The Serpents of Harbledown: A Novel (Domesday Books/Edward Marston, Vol 5)
The Serpents of Harbledown: A Novel (Domesday Books/Edward Marston, Vol 5) book cover

The Serpents of Harbledown: A Novel (Domesday Books/Edward Marston, Vol 5)

Hardcover – May 15, 1998

by
Price
$8.21
Format
Hardcover
Pages
288
Publisher
Minotaur Books
Publication Date
ISBN-13
978-0312180218
Dimensions
5.76 x 1.01 x 8.5 inches
Weight
1 pounds

Description

From Library Journal Series sleuths Ralph Delchard and Gervase Bret (Lions of the North, LJ 9/1/96) suspect foul play in the supposed snake-bite death of a much-loved and -respected girl. Another realistic look at 11th-century Britain for historical mystery fans.Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. From Booklist Norman lord and royal commissioner Ralph Delchard continues to roam the English countryside, solving mysteries while conducting a comprehensive land survey for William the Conqueror. In addition to wily lawyer Gervase Bret, reluctant clergyman Canon Hubert, and dour monk Brother Simon, Ralph's ever-expanding retinue now includes his lovely Saxon bride, Golde. Arriving in Canterbury to settle a property dispute raging between the cathedral and the local abbey, Ralph and Gervase unwittingly stumble upon the murder of a comely young maiden renowned for her compassionate visits to the local leper hospital. When they begin to suspect that the innocent Bertha was the victim of an insidious heretical sect preying upon naive young girls, Golde is kidnapped and her life is threatened by a defrocked priest. As Ralph and Gervase feverishly work to rescue Golde, they unearth a long-buried secret that provides them with the key to unlock several mysteries wrapped in one. Like Ellis Peters and P. C. Doherty, Marston employs a wealth of authentic detail. Margaret Flanagan From Kirkus Reviews Its 11th-century England and King Williams little band of emissaries is on the move again (The Lions of the North, 1996, etc.). This time, theyre on the road to Canterbury to settle a property dispute between the Cathedral, headed by Archbishop Lanfranc, and the Christ Church Priory, whose abbots run the St. Nicholas Leper Hospital in Harbledown, outside the city. Ex- soldier Ralph Delchard, now married to and accompanied by his Golde, the clever young lawyer Gervase Bret, and their entourage arrive in Canterbury just after the discovery of the body of sweet-natured teenager Bertha, who is found dead in shrubbery near the leper hospital, seemingly of a snakebite. Ralph, Golde, and Gervase are lodging with town Reeve Osbern. The Reeves wife Eadgyth is inconsolable at the news. So, too, is Berthas father Alwin the Sailor, along with many of the lepers at the hospital, to whom she had been an angel of mercy. The young leper Alain is especially distraught. When Ralph and Gervase become suspicious, its Alain who helps them prove that strangling, not snakebite, caused Berthas death. Not so, according to Helto the Doctor, the Osberns family physician. The fatal poisoning, in church, of good-hearted Brother Martin, and the kidnaping of Eadgyth, put Ralph and Gervase, with Alains help, on the trail of a merciless killer, even as their original mission ends with surprising ease. Muddied plot lines and a surfeit of political infighting, albeit in clerical robes, dont help the fifth in this series. But its still first-class entertainment for lovers of historical whodunits. -- Copyright ©1998, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. Read more

Features & Highlights

  • Perplexing clues lead commissioners Ralph Delchard and Gervase Gret to the hospital, where a young murder victim named Bertha, found dead with snakebites on her neck, volunteetered, and they begin searching for an evil force incarnate.

Customer Reviews

Rating Breakdown

★★★★★
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Most Helpful Reviews

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Poor editing in Kindle edition

As I pointedly commented in my review of "The Lions of the North," these comments are in regards to the Kindle edition editing and not the story. This 'book' appears to have been created so quickly that little to no editing was done to ensure fidelity to the print edition. For example, there is only one one section break in the text, although there are multiple places throughout where in a print edition either a double return would be used or some other indicator that a new section has started. Other simple-to-correct errors: missing dashes in words, forcing the reader to translate, shifting the focus from the story to the text, spelling errors, and so on. It is quite sad that a publisher has so little respect for their patrons that they willingly produce such poorly done work.
1 people found this helpful
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Excellent period detail. Good, but not my favorite

First Sentence: The search began at dawn.

