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Magdalene la Batarde, mistress of the Old Priory Guesthouse, a brothel in Southwark, is a tenant of the Bishop of Winchester. Her protector is the Flemish mercenary, Lord William of Ypres. Magdalene and her women have long been William's eyes and ears in their corner of the kingdom. However, Magdalene is as independent a woman as she can be in her era. Although she is allied with William and owes her tenancy to Winchester, she is unmarried (her husband having met an unfortunate end years ago), normally answers to no man and runs her own business. In the spring of 1139, Magdalene is looking for another woman to employ at the Old Priory. One of her ladies, Sabina, has moved on and has been established as the mistress of Mainard, a merchant of the area. Mainard's wife, Bertrild, is a vicious, overbearing woman, who has no friends and more than a few enemies. When she is murdered and her body dumped in Mainard's yard at his shop, Sabina is afraid that Mainard will be accused and she has appealed to Magdalene to help prove his innocence. With the assistance of Sir Bellamy of Itchen, a knight of the Bishop of Winchester, Magdalene considers the evidence. Mainard has given documents into her keeping that he discovered after his wife's brutal murder. With these documents in hand, Magdalene and Sir Bellamy, with their knowledge of the area and its people and their connections succeed in bringing the killer to justice. This is the second in the series of three novels featuring Magdalene, her ladies and Sir Bellamy. The author works many of the actual people of the times and the events surrounding them into her series. They are very readable and interesting books which ring true to the times. Magdalene is an appealing protagonist in an era where women were mostly overlooked and often considered of no consequence and evil. Making her way in a man's world in the only way she can, Magdalene has made herself a success and is beholden to no one. The author states in her notes that she chose this period to write about because it is so exciting and fascinating. The same could be said for her books. Highly recommended!
Reviewed by Lorraine Gelly, September 2002
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Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)
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