Absolution by Murder

A Sister Fidelma Mystery

By: Peter Tremayne

Narrated by: Caroline Lennon

In AD 664 King Oswy of Northumbria has convened a synod at Whitby to hear debate between the Roman and Celtic Christian Churches and decide which shall be granted primacy in his kingdom. At stake is much more than a few disputed points of ritual; Oswy's decision could affect the survival of either Church in the Saxon kingdoms.

When the Abbess Etain, a leading speaker for the Celtic Church, is found murdered, suspicion falls upon the Roman faction. In order to diffuse the tensions that threaten to erupt into civil war, Oswy turns to Sister Fidelma of the Celtic Church (Irish and an advocate for the Brehon Court) and Brother Eadulf of the Roman Church (from East Anglia and of a family of hereditary magistrates) to find the killer. But as further murders occur, and a treasonous plot against Oswy matures, Fidelma and Eadulf soon find themselves running out of time.

©1994 Peter Tremayne (P)2014 Audible Inc.

If Brother Cadfael was female and Irish,,,,

Seventh Century Irish nun/lawyer solves murder mysteries in the middle of a church conference. Yes, nun and lawyer. Really. The book is worth a credit just to find out haw that worked.

Very complex set of characters and situations. Inspires me to do a little research on a period of history most of us know very little about. Narrator does a great job.

My only complaint -not really a complaint, more an inevitable problem - is that many of the names sound alike, making it a challenge to keep all the characters straight.

Well written and well read, though sometimes tedio

Very good historica mystery with compellin intriug. Strong distinct cherecters. The author has a tendancy to emphasize lesser known facts about church history, like priests could merry and monks lived in co-ed monasteries. I am a church history fanatic so I loved the historical and theological detail, though i ca imagine that it mighty be boring for some. The reader has a lovely irish acent and obviously practiced her latin and unfamilliar words.

Great story could use a better narrator

I love the story and all the details about the tension between the Roman and Celtic churches. The narrator, unfortunately, does not provide any discernable distinction in voice or accent between characters - the men sound just like the women and everyone has an Irish accent. I guess I'm spoiled by other narrators who are able to change voice and diction to match the characters.

great story

Great story, and I am sure I will listen to more. this the second one I have enjoyed.

Wonderful series!!

I found this series at Book 6 and have come back to Book 1 to start right. If you like historical pieces this will not disappoint with the Irish history!

Murder among the Monks and Nuns

Interesting historical murder mystery set in AD 664 in Northumbria, a medieval kingdom, which in current day is northern England and the southeast part of Scotland . . . the book contains much about the fight in the Catholic church over doctrine and religious rituals during the time period . . . a battle for control between Rome and Ireland, more political than based on faith . . . which saddens me and I am sure many Christians that the teachings of Christ were and are used to personal and political gain . . . one must remember that in AD 664, Catholicism WAS the church, since the Protestant Reformation didn't begin until around 1517 when Martin Luther published his ninety-five theses . . . I had the greatest respect and admiration of Sister Fidelma in the story . . . I think you will, too . . . she's observant, out spoken, and honest . . . not to be outwitted, she is like a hound dog on the trail of his prey . . . yet she has a heart for the gospel . . . great conclusion . . .

Catholic issues

What did you like best about Absolution by Murder? What did you like least?

I found the Irish, Anglo-Saxon, Latin - names, places and language very hard to follow. I even lost track of characters because of the foreign-ness of the text. Reader should know some Catholic and church history before reading.

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

Fair murder investigation. Good inter play between investigators.

Great character development

Tremayne really wowed me with his historical detail. He spent a lot of time developing the characters too. The clues were all there like breadcrumbs and lots of nice, juicy red herrings too.

There's a lot of lip-biting going on

The author overuses one particular phrase. And he's a little overzealous in stating how superior the Irish are compared to the Saxons and Romans; it's not terrible, but slightly ham-fisted. Good story/performance otherwise, though.

Enjoyable historical mystery

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

Yes, I enjoyed this book and it’s well worth a listen. I think that Tremayne is not as skilled as, say, Steven Saylor at being a pure story teller and this book tends to be a bit wooden. But he packs in a lot of historical detail (even if very opinionated detail!).

Would you recommend Absolution by Murder to your friends? Why or why not?

For sure. Although the writing is a bit wooden, I do find that I enjoy the Fidelma stories very much.

Did the narration match the pace of the story?

Yes, I thought that the narrator matched the story quite well.

Did Absolution by Murder inspire you to do anything?

No. Not sure why it would.

Any additional comments?

This was a good listen. I did guess the answer fairly early as I thought there were huge hints not all too well concealed.