The Poisoned Pilgrim, by Oliver Pötzsch (2013)
This is the fourth book in the delightful Hangman's Daughter series, a series of historical fiction/suspense novels following Jakob Kuisl, his daughter, Magdalena and her "bathhouse" doctor, Simon Fronwieser.
The novel is set in 1666 in Bavaria. Magdalena and her husband leave their home town of Schongau to participate in a religious festival and pilgrimage in nearby Andechs. Almost as soon as they arrive in Andechs, two monks are found dead under mysterious circumstances. Simon examines the bodies and discovers that one of the victim's, who ostensibly drown, was probably a victim of murder. When Jokob learns that his old friend, Brother Johannes is arrested, joins his daughter to investigate the events occurring in the pilgrimage town.
Two of the monks are experimenting with the phenomenon of lightening and electricity, while the rest of the town considers this witchcraft. There are several plot threads in this novel, which make for a very suspenseful and exciting mystery.
From the first book in the series, The Hangman's Daughter, we learned that hangmen and their families are disrespected. The hangmen, however, are also learned men in medicines, so are a necessary component of the medieval villages.
The author is from the Bavaria and there was a hangman in his family's history. This makes the novel really come alive.
5 Stars
This is the fourth book in the Hangman's Daughter series.
Read: December 28, 2017
5 Stars
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