Book Review: Prophecy By S.J. Parris

Prophecy By S.J. Parris
Genre:  Historical Thriller

Product Details: 

• Hardcover: 384 pages
• Publisher: Doubleday (May 3, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385531303
• ISBN-13: 978-0385531306

Product Description: (From the Publisher)
S. J. Parris returns with the next Giordano Bruno mystery, set inside Queen Elizabeth’s palace and steeped in period atmospherics and the strange workings of the occult.

It is the year of the Great Conjunction, when the two most powerful planets, Jupiter and Saturn, align—an astrologi­cal phenomenon that occurs once every thousand years and heralds the death of one age and the dawn of another. The streets of London are abuzz with predictions of horrific events to come, possibly even the death of Queen Elizabeth.

When several of the queen’s maids of honor are found dead, rumors of black magic abound. Elizabeth calls upon her personal astrologer, John Dee, and Giordano Bruno to solve the crimes. While Dee turns to a mysterious medium claiming knowledge of the murders, Bruno fears that some­thing far more sinister is at work. But even as the climate of fear at the palace intensifies, the queen refuses to believe that the killer could be someone within her own court.

Bruno must play a dangerous game: can he allow the plot to progress far enough to give the queen the proof she needs without putting her, England, or his own life in danger?






 
My Thoughts:
S.J. Parris is truly a gifted writer of historical fiction.  I was immediately swept away back in time with her amazing descriptions.  I could imagine myself walking the cobble-stone streets of London, the corridors of the various Courts, and the dark alleys along the wharfs...always careful to look around every corner!  With her second novel, S.J. Parris has given us an extremely well-developed plot with unpredictable twists and turns to be found on every page.  And just who is responsible for the murders within Queen Elizabeth's Court?  Is it the Catholic Conspirators hoping to restore Mary Stuart to the throne?  Or perhaps the Queen's astrologer, John Dee, and his Scryer, Ned Kelley, with his eerie predictions and visions?  Maybe it's someone with a desire for personal revenge?  There are certainly plenty of red herrings throughout creating an extraordinary reading experience.  The burden of unraveling these mysteries falls upon Girodono Bruno, an exiled Dominican monk from Italy whose knowledge is far ahead of his times.  I absolutely loved this book and easily give it a 5!  If you enjoy historical mysteries, you won't be disappointed with Prophecy!

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