Excellent Historical Mystery Novels
PDR Lindsay | August 9, 2009
Review : Historical Mystery Novels
The Falconer Series by Ian Morson
The Master William Falconer Mystery Series by Ian Morson.
‘Falconer and the Ritual of Death’
Ian Morson is British, currently living in Cyprus, and a popular author amongst the readers who love well written historical mysteries. His Falconer series: ‘Falconer’s Crusade’, ‘Falconer’s Judgement’, ‘Falconer and the Face of God’, ‘A Psalm for Falconer’, ‘Falconer and the Great Beast’, ‘Falconer and the Ritual of Death’ are set in 13thC Oxford. Falconer is a regent master (professor) of Oxford University and in charge of Aristotle’s Hall. He lives in the largest upper room, with ‘a dozen or so’ students in the remaining living spaces. This is the early days of the university, before the colleges were built, and so students live all over Oxford. And what an Oxford it is. We get descriptions of the narrow streets, the overcrowding, and the filth, a bit too much filth sometimes, the shops and the university.
‘Falconer and the Ritual of Death’ is the newest in the series. As usual the opening sentence of the first chapter is a real hook: ‘The girl’s body lay on the scrubbed oak surface of the battered table.’ And we are pulled into a mystery. William Falconer and his fellow regent master of science are conducting an anatomy experiment, something forbidden by the Church. The poor girl is meant to be a suicide, but is she? Only detailed examination will tell. However another body soon turns up, definitely murdered, hidden in the walls of a building being demolished to make way for the first university college. Falconer is drawn to investigate. He believes that ‘logical thought could cut through the morass that surrounded cases of murder.’ and he likes to prove this to his friend, constable Peter Bullock. Together they have to find out who the body is, for it’s headless, and a good few years old. With a mysterious stranger hovering in the background, a master builder upset at building delays, and Peter not at all his usual forthcoming self, William Falconer has plenty of problems to solve before he can find the truth about the dead girl and the body in the wall.
None of the Falconer books are heavy going, the history doesn’t get in the way of the story, which is fast paced and with plenty of plot twists. The mysteries are solved in ways which are credible and Falconer is not a misplaced 21stC forensic scientist. He seems refreshingly 13thC. Definitely books to read for readers who like a helping of well researched history with their mystery.