The Royal Commission, including Sir Ralph Delchard and his bride Golde, travel to Canterbury in order to settle a land dispute between the archbishop and the prior of St. Augustine's Abbey. Murder takes precedence over land; particularly the murder of a 17-year-old girl found with a snake bite on her neck and an apple, from which one bite was taken, in her hand. Followed shortly but the poisoning of a kind monk, Delchard and Gervase find themselves combating a cunning and dangerous adversary.

Books that include maps and one of Canterbury in the 11th Century are my kind of thing. I also appreciate books that make me think about things such as the difference between perception and reality, and allow me to learn--in this case about the Gnostics. Unfortunately, those were the major highlights of this entry into a series that is, otherwise, one of my favorites.

There were some definitely shortcomings here, including a small portent and a large coincidence. While I have generally felt Marston's dialogue conveyed the period, here it seemed stilted. The descriptions of the action scenes felt awkward and less exciting than they should have been.

I have loved the characters of Ralph, Gervase and the two priests who accompany them, Canon Hubert and Brother Simon. Part of the reason why I've felt the characters worked so well was the interaction between them. Perhaps some of my disappointment with this book was that it seemed fragmented due to the union of the main characters being fragmented. There were very few instances of them working together.

Don't misunderstand; I did not hate the book. The story definitely kept me reading and I was very glad it did. The insight into the period was strong, as always, and the honesty that any person may be good or bad, regardless of rank or position, is significant. In fact, one of the most chilling characters is not the killer. That element was very effective. Not one to give up on an otherwise favorite author, I am curious to read the next book in this series.

THE SERPENTS OF HARBLEDOWN (Hist Mys-Sir Ralph Delchard/Gervase Bret-England-Middle Ages) - Good
Marston, Edward - 5th in series
St. Martins' Press, ©1998, US Hardcover - ISBN: 0312180217
1 people found this helpful
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Excellent period detail. Good, but not my favorite

First Sentence: The search began at dawn.

The Royal Commission, including Sir Ralph Delchard and his bride Golde, travel to Canterbury in order to settle a land dispute between the archbishop and the prior of St. Augustine's Abbey. Murder takes precedence over land; particularly the murder of a 17-year-old girl found with a snake bite on her neck and an apple, from which one bite was taken, in her hand. Followed shortly but the poisoning of a kind monk, Delchard and Gervase find themselves combating a cunning and dangerous adversary.

Books that include maps and one of Canterbury in the 11th Century are my kind of thing. I also appreciate books that make me think about things such as the difference between perception and reality, and allow me to learn--in this case about the Gnostics. Unfortunately, those were the major highlights of this entry into a series that is, otherwise, one of my favorites.

There were some definitely shortcomings here, including a small portent and a large coincidence. While I have generally felt Marston's dialogue conveyed the period, here it seemed stilted. The descriptions of the action scenes felt awkward and less exciting than they should have been.

I have loved the characters of Ralph, Gervase and the two priests who accompany them, Canon Hubert and Brother Simon. Part of the reason why I've felt the characters worked so well was the interaction between them. Perhaps some of my disappointment with this book was that it seemed fragmented due to the union of the main characters being fragmented. There were very few instances of them working together.

Don't misunderstand; I did not hate the book. The story definitely kept me reading and I was very glad it did. The insight into the period was strong, as always, and the honesty that any person may be good or bad, regardless of rank or position, is significant. In fact, one of the most chilling characters is not the killer. That element was very effective. Not one to give up on an otherwise favorite author, I am curious to read the next book in this series.

THE SERPENTS OF HARBLEDOWN (Hist Mys-Sir Ralph Delchard/Gervase Bret-England-Middle Ages) - Good
Marston, Edward - 5th in series
St. Martins' Press, ©1998, US Hardcover - ISBN: 0312180217
1 people found this helpful
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Fifth Book in the Domesday Series

Edward Marston is the pseudonym of Keith Miles, a fairly prolific and extremely good writer of mainly Elizabethan and medieval mysteries. He has also written mysteries under his own name with both sporting and golf backgrounds. However it is primarily the books that take place earlier in history that I am interested in. He read modern history at Oxford and has had many jobs, including university lecturer, but fortunately for all his readers, he turned to the writing profession.

