Peter Tremayne doesn’t play fair in The Subtle Serpent, the fourth installment in the Sister Fidelma series. In Agatha Christie fashion, he doesn’t introduce important potential suspects until late in the game and ultimately fails in communicating the motive for the killing. Yes, he spells out the murderer’s (multiple murders in this one even as there are multiple mysteries to be solved) motive, but the murderer would have been well able to make the same assumption that Sister Fidelma makes at the end of the novel. So, that portion of the novel isn’t convincing.What is convincing, however, is that Tremayne (whomever the real author behind the pseudonym) knows his ancient Irish law and tradition, as well as the significant differences between the Irish church and the Roman church. Having read several volumes on church history which dealt with the Roman church, I am personally finding ideas about celibacy of the clergy, relationship between ecclesiastical and secular law, and cohabited religious communities (conhospitae) to be quite enlightening and fascinating. In this novel, I particularly enjoyed the exposure of the false council proceedings distributed by the ambitious Archbishop Ultan (the same Ultan who gathered together the orphans after the Yellow Plague?) in which he was purporting that St. Patrick contradicted himself with regard to obeying secular law. It showed how even people of faith sometimes perpetrate fraud to advance their own ambition, turning off their intellectual honesty and pounding the idea of “faith” in a way that God never intended.The texture of these novels is such that it constantly reminds me of how rusty my Latin has become, but helps me savor such lines as: “Valeat quatum valere potest” (value that for what it is worth) and “Ignis aurem probat, miseria fortes viros” (fire proves gold, difficulty/adversity [proves] strong men). The latter is from Seneca and I like it a lot. It is a very valuable truth that is affirmed by several biblical passages.Another aspect of this novel series that I truly enjoy is the character of Sister Fidelma herself. The sister of a king, an appointee as a Brehon, and a religieuse herself, this woman is well-versed in many different disciplines. She knows of diplomacy, such forensics as existed in the period, law, and theology. Yet, all of these ingredients are mixed together in a broth of understanding. As a result, she seems both superior to some and more human than other detectives found in the mystery genre (whether on-screen or on the page).This novel begins with a body in a well, raises the stakes with an empty vessel drifting on the high seas, ups the ante considerably with a missing person incident, adds to the pot with potential treason, and offers other deaths before the conclusion. The novel certainly offers a number of problems to solve and lines of questioning to follow. To me, that makes for an intriguing mystery but—as stated before—a somewhat dissatisfying conclusion. It won’t stop me from reading more in this marvelous world of my Irish heritage, however.
First I will say that this is my favorite type of book, fictional detective set in an "interesting" point in time. Next best thing to a time machine. I liked the book, but did notice that it took me longer than usual to read it. This was due to quite a bit of "new to me" words, history and geography to absorb. There was a map, but I wish there had been a glossary. (Guess that would be a reason to quit holding out against an e-reader.) I sometimes had to go back and reread and try harder to understand, especially when I was tired, which since I read before bed, happens. . . . But the end was worth the extra effort and now I want to read rest of series.
What do You think about The Subtle Serpent (1999)?
Sister Fidelma is calledto the THE ABBEY OF THE SALMON OF THE THREE WELLS to investigate the murder of a young sister who was also decapitated . the young nuns body was found at the bottom of one of the wells.getting information on this murder was sister Fidelma's hardest assingment yet. There is somuch hatered between the abessof the abey and her brother who is king of the region that the abbey is located that is hard to figure truth from fiction. Sister Fidelma is led down a road of mystery and intrigue that has more twist and turns than the hills of Ireland. In the end Sister Fidelma prevails with the truth in hand.
—Patrick
I love the Sister Fidelma books! They're full of history, interesting people, and great stories. This one is especially good, with Sister Fi sent to a distant abbey to solve the case of the headless corpse found in the well. There are several underlying plots full of evil and nasty people, and it is not clear at first whether the murder is related to the rebellion being planned by the local chieftain against Fidelma's brother, the king of Cashel. As always, Fidelma's brilliance comes through and is even better when she finds the missing Brother Eadulf.
—Nancy Ellis
4th in the Sister Fidelma series.[return][return]Fidelma is summoned to the abbey of The Salmon of the Three Wells when the corpse of a headless female is found in the abbey s well. While on her way to the abbey by ship, Fidelma and her companions encounter a merchant ship that is completely empty of crew AND cargo. All that is left is puzzling traces of reddish earth. In addition, Fidelma discovers evidence that one of the passengers was her former investigative colleague, Brother Eadulf. Not only does she have the mystery of the empty ship but also the worry that something has happened to Eadulf, to whom she is attracted. The mystery takes on political overtones, as the abbess is in conflict with the local chieftain, who turns out to be her brother. Other murders are uncovered as well.[return][return]With this installment, the Fidelma series finally seems to get off the stuck point of mediocre writing that plagues Tremayne s earlier works. It does so by dint of plotting that is an order of magnitude better than has occurred before. There are some really nice aspects to this book the mystery of an empty ship, ancient Celtic laws about salvage, the intriguing workings of a water clock, and the introduction of modern , at-a-distance weapons of war to a culture that has heretofore known only hand-to-hand combat, and what that portends.[return][return]The characterization is better handled in this book as well. It s actually a very nice treatment of the insidiousness of hatred through well-placed lies. In fact, I was reminded of that absolutely wonderful aria in the opera, The Barber of Seville, when Don Basilio sings Calumny is a little breeze , describing the uses of the gossipy lie to worm its way, like a subtle serpent, through a community and destroy a reputation. The aria is hysterically funny, but the message is sobering. The book has several very nice twists to the plot, and has an exciting denouement.[return][return]Definitely better than the three preceeding. Recommended.
—Joyce Lagow
