Skip to main content

The Lady Agnès Mystery - Volume 1: The Season of the Beast and The Breath of the Rose by Andrea Japp: A Book Review

The Lady Agnès Mystery - Volume 1: The Season of the Beast and The Breath of the Rose
Author: Andrea Japp
Genre: Historical Fiction, Mystery, Thriller
Publisher: Gallic Books
Release Date: July 13, 2015
Pages: 670
Source: Netgalley/Publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Synopsis: 1304: The Church and the French Crown are locked in a power struggle.

      In Normandy, monks on a secret mission are murdered.

     Young noblewoman Agnès de Souarcy fights to retain her independence but must face the Inquisition, unaware that she is the focus of an ancient quest.

     My Review: When Lady Agnes’s husband dies, Agnes knows that her half-brother may take away her dower leaving her with nothing. Agnes fights to keep her manor and her lands. However, when a corpse is found on her property the signs point to Agnes as the murderer. Soon she finds herself amidst the French Inquisition. During her trial, she finds out that there is a prophecy that involves her. She is the key player in the power struggle over the fight between the French Crown and the Church. As her enemies try to get rid of her, Agnes must survive the Inquisition at all cost so she can fulfill her destiny.

     Agnes is a very strong woman. She fights for her independence from her half-brother so she can keep her dowry. Throughout the Inquisition, she faces a lot of trials that make her a stronger woman. She does not bow down to her Inquisitors. Instead, she uses her intelligence and outsmarts them. Her intelligence and stubbornness infuriates her inquisitors because she is a thorn in their side. She was supposed to be broken and compliant, but instead she is not. She never breaks her will. She does face some sadness, but she never gives up hope or her will to survive.

     Overall, this book is about a woman’s determination and strength as she faces her obstacles. The message of the book is that there is hope. I did find the story to be slow-paced for it was not until halfway through the book did it pick up. As for the mystery, it is still unsolved and it ends in a cliffhanger. Still, I found Agnes’s trials during the French Inquisition to be fascinating enough to where I really did not care about the mystery. Her trial was raw, poignant, painful, and sad. When she survived, it was very triumphant. I am interested in reading the next book in the series. I would like to read more about Agnes’s story and maybe the murder mystery will be resolved. I recommend this book to anyone interested in mysteries, historical fiction, and the French Inquisition.

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

The Life and Times of Hannah Crafts: The True Story of The Bondwoman's Narrative by Gregg Hecimovich: A Book Review

  The Life and Times of Hannah Crafts: The True Story of the Bondwoman’s Narrative Author: Gregg Hecimovich Genre: History, Nonfiction, Biography  Publisher: Ecco Release Date: 2023 Pages: 430 Source: Netgalley/Publisher in exchange for an honest review. Synopsis: A groundbreaking study of the first Black female novelist and her life as an enslaved woman, from the biographer who solved the mystery of her identity, with a foreword by Henry Louis Gates Jr.       In 1857, a woman escaped enslavement on a North Carolina plantation and fled to a farm in New York. In hiding, she worked on a manuscript that would make her famous long after her death. The novel, The Bondwoman’s Narrative, was first published in 2002 to great acclaim, but the author’s identity remained unknown. Over a decade later, Professor Gregg Hecimovich unraveled the mystery of the author’s name and, in The Life and Times of Hannah Crafts, hefinally tells her story.   ...

A Right Worthy Woman by Ruth P. Watson: A Book Review

A Right Worthy Woman Author: Ruth P. Watson Genre: Historical Fiction Publisher: Atria Books Release Date: 2023 Pages: 303 Source: Netgalley/Publisher in exchange for an honest review. Synopsis: In the vein of The Personal Librarian and The House of Eve , a “remarkable and stirring novel” (Patti Callahan Henry, New York Times bestselling author) based on the inspiring true story of Virginia’s Black Wall Street and the indomitable Maggie Lena Walker, the daughter of a formerly enslaved woman who became the first Black woman to establish and preside over a bank in the United States.       Maggie Lena Walker was ambitious and unafraid. Her childhood in 19th-century Virginia helping her mother with her laundry service opened her eyes to the overwhelming discrepancy between the Black residents and her mother’s affluent white clients. She vowed to not only secure the same kind of home and finery for herself, but she would also help others in her community achi...

Nell: Marshal of Bodie (The Nell Doherty Mysteries #1) by John Edward Mullen: A Book Review

Nell: Marshal of Bodie (The Nell Doherty Mysteries #1) Author: John Edward Mullen Genre: Historical Fiction, Mystery & Suspense, Western  Publisher: Murders in Time Press Release Date: 2022 Pages: 300 Source: Netgalley/Publisher in exchange for an honest review. Synopsis: In the winter of 1892, the once-vibrant gold-mining town of Bodie, California is in serious decline.        Nell Doherty, an 18-year-old young woman with a wooden leg, dreams of leaving and becoming a Pinkerton detective.       When a tragic shooting presents her with an opportunity to prove she has the skills needed to work for the Pinkertons, Bodie’s justice of the peace deputizes Nell — over the loud objections of the majority of the town’s residents.      Can she prove them all wrong?       Nell digs in and investigates the shooting, with the help of Rags, her half-Irish, half-Chinese be...