After reading the first book in the series, I avidly sought out all the other books by Edward Marston and not a single one has ever disappointed me. They are about a period of history that I love. His Elizabethan theatre series of books were wonderful and he has continued them through from 1988 to 2006. The Domesday series is also a great series and this is the second book in the series.

The Domesday series is about a period in England's history shortly after the Norman conquest , during the reign of William the Conqueror. It was King William himself who called for an `inventory' to assess taxes and survey landholdings. This inventory was called the Domesday book and was a tremendous undertaking, but one that brought stability to England. Edward Marston's Domesday novels are based upon actual entries in the Domesday Book.

Norman soldier Ralph Delchard and his friend and associate the lawyer Gervase Bret arrive in Canterbury to settle a land dispute between the archbishop and head of the abbey. Ralph is newly married to a beautiful Saxon bride, Golde and he hopes that he and his new wife can make a tour of the famous cathedral and surrounding countryside. But their honeymoon plans are cut short and Ralph's investigation into the land dispute is put in turmoil when Bertha a 17-year-old is found dead in a holly path. Death appears to be from a snakebite and the who of the town is distressed by the young girl's premature death. However before long Ralph and Gervase are looking for something far more dangerous than a mere snake.
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Five Stars

Great deal
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Another Page Turner!

I am really enjoying Marston's Domesday Series. This is the fifth in the series and it as good as all the previous ones that I have read. I highly recommend reading these books in order as the story of the main characters continues from book to book. In this one Gervais and Ralph with Ralph's wife Golde are in Canterbury. They are there to settle land disputes as a result of the Norman occupation, and are drawn into a particularly evil murder and murderer. They find themselves against an extraordinarily intelligent villain who seems to be able to get a number of others to follow his teachings. This is a wonderful series. The characters are wonderful, and the settings historically correct. I especially love the villains. They are portrayed so realistically by Marston's talented pen.
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Marston Uncovers the Snakes in the Grass!

"The Serpents of Harbledown" is Volume V of the Domesday Books, and author A.E. Marston continues his Ralph Delchard and Gervase Bret series in a convincing manner!
Ralph and Gervase are dispatched to Canterbury to help solve a dispute between the cathedral and St. Augustine's Abbey involving some land, not to mention liturgical authority. This complementary duo are royal officials commissioned by King William to see that justice is meted out and the issue settled. The entourage includes Ralph's new bride (Golde), Canon Hubert, Brother Simon (all whom we've met in previous episodes) and their military retainers. They are eager to dispense their judicial findings.
Alas, a young girl is found dead and at first she is assumed to have died from a poisonous snake, as the teeth marks are readily seen. However, we soon begin to suspect more than accidental death and, true to Marston's nature, we have a full-blown mysstery on our hands. It will take all the logical skill Gervase has, the military bearing of Ralph, and the religious observances of the Canon and Brother Simon to unravel this conundrum. Before its solution, however, we find that, indeed, a serpent has invaded the community, in the form of heresy, and the story takes on even greater meaning.
Marston's fifth tale begins rather slowly, but with patience the reader will find that the narrative begins to jell and the desire to find out the solutions to all the problems compels one to complete the book. Marston seems to have some trouble with his dialogue, especially the passages involving Delchard and his new bride. These conversations borders readily on the stilted, as of course, even in 11th century England meaningful conversation between husband and wife would not be this formal! But that aside--and do push it aside--the book is worth reading through. Marston writes with a social conscience, especially as he deals with the leper issue, and, quite importantly, the relationship of the church with its dissident priests (who seem fully justified in their dissidence!). The author has also spent some time in the presentation of his characters, all the while trying to keep in mind that this is England just after the Norman conquest.
"The Serpents of Harbledown" ends another episode in the King's commissioners' efforts at demonstrating the king's justice, to Norman, Saxon, and Church member alike. Marston seems fully in command of his characters, his plot, and his themes.
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