Type of bind: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 823.914
EAN num: 9780451193001
ISBN number: 0451193008
Label: Signet
Manufacturer: Signet
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 304
Printing Date: July 01, 1998
Publishing house: Signet
Sale Popularity Level: 506253
Studio: Signet
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Product Description:
The second book in the first-ever Irish medievalmystery series features Celtic nun Sister Fidelma assigned to investigate the horrible death of Wighard, Archbishop Designate of Canterbury. In the autumn of A.D. 664, the Archbishop is found dead, garrotted in his chambers, and a monk has been arrested fleeing the scene of the crime. Convinced of his innocence, Sister Fidelma joins Brother Eadulf of the Roman Church to find the truth, but instead they find too few clues, too many motives, and a trail strewn with bodies....
* Shroud For The Archbishop is the second book in this unique Irish medieval mystery series * In the tradition of Ellis Peters's bestselling medieval mysteries * Shroud For The Archbishop has already been sold to England and Germany * Peter Tremayne is a pseudonym for a noted Celtic scholar, giving Shroud For The Archbishopmuch authenticity
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Rated by buyers 
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"Shroud for the Archbishop" is a superior mystery and a glimpse into the relatively unknown world of 8th century Europe. The characters of Fidelma and her associates are well drawn and have led me to vow to read all the Sr. Fidelma books and short stories.
Rated by buyers 
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As someone who enjoyed immensely Ellis Peters' (aka Edith Pargeter's) elegant, sensitive, and moving Brother Cadfael mysteries, and who is fascinated with the interaction of Irish and Anglo-Saxon cultures in early medieval England, I finally decided to give Sister Fidelma a try. After reading Absolution by Murder, I ordered Shroud for the Archbishop. Reluctantly, I'm forced to conclude that these books deserve no more than a "2." On the positive side, the author is a historian, and it shows--but too much. As other reviewers have noted, he can't resist cramming every bit of his knowledge into the plot, at the expense of both plot and character. There are three other big problems. One is the main character herself. Unless you're really fond of people who are absolutely convinced of their own moral superiority and of their culture's superiority to all others, and who can't stop lecturing everyone in sight about their inferiority, you may find Fidelma a bit offputting. Maybe over the long haul of the series her humanity eventually shows through, but not in books 1 and 2. The second problem is that the author is as biased as his heroine, and seldom acknowledges anything positive in the motives, actions, or culture of the Anglo-Saxons or Romans. He exaggerates every point of cultural difference as well as the conflict between the Irish and Anglo-Saxons over 8th-century Christian practices, conveniently forgetting that both peoples were originally evangelized by Rome, looked to Rome for guidance, and resolved their disagreements peacefully. He also ignores the considerable cultural interplay that produced treasures such as the Lindisfarne Gospels, which are neither "Celtic" nor "Anglo-Saxon," but something new: Hiberno-Saxon. The only character other than Fidelma whom he presents sympathetically is Brother Eadulf, an Anglo-Saxon, whose chief virtues seem to be that he studied a long time in Ireland and is willing to put up with Fidelma. Finally, the writing needs a good, strong editorial hand. The most annoying example to me is the author's use of "shrug" and "grimace" on every other page. My favorite is "grimaced indifferently" (a sort of grimace-shrug?). I'm afraid "grimace" and "shrug" pretty much sum up my reaction to these books.
Rated by buyers 
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he author Peter Tremayne obviously has a great knowledge of Ireland in the 7th century and also on the Irish Law of the period. His Sister Fidelma book are attracting what can only be described as a cult following, but they are of interest to anyone who likes historical novels or mysteries. This series of books are set in Ireland in the 7th century, a time when there was total equality for women. The lead character is the beguiling Sister Fidelma. She is a brilliant scholar, a leading authority on Irish law and the sister of a king. This is also a period in history when celibacy was not yet a part of religious life.
The Irish, unlike the English have always shown a much greater respect and admiration for their womenfolk and this is why, even in an age when most countries treated women with little or no regard, other than for breeding an heir, that Sister Fidelma has risen to the position that she now holds. Although she is the sister of a king, this has little or no bearing on her ability to command respect.
