The Saracen's Mark
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- $12.99
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
1593: five years on from the Armada and England is taking its first faltering steps towards a future as a global power. On an undercover mission to find out the fate of one of the queen's informers, physician and reluctant spy, Nicholas Shelby, travels from the dark alleys of London to the dazzling Moor city of Marrakech. Meanwhile in London, Shelby's companion, Bianca Merton, must fight against the ravaging plague that is stalking the city. Can their budding relationship weather the threats of pestilence and conspiracy? And will Nicholas survive his mission and the unpredictability of Marrakesh to return home? A brilliantly realized, utterly compelling historical mystery that will take you to far-flung destinations and into the very heart of a deadly conspiracy.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
It's 1593 in Perry's superior third mystery featuring London physician Nicholas Shelby (after 2019's The Serpent's Mark), and Sir Robert Cecil, of Queen Elizabeth's Privy Council, asks Shelby to look into the fate of his spy, trader Adolfo Sykes, in Morocco. Until suddenly going silent, Sykes was sending Cecil regular reports about Spanish machinations in that country, a vital source of the saltpeter England needs for its cannons. Shelby demurs until Cecil threatens the livelihood of apothecary Bianca Merton, Shelby's love-interest, if the medico doesn't accept the assignment. The reader already knows that Sykes has been killed, but Perry maintains suspense about the motive by linking the killer's m.o. with that used by someone who struck in London at one of Shelby's friends. The intrigue occurs against the looming threat of the plague, which casts a pall on the survival of those Shelby leaves behind in England. Perry's diligent research makes the period detail convincing. Fans of S.J. Parris and C.J. Sansom will be pleased.
