Join Amazon Prime and get unlimited Free One-Day Delivery. Already a member? Sign in.

 

or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
 
   
More Buying Choices
35 used & new from £1.98
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
 
   
Mistress of the Art of Death (Mistress of the Art of Death 1)
 
See larger image 
Share your own customer images
Publisher: learn how customers can search inside this book.

Mistress of the Art of Death (Mistress of the Art of Death 1) (Paperback)

by Ariana Franklin (Author)
3.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
RRP: £7.99
Price: £5.99 & this item Delivered FREE in the UK with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions
You Save: £2.00 (25%)
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
In stock.
Dispatched from and sold by Amazon.co.uk. Gift-wrap available.

Want guaranteed delivery by Friday, July 17? Choose Express delivery at checkout. See Details
20 new from £3.00 15 used from £1.98
Other Editions: RRP: Our Price: Other Offers:
Hardcover (First Edition) £12.99 £9.09 26 used & new from £1.13
Paperback 6 used & new from £9.43
Hardcover (Large Print) 16 used & new from £9.87
Audio CD 3 used & new from £20.60

Frequently Bought Together

Mistress of the Art of Death (Mistress of the Art of Death 1) + The Death Maze (Mistress of the Art of Death 2) + City of Shadows
Price For All Three: £26.42

Show availability and shipping details

Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought

The Death Maze (Mistress of the Art of Death 2)

The Death Maze (Mistress of the Art of Death 2)

by Ariana Franklin
4.5 out of 5 stars (12)  £5.48
Revelation (Shardlake)

Revelation (Shardlake)

by C.J. Sansom
4.4 out of 5 stars (83)  £3.86
The Unquiet Bones: The First Chronicle of Hugh de Singleton, Surgeon: The First Chronicle of Hugh De Singleton, Surgeon

The Unquiet Bones: The First Chronicle of Hugh de Singleton, Surgeon: The First Chronicle of Hugh De Singleton, Surgeon

by Melvin R. Starr
4.1 out of 5 stars (7)  £6.99
City of Shadows

City of Shadows

by Ariana Franklin
4.7 out of 5 stars (3)  £14.95
Relics of the Dead (Mistress of the Art of Death 3)

Relics of the Dead (Mistress of the Art of Death 3)

by Ariana Franklin
£8.39
› Explore similar items

Product details

  • Paperback: 512 pages
  • Publisher: Bantam Books (6 May 2008)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0553818007
  • ISBN-13: 978-0553818000
  • Product Dimensions: 19.6 x 12.8 x 3.2 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 11,676 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    •  Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?

Product Description

JOANNE HARRIS, August 06
'Entertaining, well researched and well written' --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Joanne Harris
Entertaining, well researched and well written. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all Product Description

Tags Customers Associate with This Product

 (What's this?)
Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
Check the boxes next to the tags you consider relevant or enter your own tags in the field below
(3)
(3)
(2)
(1)
(1)

Your tags: Add your first tag
 
See most popular tags

What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

Mistress of the Art of Death (Mistress of the Art of Death 1)
80% buy the item featured on this page:
Mistress of the Art of Death (Mistress of the Art of Death 1) 3.7 out of 5 stars (18)
£5.99
The Death Maze (Mistress of the Art of Death 2)
12% buy
The Death Maze (Mistress of the Art of Death 2) 4.5 out of 5 stars (12)
£5.48
Relics of the Dead (Mistress of the Art of Death 3)
3% buy
Relics of the Dead (Mistress of the Art of Death 3)
£8.39
The Unquiet Bones: The First Chronicle of Hugh de Singleton, Surgeon: The First Chronicle of Hugh De Singleton, Surgeon
3% buy
The Unquiet Bones: The First Chronicle of Hugh de Singleton, Surgeon: The First Chronicle of Hugh De Singleton, Surgeon 4.1 out of 5 stars (7)
£6.99
Explore similar items
 

Customer Reviews

18 Reviews
5 star:
 (5)
4 star:
 (7)
3 star:
 (3)
2 star:
 (2)
1 star:
 (1)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
3.7 out of 5 stars (18 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars Abandon all hope of historical accuracy...and you might enjoy it, 17 Nov 2008
By Hamstead (Midlands UK) - See all my reviews
  
