School of Medicine in Salerno. Instead, King Henry II has decided to keep her in England. This is bad news for Adelia. But at Henry's court, terrible things are happening.

The "richly detailed, almost indecently thrilling" (New York Times) follow up to The Serpent's Tale. When a fire at Glastonbury Abbey reveals two skeletons, rumor has it they may belong to King Arthur and Queen Guinevere. King Henry II hopes so, for it would help him put down a rebellion in Wales, where the legend of Celtic savior Arthur is strong. To make certain, he sends Adelia Aguilar, his Mistress of the Art of Death, to Glastonbury to examine the skeletons. At the same time, the investigation into the abbey fire will be overseen by the Bishop of St. Albans, father of Adelia's daughter. Trouble is, someone at Glastonbury doesn't want either mystery solved, and is prepared to kill to prevent it . . .

On hearing of the discovery, King Henry II demands evidence that the legendary Arthur is dead - he needs to stop his belligerent Welsh subjects believing that their Once and Future King will return t

Una conspiración, un asesinato y una mujer experta en el arte de la muerte...La amante del rey Enrique II, Rosamunda Cliffort, ha sido asesinada y la principal sospechosa resulta ser la propia reina Leonor de Aquitania, esposa del monarca. Ante la posibilidad de que el incidente provoque una guerra civil, el rey requiere los servicios de Adelia Aguilar, maestra en el arte de la muerte, para resolver el caso.Adelia y el obispo Rowley, hombre de confianza del rey y padre de la hija de Adelia, se enfrentan a una gran aventura en la que tendran que viajar al castillo de Rosamunda en busca de la verdad sobre el asesinato. Alli se encontraran con la mismisima reina, que no les pondra las cosas faciles.En este laberinto de poder, intriga y asesinatos, Adelia sera la unica que pueda salvar al pais de una nueva tragedia y a sus amigos de la muerte a manos de un truculento asesino.Ariana Franklin vuelve a darle vida a la mujer forense mas ingeniosa e inteligente de la Edad Media despues deMaestra en el arte de la muerte.Reseña:Ariana Franklin revive la Inglaterra medieval, desde el laberinto que rodea la torre de Rosamunda hasta las celebraciones navideñas que tienen lugar en la corte, incluyendo un paseo en patines sobre el Tamesis congelado, a traves de un colorido elenco de personajes, buenos y malevolos, que sirven para enriquecer esta historia que mantendra al lector en vilo hasta la ultima pagina.Publishers Weekly