S. J. Parris

“A time when the life of a philosopher was as fraught with danger as a soldier’s in battle”. This here is my quick review of Heresy by Mrs. Parris, a historical novel whose protagonist is none other than Giordano Bruno. The novel is set mostly in England - Bruno’s early life as a Dominican friar and escape from Italy to England gets short shrift - at the university of Oxford where he gets involved in a rather intriguing murder mystery. The plot is well thought out, the characters, and events are believable. What’s more, if you aren’t too familiar with the life and times of Giordano Bruno, the novel educates.
Even better, if you like Giordano in the Sherlockian mode, this is just the first in a trilogy. So, there are plenty more detective mysteries to enjoy.… (meer)

Bruno is assigned by Walsingham to infiltrate the Babington plot to assassinate Queen Elizabeth and put Mary Queen of Scots on the throne.

It's been a while since i read the previous one in the main series of these books (2016!) so I struggled a bit with all the back references in the first 1/3 or so of this one. The story had some exciting moments but also some parts where I thought the author was trying too hard to find contemporary resonances - to the point where I was thinking Bruno couldn't have said that.… (meer)