Fire and Earth
Sir Anthony Standen Adventures Book 2
by David West
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Pub Date Nov 19 2021 | Archive Date Mar 01 2022
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Description
The year is 1607. The first permanent English colony in North America has been established at Jamestown. Venice has railed against the papal prerogative and has been excommunicated by Pope Paul V. Sir Anthony Standen has just begun gathering the grape harvest at his vineyard in Frascati, when he receives two visitors. The first is Hugh O’Neill, the exiled Earl of Tyrone, whose rebel army Anthony attempted to infiltrate when he was serving the Earl of Essex in Ireland. The second visitor is Cardinal Aldobrandini, Pope Paul’s right-hand man.
Anthony and Hugh are recruited to investigate the mysterious murders of priests, burnt in their churches on saint’s feast days. Their investigation takes them across northern Italy and threatens not only Anthony’s life, but his core beliefs, his conscience, and his family.
Advance Praise
"A historical mystery that investigates the ritualistic killings of priests across Italy. ‘Fire and Earth’ by David West is an interesting mystery set in the 1600s, when heliocentricity (the idea that the earth orbited the sun) was considered heresy. When a number of priests are found dead on Saint’s days, burned and circled by a mound of earth, it is thought that the culprit may be one of these heretic, scientific thinkers. Employed to investigate is Sir Antony Standen, a retired spy with an open mind and a unique skill set. I enjoyed this story, I could tell that a great deal of research has been put into the story in order to ensure that the setting felt authentic, with historical events and figures interwoven into the plot.
The prologue did a very good job at drawing the reader in, being witness to one of the crimes we are about to see investigated raised lots of questions and naturally entices the reader to keep reading. In all I enjoyed the story, I can see the scope for more books connected to these characters and I would be interested in reading future books. I think fans of historical fiction, perhaps those that enjoyed ‘The Da Vinci Code’ and fans of mysteries more broadly would enjoy this book.
LoveReading.co.uk"
Available Editions
| ISBN | 9781915225023 |
| PRICE | $2.99 (USD) |
Links
Available on NetGalley
Featured Reviews
Jennifer C, Reviewer
‘When the fat burns, it really gets going, doesn’t it?’
Italy, 1607. In his new life, post intelligence work, Sir Anthony Standen is gathering the grapes at his vineyard in Frascati when he receives two visitors The first is Hugh O’Neill, the exiled Earl of Tyrone and the second is Cardinal Aldobrandini, the right-hand man of Pope Paul V. Sir Anthony remembers Hugh O’Neill: he had not seen him since 1599, when Sir Anthony attempted to join his rebel Irish army in order to spy on him for the Earl of Essex.
Anthony and Hugh are recruited by Cardinal Aldobrandini to investigate the mysterious murders of priests who have been burned in their churches on saint’s feast days. Each of the scenes is similar: the priests have been burned and are surrounded by a mound of earth. Could the murderer be one of the heretics, who believes that the earth orbits the sun?
The novel’s prologue immediately draws us into the scene of one of the crimes, and several scenes set up the politics (and some of the less savoury practices) of the 17th century Catholic church. Anthony and Hugh make a good team, although Hugh annoyed me at times, so he did. References to Giordano Bruno, Galileo Galilei and Nicolaus Copernicus really set the scene for me. Anthony and Hugh’s investigations take them across northern Italy much to the disgust of his wife Francesca. Their teenaged twins, Antonio and Maria also become involved as several possible murder victims are identified.
This is a fast-moving story which held my attention from beginning to end. This is the second novel in Mr West’s series featuring Sir Anthony Standen. It could be read as a standalone but reading the two books in order will be much more rewarding.
Note: My thanks to NetGalley and Books Go Social for providing me with a free electronic copy of this book for review purposes.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
