The Dragon of Handale

Starred review from January 19, 2015
Clark’s outstanding fifth mystery set in 14th-century England (after 2012’s A Parliament of Spies) finds series heroine Hildegard in transition. Having returned from a pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela, the former abbess is considering rejoining her religious order after a year. Her prioress suggests that Hildegard instead spend time at Handale Priory, “somewhere near Northumberland’s territory,” to help her “achieve clarity.” Hildegard suspects that the prioress is concerned with more than just her spiritual well-being. On arrival at Handale, a place of penitence “where those nuns who have broken their vows are sent,” she discovers the sisters living in terror and bearing the marks of sadistic punishments. In the priory’s morgue is the mutilated body of a laborer reputed to be the victim of a legendary fire-breathing monster. Clark pulls everything together neatly in a moody, atmospheric whodunit while sustaining a high level of tension throughout. Agent: Patricia Moosbrugger, Patricia Moosbrugger Literary Agency.

January 1, 2015
Sister Hildegard has a momentous decision to make as soon as she solves some murders. Newly returned from a pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela after the death of her lover, the spy Rivera (A Parliament of Spies, 2012), Hildegard is wondering whether she should remain a nun. While she ponders her decision, her prioress sends her to Handale Priory, a remote Benedictine outpost in the north of England, where rumor has it that a dragon has taken up residence in the nearby woods. Upon her arrival, she finds an atmosphere filled with suspicion, a number of badly treated penitents suffering for their sins, and a dead man, one of the masons working on a new addition for the prioress, said to be killed by the dragon. Prioress Basilda lives in luxury along with a few special cronies while the rest of the community suffers deprivations. Hildegard, tasked with keeping up the paperwork, has plenty of time to investigate both the murder and an underhanded scheme concocted by Master Fulke, a benefactor of the priory. The remaining masons are willing to help Hildegard, who soon has the fatal poisoning of the priory's young priest to add to her list. Along the way, she discovers that Fulke is hiding illegal goods on the priory grounds, feathers destined for the arrows of King Richard II's enemies, who include many powerful earls. Fulke is also selling women, one of them an orphaned heiress destined to be a pawn in a powerful game. Even after finding the answers to some of her problems in manuscripts in the scriptorium, Hildegard realizes she's playing a dangerous game against powerful enemies. A dramatic mystery lavishly studded with period details: Clark's best to date.

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March 1, 2015

Hildegard of Meaux, a 14th-century Cistercian nun with a knack for solving mysteries, has recently returned from a pilgrimage to Spain. Now she must decide if she should rejoin her order at Swynn or start a new chapter in her life. Her prioress suggests that she stay at a remote priory at Handale while she considers her path. Upon arrival, she hears about a gruesome murder that the local people believe was the result of a dragon attack. Sensible Hildegard sets about finding the truth. VERDICT Clark's fifth historical installment (after A Parliament of Spies) can be read as part of the series or as a stand-alone. However, this latest addition is likely to disappoint readers, as the wise nun foolishly places herself in dangerous positions one after the other. From walking alone in the woods to working solo in isolated areas of the priory, Hildegard is repeatedly rescued when someone shows up just in time. Still, Clark's fans and medieval mystery aficionados may enjoy.--Linda Oliver, MLIS, Colorado Springs

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