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| Plot Summary of Bone of Contention |
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"
Forge, Sept 2002, 25.95, 431 pp.
ISBN 0765300192
Once she was a wife to a minor lord and mistress of her own manor until her husband, in a fit of jealousy, tried to kill her and she defended herself by killing him first. She ran away and thanks to her beauty became a courtesan but even then two men were killed because of her beauty. Now, Magdalene la Batarde is determined to be her own woman. She is the whore mistress of the Old Priory Guesthouse and her patron is William of Ypres, King Stephen's chief enforcer.
William asks Magdalene to meet him in Oxford where the king is conducting a council. He needs a place to go where he can hold meetings that will be kept secret and nobody can arrange things like that better than Magdalene. She is accompanied by her lover Sir Bellamy, the Bishop of Winchester's chief knight and together they find a place to serve William's need as well as their own. While in Oxford, a series of murders occur and to protect William's interests (and her own sense of justice) Magdalene conducts an investigation in hopes of flushing out a murderer.
She is the grand mistress of medieval works of fiction and her series of medieval mysteries are some of the best ever written. One gets a sense of the era as well as learning how the different classes acted and thought. Although this is a work of fiction, the historical events are very true and make for a fascinating reading experiences. BONE OF CONTENTION will be sought after by Hope who like the Brother Cadfael mysteries and those written by Peter Tremayne.
Harriet Klausner
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Harriet Klausner, Resident Scholar
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| Review Analysis of Bone of Contention |
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Our unique search engine provides a wealth of detail about books by breaking them down into many different literary elements, all of which are searchable (click here).
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Composition of Book
descript. of violence and chases - 10%
Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 50%
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 30%
How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 10%
Tone of story
- suspenseful (sophisticated fear)
How difficult to spot villain?
- Very difficult--no foreshadowing/clues
Time/era of story:
- middle ages
What % of story relates directly
to the mystery, not the subplot?
- 60%
Special suspect?
- best friend
Kind of investigator
- amateur citizen investigator
Kid or adult book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
Any non-mystery subplot?
- life in that culture
Crime Thriller
Yes
Murder Mystery (killer unknown)
Yes
Main Character
Gender
- Female
Profession/status:
- prostitute
Age:
- 20's-30's
How much violence does he/she use?
- a little
Ethnicity/Race
- British
How sensitive is this character?
- sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Strong but gentle sense of humor
Intelligence
- Very much smarter than other characters
Physique
- very athletic
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Male
Age:
- 20's-30's
Profession/status:
- Prince/Nobleman/King
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- a little/some
Motive of antagonist
- revenge
How sensitive is this character?
- hard edged
Sense of humor
- Cynical sense of humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- very athletic
Setting
Europe
Yes
European country:
- England/UK
Style
Person
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
How many deaths?
- 3-4
Amount of dialog
- significantly more dialog than descript
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Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s). | |
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