This is the fourth in Penman’s Justin de Quincy mystery series, but the first of her novels that I’ve read. In some ways, it was a shame because it gave me the feeling of falling into the story mid-way. The novel is definitely readable without having read any of the previous books, but since a lot of the characters are reappearances, I fear that I might know too much should I ever decide to read the previous novels in the collection. For those terribly curious, I started with this book because I found it for $2 at a Chapters inventory liquidation sale.The fact that the order in which fate had me pick up the series is the biggest complaint that I can make about Prince of Darkness is quite telling. It was a fantastic novel with great characters. It was definitely one of those “can’t put it down” books – so much so that I missed my bus stop by about 20 minutes today while finishing it up. Justin is a delightful character – believable yet naive – making his relationship with his daughter heartbreaking.The only weakness of the novel is how it deals with climactic scenes. There are a few parts where potential action is skipped over entirely and the final “catch the bad guy” scene felt somewhat limp compared to the build up it received. Certainly, Penman’s strength is in character, exposition, and presenting a living and utterly plausible world. It was an added bonus I felt that I recognized some of the Gieses’ books in her descriptions.It was interesting the way Penman skips travel narration altogether. Justin will say that he wants to go to X location and the chapter ends. When the next chapter begins, he’s in X already. I don’t think I’ve ever seen travel handled quite so abruptly and I’m not quite sure how I feel about it yet. When the novel first opened, I found it confusing. I didn’t know if this was a flashback, a different set of characters, if I’d missed something. A couple times, I found myself having to read nearly a full page before I could confidently situate myself in the narrative. After the first couple chapters, though, I became accustomed to it and it no longer confused me. Once this happened, I somewhat enjoyed not having to let go of the action every time an exposition scene would have been found.The mystery wasn’t as good as I would have hoped. There certainly was one, but there was no discernible method to the gathering of clues and the thinking out of the whoddunnits. It really didn’t matter all that much. I found myself so interested in the characters that I forgot about the mystery entirely.In any case, it was a great novel. I highly recommend it for anyone interested in Medieval historical novels, character driven novels, or political intrigue. Mystery lovers may be disappointed, however.
This is the fourth and currently last installment of Penman's delightful Justin de Quincy mystery series. It is a shame that Penman's publishers have at least temporarily terminated the series, asking that she focus more on her longer historicals. I adore Penman's massive and meticulously researched historicals, but I also enjoy a short, fast and easy read at times, too. I can well imagine that these shorter works allow Penman to cleanse her mind between her longer works, utilizing her knowledge of the period while giving her imagination free reign. (Perhaps, she could self-publish these shorter works in e-book format if her publisher continues to balk?) While the mysteries in this series are not the most difficult to figure out, they are well drawn from the politics of the period. Furthermore, I love Penman's fictional characters and their interactions with real historical figures. Penman's imagined characters and plots are so believably realized and interwoven so well into the lives of the actual historical figures that often times the reader can't tell the difference until he/she reads the author's note included at the end of every book. I particularly enjoyed the interactions between the arch rivals, Durand and Justin, and their dealings with the Prince of Darkness himself, John, Count of Mortain (the future King John) in this book. The dialog between Durand and Justin was snappy and highly entertaining giving me several laugh out loud moments. I was particularly fascinated by the character of Morgan and was astonished to discover his true identity. In addition, Penman is able to successfully make the reader both appreciate and despise John -- an extremely difficult task considering how John has been portrayed throughout history in both literature and film. Penman never fails to educate and entertain me; I'm hopeful that I'll one day be able to read the further adventures of Justin de Quincy.
What do You think about Prince Of Darkness (2006)?
I don't know if baby brain affected my read of this or what, but I was kind of confused while reading this one. I didn't understand the whole thing with the forged letter, which is unfortunate since that was pretty much the crux of the story. I liked the thread of trying to find Lady Arzhela's murderer better than the thread about the letter. I also liked how Justin and Durand worked together and played off each other. I think it's fun how they seem to work well even though they can't really sta
—Kristen
Prince of Darkness follows a new Justin de Quincy: older, wiser and now a father, Justin has finally grown up. There's still a lot of commentary from other characters about his innocence, but his internal dialogue has matured.In this installment, Justin's working for Prince John, navigating the tangled knots of politics of both English and French courts as he seeks to clear John's name from a charge of high treason. Throwing Justin in with the man he most loathes was a great narrative concept and Penman handles the emotions, politics and historical description with her usual deft hand.Here's hoping there's more Justin in the future!!
—Abby
I am always a sucker for a Sharon Kay Penman novel! There are about five female historical fiction and fantasy writers who rarely disappoint, and Ms. Penman is the first of them I discovered back when her Wales trilogy came out. This novel follows Eleanor of Acquitane's personal "man" Justin de Quincey on yet another adventure in his young life. However, this adventure has him reluctantly helping the Queen's son Prince John, whom he hates. Having no choice but to throw in with several other distasteful characters,he finds himself at the monastery & island of Mont St. Michel, riding across Brittany,and seeing fantastic happenings in a Paris cemetery, the honourable Justin needs to unravel a conspiracy that could have changed the history of England.
—Maria
