‘Relics of the Dead’ by Ariana Franklin
Published by Bantam Press, August 2009.
ISBN: 978-0-5930-6274-6

This is the third of the series of Adelia Aguilar, the mistress of the Art of Death.  It starts in the ruins of the abbey at Glastonbury, after the site is razed to the ground by a suspected arsonist, when two skeletons are found.  Rumour has it that these are the remains of King Arthur and his queen,.  This would suit King Henry II, who is fighting uprisings in Wales.  It would help him to overcome some of the resistance, if he could finally banish the legend of a resurgent Arthur, a story which is fuelling the revolt as the rebels are sure that the “once and former king” will come to their assistance.

Calling on Adelia’s expertise to examine the bones, Henry wants confirmation of the identity of the skeletons. Whilst Adelia is resistant to following his requests, life is becoming dangerous for her in Cambridge as her healing powers are being mistaken for witchcraft, so she obeys his summons. Travelling across the dangerous and still divided counties of England to arrive at Glastonbury, Adelia is faced by two mysteries, who are the skeletons and who wants to keep them anonymous.  Accompanied by Mansur, her ever vigilant Arab companion, her young daughter Allie and the child’s nurse Glytha, Adelia starts to investigate and finds that she is putting herself and her companions in danger. 

This book creates a well painted vision of the 12th century and some of the characters within it.  Sights, sounds and smells are vividly described whilst the main characters are three dimensional and some of their frustrations and flaws are written with style.  The writing is fluent and engaging and despite not usually being an historical crime fan, Relics of the Dead along with its two predecessors have had me hooked.  A highly recommended read.
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Amanda Brown