Vesuvia Adelia Rachel Ortega Aguilar

Ariana Franklin writes stories about this doctor set in Medieval England during the reign of Henry II. During this time, women who are smarter than men are accused of witchcraft. So Adelia has a dangerous time of it.

Adelia (aka Dr. Trotula) has been trained as a doctor and coroner in Salerno (Sicily). In Mistress of the Art of Death, Henry II sends a request to King William of Sicily asking for his best and brightest Master of the Art of Death as these children are being killed and the Jews are being blamed. He needs someone to examine the bodies and evidence and see if the Jews of Cambridge really are to blame. So it's Medieval CSI with danger, intrigue and mystery. Adelia also must come to terms with the real possibility that the first man to turn her head may also be the murderer.

In The Serpent's Tale is set 18 months after the end of Mistress. Adelia is called on again by Henry to investigate the murder of his mistress Rosemund Clifford. He needs to know if his wife Eleanor is to blame. During this time, Eleanor was attempting a coup through her sons and there was much animosity between King and Queen. So Adelia is again thrust into the midst of a murder mystery but comes even closer to being accused of witchcraft than ever before. And this time, trapped in a Convent with the assassin, she has so much more to lose.

The third book due out in March, Grave Goods, looks to be great as this time she's on trial for witchcraft and the Bishop who's presiding over her trial? None other than the man she's loved for years.

Guess I haven't convinced anyone to start this series. But Grave Goods came out last month and it was awesome. This one was about Arthur and Guineviere and whether bones found in a Glastonbury (Avalon) cemetery belonged to the mythic King and his Queen. It ends in a cliffhanger so now I have to wait who knows how long for book 4.