History from a Woman's Perspective- A Book Blog

The Deadliest Fever (Miriam bat Isaac Mystery #4) Author: June Trop Genre:  Historical Fiction, Mystery Publisher: Black Opal Books Release Date: 2018 Pages: 248 Source: Netgalley/Publisher in exchange for an honest review. Synopsis: Miriam bat Isaac, a budding alchemist and amateur sleuth in first-century CE Alexandria, is concerned when she learns that the Torah mantle in Alexandria’s Great Synagogue has been damaged. She takes the mantle to Judah, a renowned jeweler and the unrequited love of her life. He repairs the mantle but assures her that the gems are genuine. Like Miriam, he is astonished that someone would damage the mantle but leave the gems behind. But Miriam suspects that something is not right. She is even more convinced that something is amiss, a few days later, when an anonymous note arrives, warning that the security at the Synagogue needs to be increased. As she digs for answers, she learns that some of the people she trusts are not what they seem, and sh...

The Deadliest Sport: A Miriam bat Isaac Mystery in Ancient Alexandria Author: June Trop Genre: Historical Fiction, Mystery Publisher: Black Opal Books Release Date: 2017 Pages: 242 Source: This book was given to me by iRead Book Tours in exchange for an honest review. Synopsis: Miriam bat Isaac, a budding alchemist in first-century CE Alexandria, welcomes her twin brother Binyamin home to fight his last gladiatorial bout in Alexandria. But when he demands his share of the family money so he can build a school for gladiators in Alexandria, Miriam explains that he forsook his share when he took the gladiatorial oath.      When she refuses to loan him the money for what she feels is a shady and dangerous enterprise, Binyamin becomes furious. Soon after, the will of Amram, Miriam's elderly charge, turns up missing; Amram becomes seriously ill; and the clerk of the public records house is murdered. Could Binyamin really be behind this monstrous scheme? If not he, wh...