The year is AD 64 and the Archbishop is found garrotted in his own rooms. A monk has been arrested running away from the scene of the crime, but Sister Fidelma is convinced that he is an innocent party. Fidelma joins with Brother Eadulf to find out the truth. But this is no simple crime, they find very little in the way of clues or evidence, but there seem to be a great deal of people who have a motive for committing the crime.
Rated by buyers -
"Shroud for the Archbishop", the second installment of the Sister Fidelma mystery series, is set in Rome in the year 664 A.D. Set immediately after the debut story in this series, this tale finds the Irish Sister Fidelma and her Saxon monk sidekick Brother Eadulf both visiting the Holy City, and both for different reasons. Fidelma is there to receive a blessing for her new abbey, while Eadulf is there as secretary to the Saxon nominee for the position of Archbishop of Canterbury. The Saxon bishop Wighard is slated to be ordained as Canterbury's archbishop. For those tumultuous times in theChristian church, ordaining a Saxon to this position was quite a controversial move. But when Wighard is found garroted in his cubicle, and the treasures which he had brought to Rome are stolen, the Roman magistrate charges Fidelma to find his murderer. An Irish monk named Ronan is almost immediately arrested for the murder, but, fearing that finding an Irish monk guilty of the Saxon bishop's murder could lead to a civil war, the Romans ask the Irish?Saxon team of Fidelman and Eadulf to look into the murder in order to bring about justice. The story probably contains a lot more information on church politics than most readers care to digest; however, the story also contains much information on contemporary Roman life. I especially enjoyed the scenes set in the catacombs, which are crucial to the story.
The very first half of the book really moved slowly for me, as it was quite bogged down in the political background revolving around the archbishops murder. As Fidelma and Eadulf begin to suspect that the Irish monk is not the guilty party, and as the dead bodies start to pile up, the story got a little more interesting. This was not as strong as the very first book in the series, but was still an enjoyable historical mystery.
Rated by buyers -
Mmm, no. I enjoy history-albeit mostly ancient history-and I enjoy murder mysteries. I even enjoy historic murder mysteries, but although I feel that the character of Sister Fidelma has much potential, I think the author has missed the mark by a wide margin. I had selected the Shroud for the Archbishop because it had been recommended to me by another murder mystery afficionado whose other suggestions had been dead on. This one was a disappointment.
Peter Tremayne is the nom de plume of the Celtic scholar and author Peter Berresford Ellis. He has a BA and MA in Celtic studies and is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland and a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society. He has primarily pursued a career as a journalist, becoming a full time writer in 1975 and producing popular works on Celtic literature and history and fictional works like the Sister Fidelma series.
Although Mr. Tremayne's characters flirt with the reader, they do not seem to entirely captivate. One has the definite sense that they could be so much more than they are, especially Fidelma. The settings really should be interesting-I've been to Rome, and I've studied Roman history-but somehow they become merely a catalogue of physical characteristics rather than an ambiance. At times I felt like a reluctant tourist being dragged on a walk about of Rome by the overly enthusiastic tour guide Brother Eadulf. The author spends so much time bogging this character down in historic recitations that the tale of the murdered archbishop designate, Wighard of Canterbury, becomes lost in the author's endeavor to educate the reader. How much more smoothly, subtly and painlessly is this type of historical information introduced by Ellis Peters in her Brother Cadfael series or by Candace Robb in her Owen Archer mysteries. Even Timeline by Michael Crichton introduces historical data without losing the reader. In each of these cases, the STORY is the most critical facet of the book. Historical details are added to enhance and advance the story. While they definitely educate, their primary purpose is to create a setting in which the characters live and act.
Although I haven't yet read them, I think I'd probably prefer Mr. Tremayne's expository works, A Brief History of the Druids and Erin's Blood Royal: The Gaelic Noble Dynasties of Ireland. I will probably read both. I'll give another of his other Sister Fidelma stories a try, but if this is truly his preferred style of writing fiction, I don't think I'll enjoy a second mystery any more than I did the Shroud for the Archbishop.
Stick to the story Mr. Tremayne.
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