On the one hand I enjoyed this novel very much. Ariana Franklin is a consummate story teller and her characters and the setting in which they act and react are wonderfully realised. You can actually believe you are there with them in the world she has built. There are some delightfully realised secondary personages. I was particularly fond of eelwife Gytha and her cheeky urchin son, Ulf. Henry II is spot on and I really warmed to Ariana Franklin's version of this fiercely intelligent king with his mingling of imperious authority and mischievous common touch - Bravo! It's a page turner, no doubt about it and for all the above reasons I would be glad to give it five stars.
However.... Abandon all hope of historical veracity ye who enter here. There are the usual detail errors that irk me because I know my 12th century and further irk me because the author claims on her website that she is historically accurate. I think not! Mention of brandy and laudanum which were not available in that century - so therefore some of the scenes could never have happened. Three Angevin lions when there were only two until the early 1190's. Costume errors. Sometimes it was more like reading about Chaucer's Pilgrims than the Becket bunch. Images such as Henry II talking about his billiard table (conjures a hilarious image of Henry with his cue in hand leaning over a table in the smoky fug of a bar!) or having his head referred to as a cannon ball, yanked me straight out of the story. There are errors peppered throughout the novel both the large and the small, of detail and of mindset.
The heroine is a woman of 21st century sensibilities, who also acts like a 21st century TV forensic expert. There's a moment when she comes to examine her first victim when she garbs herself in the medieval equivalent of scrubs (!) and with an assistant to write down the findings with chalk and slate begins speaking in a monotone. 'The remains of a young female. Some fair hair still attached to the skull...' At this point I burst out laughing because it was so preposterous. The author tells us that Salerno had a body farm where pigs were killed and buried in different circumstances and seasons so that the students could observe the various states of decay. This again caused this reader much mirth. I doubt that Salerno and the teachings of the Trotula were quite on this wavelength. I have the kind of mind that gets hung up on practicalities and is constantly asking 'Would this really have happened?' At the beginning of the novel, Adelia saves the life of a prior by draining his swollen bladder using a straw catheter. Said prior then makes a full and complete recovery and is a perky, helpful chap as the novel continues. But to have that condition in the first place speaks of serious underlying problems. So to have him one moment dying of a blocked bladder and the next fit as a flea and back to normal just doesn't ring true.
The best way to read this book if you are at all sensitive about historical veracity, is to lock up your disbelief before you begin reading and throw away the key. Make a pact to ignore the blurbs about 'well researched', treat Ariana Franklin's medieval Cambridge as an alternative world and you will really enjoy this novel. I give this 10 out of 10 for characterisation, atmosphere and page turning quality, 6 out of 10 for the mystery element which was entertaining but a bit weak in places, and 3 out of 10 for historical accuracy - mainly because she gets Henry II correct (apart from aforementioned billiards, the reference to cannon balls and the surplus lion on his shield which really needs to wait until his son Richard has been to Cyprus. His character is good though). Three stars I think to average things out.
Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)



 
11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Bit of a slow starter but really quite good, 2 April 2008
By Mr. R. Cox (Southampton) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This review is from: The Mistress of the Art of Death (Mistress of the Art of Death 1) (Hardcover)
I decided to give this one a go after becoming addicted to another series set in medieval Cambridge, the Chronicles of Matthew Bartholomew by Susanna Gregory. After enjoying the Bartholomew Chronicles so much, this book was always going to have its work cut out to come anywhere near competing. Having just finished it - I am happy to say that it does! The author's research into the period is clearly infallible and the fenland town is recreated for the reader in vivid and accurate detail.

There are some really enjoyable characters in the book and the character development of the leading lady is superb.

I am reluctant to give this book less than five stars because the end product itself is brilliant. However, I gave it four purely for the fact that it did take me quite a bit of effort to get into it. It starts at a fairly steady pace and takes a quite a while to get warmed up and drag the reader into the main thrust of the story.

However, I would urge any other readers that find this to stick with it and see the book through as it is an amazing story and well worth the initial ground work of the first few chapters.

I will defiantly be purchasing Franklin's next venture with Adelia.


Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)



 
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars Worth reading but nothing fantastic, 21 Jun 2008
This book was engaging and imaginative but lacked that something special. Some of the characters clearly had more depth than others and it was obvious from the first quarter where the story was going. I found Adelia amusing though I thought she lacked consistency and appeared a little to modern in places. All in all this book was worth reading, though it was predictable - it was gripping at times :)
Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)


Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
 
 
 
Most Recent Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable hokum
Although I am a detective fiction fan, I have two bugbears with regard to crime writing; I can't stand the forensic post mortem style of writing personified by Patricia Cornwell,... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Sandra A. Hardingham

4.0 out of 5 stars Good interesting read
I thought this book was well written and easy to get into. The characters were good, though I agree with other reviewers that the main character was a bit unbelievable with her... Read more
Published 5 months ago by Tricia B

2.0 out of 5 stars England, 1171, millitant feminist solves crime for the Daily Mail.
Mistress of the Art of Death


Ah. A historical novel, I thought, I'll enjoy this one. Well, that thought lasted for about half a page. Read more
Published 7 months ago by Page Turner

3.0 out of 5 stars Unsatisfying and anachronistic
I've really enjoyed Diana Norman's three Makepeace Hedley novels (A Catch of Consequence, Taking Liberties, Sparks Fly Upward) and so had higher expectations for this. Read more
Published 8 months ago by Roman Clodia

5.0 out of 5 stars Murder in the twelfth Century
Adelia travels with her entourage from Salerno to England at the request of Henry II to investigate the apparently ritual murder of 3 children in Cambridge. Read more
Published 9 months ago by Damaskcat

4.0 out of 5 stars Super read
I'd read Diana Norman's previous novels and very much enjoyed them, so had high expectations of Mistress of the Art of Death. Read more
Published 10 months ago by Liesel Knightley

5.0 out of 5 stars an excellent historical thriller
Ariana Franklin (the pseudonym of Diana Norman) has created an engaging and believable character in Adelia, a doctor with a special interest in pathology who is called in by Henry... Read more
Published 12 months ago by juliana

4.0 out of 5 stars Scores on plot, atmosphere and character
I can usually figure out whodunnit but this one kept me guessing; in fact, I was shielding the bottom half of the page as I reached the great revelation so I didn't accidentally... Read more
Published 12 months ago by S. B. Kelly

4.0 out of 5 stars Vivid, interesting and likeable
I really liked this book: I could picture it all vividly in my mind, which I rarely do. So much so that at one point, when one of the characters is describing the crusade I could... Read more
Published 13 months ago by Fi

2.0 out of 5 stars Annoyingly anachronistic and lacking suspense
The intention is potentially an interesting one - a realistically modern take on medieval murders. The killings of the children are informed by our understanding of serial... Read more
Published 13 months ago by wolf

Only search this product's reviews


Customer Discussions

 Beta (What's this?)
This product's forum (0 discussions)
  Discussion Replies Latest Post
  No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
  [Cancel]


Active discussions in related forums
   
Related forums

Listmania!

Create a Listmania! list

Look for similar items by category

Feedback

Health & Beauty at Amazon.co.uk

Elemis Resurface and Renew Skin Care Gift Set of 4 Products
From soap to shavers, massagers to mascara, stock up on your daily essentials or truly pamper yourself.

›Discover Health & Beauty

  

More From Ariana Franklin

The Death Maze

The Death Maze by Ariana Franklin

'Seamlessly weaving real and fictitious characters with vivid... Read more
£7.99 £5.48

 

A Close Shave

Philips Nivea Coolskin HS8060 Moisturizing Rotary Shaving System
For all types of hair removal, stay smooth with Amazon.co.uk.

›Discover Shaving & Hair Removal

  

Treat Someone

Amazon.co.uk Gift Certificates--available in any amount from £5 to £500 With an Amazon.co.uk Gift Certificate, you can get them what they want (even if you don't know what that is).

›Learn more about Gift Certificates

  
Ad

Where's My Stuff?

Delivery and Returns

Need Help?

Your Recent History

  (What's this?)
You have no recently viewed items or searches.

After viewing product detail pages or search results, look here to find an easy way to navigate back to pages you are interested in.

Look to the right column to find helpful suggestions for your shopping session.
Continue Shopping: Top Sellers

amazon.co.uk Amazon Home
International Sites:  United States  |  Germany  |  France  |  Japan  |  Canada  |  China
Business Programs: Sell on Amazon  |  Fulfilment by Amazon  |  Join Associates  |  Join Advantage
Customer Service  |  Help  |  View Basket  |  Your Account
About Amazon.co.uk  |  Careers at Amazon
Conditions of Use & Sale |  Privacy Notice  © 1996-2009, Amazon.com, Inc. and its affiliates