The Genre Explorers discussion

Our first historical mystery groupread for this month is:

Mistress of the Art of Death by Ariana Franklin

Summary Provided by GoodReads:

A chilling, mesmerizing novel that combines the best of modern forensic thrillers with the detail and drama of historical fiction. In medieval Cambridge, England, four children have been murdered. The crimes are immediately blamed on the town's Jewish community, taken as evidence that Jews sacrifice Christian children in blasphemous ceremonies. To save them from the rioting mob, the king places the Cambridge Jews under his protection and hides them in a castle fortress. King Henry II is no friend of the Jews-or anyone, really-but he is invested in their fate. Without the taxes received from Jewish merchants, his treasuries would go bankrupt. Hoping scientific investigation will exonerate the Jews, Henry calls on his cousin the King of Sicily-whose subjects include the best medical experts in Europe-and asks for his finest "master of the art of death," an early version of the medical examiner. The Italian doctor chosen for the task is a young prodigy from the University of Salerno. But her name is Adelia-the king has been sent a "mistress" of the art of death. Adelia and her companions-Simon, a Jew, and Mansur, a Moor-travel to England to unravel the mystery of the Cambridge murders, which turn out to be the work of a serial killer, most likely one who has been on Crusade with the king. In a backward and superstitious country like England, Adelia must conceal her true identity as a doctor in order to avoid accusations of witchcraft. Along the way, she is assisted by Sir Rowley Picot, one of the king's tax collectors, a man with a personal stake in the investigation. Rowley may be a needed friend, or the fiend for whom they are searching. As Adelia's investigation takes her into Cambridge's shadowy river paths and behind the closed doors of its churches and nunneries, the hunt intensifies and the killer prepares to strike again.

Questions:

Has anyone read this book already? If so, do you plan on rereading it?

This is the 1st book in the "Mistress of the Art of Death" series. Have you read any of the other books in this series? Does this book make you want to read other books in the series?

What thoughts do have about the book? Do you think you'll like it? Or is it something you just can't see yourself reading?

I read this book already and I think I can discuss it without re-reading it. I remember it fairly well. This book is very good and does make you want to read other books in the series, but I didn't think any of the other books that I read were as good. Eventually, I gave up on the series. I'm told that it ends on a cliffhanger which is terribly frustrating for those who read that last book because the author died suddenly and will never continue it. Her daughter may continue it. We'll see. She's already finished an unfinished book by her mother that is a standalone and not part of this series.

The book does sound pretty interesting and I'm looking forward to reading it. That is pretty terrible that she suddenly died. I guess if I decided to finish reading the series, it would be line those standalones where the author left you hanging on some valuable information. Hopefully her daughter decides to finish it

I was excited to read this, but now I'm frustrated that I might not be able to. We're moving to another state in just a couple of weeks, so no more library visits. If they have it at our new library I'll try to join in, of course, as it was my suggestion.

I hope your moving process goes well. Hopefully your new library will have it. If you happen to start late, I'll be more than happy to still discuss it with you.

I should be starting the book today. I've been so sick, so I haven't been getting much reading done cause I've been sleeping. I think I will like this book a lot and I'm really looking forward to reading it.