Another thrilling and action-packed adventure for Shelby and Merton
The Saracen’s Mark, the third book in the Jackdaw Mysteries series after The Angel’s Mark and The Serpent’s Mark, sees the return of maverick physician/reluctant spy Nicholas Shelby and pioneering female apothecary/tavern keeper Bianca Merton, as danger and intrigue once again stalk the streets of Elizabethan London. This time, however, the redoubtable duo are going to find that the truth lies even further afield than ever before and that the danger facing them is more deadly than they could ever have imagined.
With the events of the Spanish Armada now safely in the past, England is taking steps towards cementing its place as a global superpower, although the trouble posed by historic enemies and the fear related to the possible resurgence of the plague are not to be underestimated. In Bankside, London, Nicholas Shelby is dragged from his bed one night to attend a medical emergency at the home of Robert Cecil, Elizabeth I’s spymaster. He is able to perform his duties as a doctor fairly easily, but Cecil has another task in mind for Shelby: a spy has gone missing in Marrakech and Cecil wants Shelby to travel to Morocco in the guise of learning about medical advances by Muslim physicians in order to discover the fate of the spy.
Shelby is reluctant to undertake such a dangerous mission, and he’s even more reluctant to step out on his growing relationship with Bianca Merton for the length of time the journey would take, but Cecil leaves him with little choice in the matter. As for Merton, she has her hands full acting as London’s only female apothecary and also overseeing the running of the Jackdaw tavern, especially when her trusted cook Farzad disappears on the very night a regular customer is murdered. A new group of customers are making Merton suspicious, and she’s definitely not happy that Shelby is going to be working for Robert Cecil again. Plus, there’s the constant worry that the plague might cross the river and reach Bankside…
The Saracen’s Mark represents another thrilling and action-packed adventure for Shelby and Merton – they really do have a knack for finding themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time. The relationship between the two has certainly developed, although there is still something holding them back, whether it be suspicion or memories of the past, from fully committing to/trusting each other. The dynamic between the pair is really engaging though, even when they’re fighting, and it’s nice to see them on the cusp of finding happiness together. It’s also nice to revisit the loyal staff of the Jackdaw – things are changing somewhat for Rose, Ned, Farzad, and Tom, but they’re still pulling together as a family around Merton and Shelby.
S.W. Perry does a great job of portraying the sights, sounds and smells of Elizabethan London, which is admittedly a popular setting for historical crime fiction stories. However, The Saracen’s Mark goes beyond most other books of the kind by having much of the action take place in Marrakech, which really is an unusual setting for a book about this period featuring English main characters. Shelby’s investigation allows Perry to portray what a Tudor Londoner makes of Morocco and Moroccans, and it’s really interesting to witness the culture clash and exchanges of ideas that ensue. The story wears Perry’s considerable research lightly, but readers can learn much about the time, the customs and the conflicts.
The mystery at the heart of The Saracen’s Mark is an intriguing one, and it’s great to follow along with Shelby’s and Merton’s investigations before they converge and the truth is finally revealed. There are some very menacing baddies involved, and probably even more morally dubious characters, so there’s a real sense of peril throughout much of the story. There’s plenty for Shelby and Merton to unpick, and it’s a lot of fun to read about their efforts.
With the events of the Spanish Armada now safely in the past, England is taking steps towards cementing its place as a global superpower, although the trouble posed by historic enemies and the fear related to the possible resurgence of the plague are not to be underestimated. In Bankside, London, Nicholas Shelby is dragged from his bed one night to attend a medical emergency at the home of Robert Cecil, Elizabeth I’s spymaster. He is able to perform his duties as a doctor fairly easily, but Cecil has another task in mind for Shelby: a spy has gone missing in Marrakech and Cecil wants Shelby to travel to Morocco in the guise of learning about medical advances by Muslim physicians in order to discover the fate of the spy.
Shelby is reluctant to undertake such a dangerous mission, and he’s even more reluctant to step out on his growing relationship with Bianca Merton for the length of time the journey would take, but Cecil leaves him with little choice in the matter. As for Merton, she has her hands full acting as London’s only female apothecary and also overseeing the running of the Jackdaw tavern, especially when her trusted cook Farzad disappears on the very night a regular customer is murdered. A new group of customers are making Merton suspicious, and she’s definitely not happy that Shelby is going to be working for Robert Cecil again. Plus, there’s the constant worry that the plague might cross the river and reach Bankside…
The Saracen’s Mark represents another thrilling and action-packed adventure for Shelby and Merton – they really do have a knack for finding themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time. The relationship between the two has certainly developed, although there is still something holding them back, whether it be suspicion or memories of the past, from fully committing to/trusting each other. The dynamic between the pair is really engaging though, even when they’re fighting, and it’s nice to see them on the cusp of finding happiness together. It’s also nice to revisit the loyal staff of the Jackdaw – things are changing somewhat for Rose, Ned, Farzad, and Tom, but they’re still pulling together as a family around Merton and Shelby.
S.W. Perry does a great job of portraying the sights, sounds and smells of Elizabethan London, which is admittedly a popular setting for historical crime fiction stories. However, The Saracen’s Mark goes beyond most other books of the kind by having much of the action take place in Marrakech, which really is an unusual setting for a book about this period featuring English main characters. Shelby’s investigation allows Perry to portray what a Tudor Londoner makes of Morocco and Moroccans, and it’s really interesting to witness the culture clash and exchanges of ideas that ensue. The story wears Perry’s considerable research lightly, but readers can learn much about the time, the customs and the conflicts.
The mystery at the heart of The Saracen’s Mark is an intriguing one, and it’s great to follow along with Shelby’s and Merton’s investigations before they converge and the truth is finally revealed. There are some very menacing baddies involved, and probably even more morally dubious characters, so there’s a real sense of peril throughout much of the story. There’s plenty for Shelby and Merton to unpick, and it’s a lot of fun to read about their efforts.