Death Before Compline

By Sharan Newman (Bagwyn Books, 2012)

Sharan Newman's reputation as a critically acclaimed writer of medieval mysteries continues with this collection of short stories, all previously published and collected here for the first time in Death Before Compline. The stories take us into 12th century Europe and show with sympathy and humor, the astounding variety of good intentions gone wrong and the corruption of human desires. Many of the stories feature Catherine LeVendeur, the beloved protagonist of ten of Newman's novels, and Solomon, Catherine's Jewish merchant cousin. These stories takes us into the day to day reality of medieval religious and family life, as it is lived by a variety of people: from nuns, noble people, scholars, courtiers, merchants, hermetic spinsters and children.