Monday, March 7, 2011

A Trail of Ink ~ Book Review

About the Book:

An excellent medieval whodunit by the author of The Unquiet Bones and A Corpse at St Andrew's Chapel.

Some valuable books have been stolen from Master John Wyclif, the well-known scholar and Bible translator. He calls upon his friend and former pupil, Hugh de Singleton, to investigate. Hugh's investigation leads him to Oxford where he again encounters Kate, the only woman who has tempted him to leave bachelor life behind, but Kate has another serious suitor. As Hugh's pursuit of Kate becomes more successful, mysterious accidents begin to occur. Are these accidents tied to the missing books, or to his pursuit of Kate?


One of the stolen books turns up alongside the drowned body of a poor Oxford scholar. Another accident? Hugh certainly doesn’t t think so, but it will take all of his surgeon s skills to prove.


So begins another delightful and intriguing tale from the life of Hugh de Singleton, surgeon in the medieval village of Bampton. Masterfully researched by medieval scholar Mel Starr, the setting of the novel can be visited and recognized in modern-day England. Enjoy more of Hugh s dry wit, romantic interests, evolving faith, and dogged determination as he pursues his third case as bailiff of Bampton.


My Thoughts:


This was a change a pace for me, what a fun historical fiction story of murder and mystery with a touch of romance. I usually don’t like to read books out of order of what they were written, as this book was the third chronicle of the Hugh de Singleton series, by Mel Starr. I thought that I might feel completely lost, but I didn’t feel lost at all, and I totally enjoyed how the story played out. Now I really want to read the other two books, The Unquiet Bones, and A Corpse at St. Andrew’s Chapel. I also liked that Mel included a map and a glossary of terms in the front of the book, of word that were used within the story that are not normally used today. This was an enjoyable quick read that I would suggest to many; I really think this is a book that guys and girls alike. Overall this book has very clean language, and although a murder mystery it is not gruesome at all, so it would even be a good book for tweens on up.


Want to buy it yourself you can get it here from Amazon.com.
 Want to read what others are saying about the book, check out the blog tour here.
 About the Author:


Mel Starr was born and grew up in Kalamazoo, Michigan. After graduating with a MA in history from Western Michigan University in 1970, he taught history in Michigan public schools for thirty-nine years, thirty-five of those in Portage, MI, where he retired in 2003 as chairman of the social studies department of Portage Northern High School. Mel and his wife, Susan, have two daughters and seven grandchildren. http://www.melstarr.org/


A Contest to Enter:


Kregel Publishers is graciously donating a $50 Amazon.com gift card for the Litfuse Blog Tour Contest! Woo-hoo (thanks Kregel!) All you have to do to enter is either tweet (see TWEET THIS below) or share the book on Facebook using this link: http://www.amazon.com/Trail-Ink-Chronicle-Singleton-Surgeon/dp/1854249746/ref=sprightly-20


TWEET THIS: A Trail of Ink by Mel Star. An excellent medieval whodunit. RT for a chance to win a $50 GC to @amazon! http://ow.ly/45c2k #litfuse

(and be sure to use the hashtag #litfuse to be entered into Amazon.com gift certificate drawing and no need to email that you tweeted - we'll be able to track it via the hashtag.)

FACEBOOK THIS: A Trail of Ink by Mel Star. An excellent medieval whodunit. Share on your wall for a chance to win a $50 GC to @amazon! http://ow.ly/45c2k

(email info@litfusegroup.com to let us know you 'shared', and add your link.)


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*Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Litfuse Publicity group’s blog for books program in exchange for a review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

1 comment:

  1. I really enjoyed this book too. Can't wait to get my hands on his other books. :O)

    ReplyDelete

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