A Prayer for the Damned is the 17th book in Peter Tremayne's Sister Fidelma series of murder mystery novels set in 7th century Ireland. In this story, an abbot is killed on the eve of Fidelma's wedding to Eadulf. The murder has significant political repercussions, that could in the worst case lead to Fidelma's brother, Colgu, losing his kingship.As a murder mystery, this book works quite well. It is not until about 50 pages from the end that we see a slip-up by the murderer that will eventually lead to Fidelma solving the mystery.On other levels, though, this novel doesn't work so well. Tremayne has a tendency to pedantry. He is long-winded. His dialogue is stilted and verbose. He tells good stories in the worst possible way. I found myself longing to be done with this book before I was half through it. I don't know if it was more pedantic than the preceding books in the series or if I am just less tolerant of it now.To Tremayne's credit, he makes an honest effort to convey the political and social conditions of the time and place. Irish tradition was battling Roman Catholicism for political and religious control. Ireland was, by comparison with Roman-dominated Europe, more tolerant and 'liberal', offering better treatment of women and of the elderly. The Irish justice system was based on compensation rather than punishment. Ireland seems not to have the neurotic obsession with punishment, chastisement, and guilt that characterized (and still characterizes) Roman-based Christianity.Of course, Tremayne writes from the point of view of the ruling class - Fidelma is sister to a king, and the sort of life she is described as leading would have been unknown to the great majority of Irish people of the time. The 'honor system' of compensation described so favorably by Tremayne enforced a strict hereditary hierarchy differing from other European feudalist structures only in that the hierarchy did not rely on primogeniture.Already in the 7th century Ireland was beginning to be dominated by religion, with bishops rivaling kings for power and influence. Ireland was on its way to the Christian theocracy that eventually dominated Ireland and all of Europe. The liberalizing influence of Irish law and tradition eventually was discarded, leading to 6 centuries of intellectual stagnation and horrible cruelty.
The umpteenth in the Sister Fidelma series set in 7th c. Ireland. Fidelma and Eadulf's wedding ceremony is postponed by the murder of an odious abbot who had come to Cashel specifically to protest their wedding, being a proponent of the Roman way of thinking which demands celibacy for the Christian religious. But Ireland has no such rules, and Rome does not have an official ban on marriage among the religious either--and Abbot Ultan had other reasons for being among the highest ranking political and religious people in the land, all gathered together at Cashel. But before he can make much more than a stir, he is stabbed to death and Fidelma, who is also a high-ranking lawyer besides being a religieux, is asked by the man accused of the crime to defend him. While Fidelma can find no one with a kind word to say about Ultan and motives are everywhere, no one but her client was seen leaving the abbot's room minutes before his death. As usual, Fidelma and Eadulf work together to solve the crime, and of course more bodies join the abbot's along the way before Fidelma reveals all at the end. Enjoyable visit to Cashel as always, if somewhat predictable.
What do You think about A Prayer For The Damned (2007)?
#17 in the Sister Fidelma series. 7th century Ireland had a system of laws that were light years ahead of its time (the Dark Ages). Their provisions concerning women were better than any country (including the U.S.) in 2011. There were protections against domestic abuse, divorce, rape, child molestation, etc. Family bonds were emphasized along with loyalty to one's clan. Succession of clan leadership (and even kingship!) were not based upon the oldest son but rather voted in based on the vote of three levels of family members. These stories deal with these laws and how violations of them were dealt with by the dalaighs (officers of the courts). To gain the best picture of the Irish society of the time and how the laws were administered it is best to start with book #1 and read them in the correct order. This series (and the author) have received world-wide acclaim and there's even a Sister Fidelma fan club and web site!
—Denise
A nice, fast-paced book. Plenty of suspects and an irredeemable villain. And there were quite a few humorous moments with Brother Eadulf. I especially like the part where he referred to himself as shy. Ha ha! Also, in this book Fidelma displays a wide range of emotions (makes her more human). I also love the last line in the book. It's the sweetest thing Eadulf has ever said to Fidelma. Finally, a few glimpses of tenderness between them are given in this book. Definitely one of the best in the series all around.
—Laura Edwards
