Sacrilege

Starred review from February 13, 2012
Set in 1584 England, this terrific third novel featuring Italian philosopher and intelligence agent Giordano Bruno (after 2011’s Prophecy) reinforces Parris’s position at the top of the Elizabethan historical pack. Rumors that a recently docked ship in the Thames carries the plague have thrown London into a panic, but Bruno has a murder case to deal with. Sophia Underhill, a former love interest of Bruno’s, has fled Canterbury, where her brutish husband, Sir Edward Kingsley, was bludgeoned to death in a manner curiously reminiscent of Thomas Becket’s killing. Since Sophia stood to gain financially from her husband’s demise and bloodstained women’s gloves were found near Kingsley’s body, she fears she’ll be burned for the crime. When Bruno gives in to her entreaties to clear her name, Bruno’s English spymaster, the real-life Sir Francis Walsingham, reluctantly allows his valued operative to journey to Canterbury. Parris creates some genuine chills in scenes set in spooky crypts, and masterfully mixes political intrigue, action, and sleuthing. Agent: Jennifer Joel, ICM.