Girl In A Red Tunic

Hawkenlye Mysteries #8

by Alys Clare, Elizabeth Harris

With Richard the Lionheart still being held hostage after his crusade, his people have been made paupers paying his ransom. The Abbess Helewise is struggling to keep her abbey going through a cold, brutal winter as she fends off starvation of her nuns and the local people. Then her son returns to her in desperate need of help after a seperation of nearly twenty years. He claims his wife is suffering mental torments and his son is mute. But when a man is found strangled, dangling from a tree near the abbey, her son and his family flee the very next day. Helewise and a local Knight, Josse d' Acquin, must investigate deep into the past to the time before Helewise took the veil. Were her handsome husband and enigmatic father-in-law all that they seemed? And can she prevent another terrible murder or will the sins of the fathers be laid upon her innocent son?

Genres: Mystery, Historical Fiction, Medieval, Fiction, Historical Mystery, Historical, British Literature

304 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

Alys Clare is the pen name used by Elizabeth Harris for the Hawkenlye series of historical mysteries.

Alys Clare is the pseudonym of a novelist with some 20 published works to her name. Brought up in the countryside close to where the Hawkenlye Novels are set, she went to school in Tonbridge and later studied archaeology at the University of Kent. She lives for part of the year in Brittany, in a remote cottage deep in an ancient landscape where many past inhabitants have left their mark; on her doorstep are relics that date from the stone circles and dolmens of the Neolithic to the commanderies, chapels and ancient tracks of those infamous warrior monks, the Knights Templar. In England, Alys's study overlooks a stretch of parkland which includes a valley with a little spring. The waters of this spring are similar in colour and taste to Tunbridge Wells's famous Chalybeat Spring, and it was this that prompted Alys's setting of her fictional Hawkenlye Abbey in the very spot where her own house now stands.

Reviews

[Ingrid · Rating 4 out of 5]

More of Helewise's past is reveiled. Slightly less interesting that the ones before, but still fun enough to read on.

[LJ · Rating 3 out of 5]

First Sentence: He had to wait until it was dark and everyone was asleep.

Abbess Helewise has been thinking about her life prior to joining the Abbey. She is surprised, yet concerned, when her son Loefgar, shows up with his wife, who looks pale and ill, and their 14-month son, who is unnaturally shy and won’t speak. It is a relief to have her good friend, Josse d’Acquin, who had come to the Abbey ill but is recovered, on hand.

When a man, who claims his brother was killed by Leofger in a dispute, is found hanged near the Abbey, Loefgar, and his family, disappear. Helewise fears for her son, and questions how events from the past are impact the present.

The most important element of a book, to me, is the characters. It has always been the characters which have drawn me to this series.

We learn much more about Helewise than in previous books. These were times when an Abbess needn’t have been a nun, so it’s nice to see her as a woman, learn about her past, and how she came to Hawkenlye Abbey. As always, we see the strength of the friendship between Helewise and Josse.

Not only Helewise and Josse, but all the supporting characters come to life under Ms. Clare’s hand, even the ones you don’t trust. I do appreciate that we’ve see a transition in characters, since the beginning of the series. People come and go in life ad Clare handles it in a way which works.

In most of the previous books, there has been a strong element of the metaphysical. I am one who, if done well, enjoys that. It is an element of this book as well, and it works. These were times when, even with the dominance of the Catholic Church, people, including the clergy, were highly superstitious and believed the ancient powers and abilities. Although it is quite clear that Ms. Clare is no fan of the Church, I would suspect any book set in this time, which did not include some reference to the metaphysical.

Which leads to the third thing: I love English history. Not only did Ms. Clare include a map and genealogical chart at the beginning of the book, she clearly does her period research. Early in the story, Clare talks about King Henry being captured for ransom and the impact the levies was having on the lives of the people. She paints a vivid picture of people’s lives, including the hunger and cold due to lack of money.

A slight misstep is in the plotting. I did figure out the motive and villain before the end, which reduced my rating, but it didn’t spoil the read for me. In fact, I was so drawn into the book, I never wanted to put it down, and found the ending quite sad, but rather lovely.

I look forward to continuing with this series.

GIRL IN A RED TUNIC (Hist Mys-Abbess Helewise/Josse d’Acquin-England-Middle Ages/1193) – G+
Clare, Alys – 8th in series
Hodder & Stoughton, ©2005, UK Hardcover – ISBN: 0340831138

[Natalie aka Tannat · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars

[Kelly Callaghan · Rating 4 out of 5]

The girl in the red tunic was Helewise on her wedding day. Events from that time have long reaching impacts and Helewise’s family is in danger. With Josse’s help the problems are sorted.

[Spuddie · Rating 4 out of 5]

#8 Hawkenlye Abbey mystery set in 1190's Kent, England featuring Abbess Helewise and Sir Josse d'Acquin, knight of King Richard. The whole country of England seems to be poor and hungry as people give and give to attempt to ransom their captured King Richard. Even staunch supporters such as Sir Josse and the Abbess are much less enthusiastic than they once were, especially the Abbess as her giving and giving makes it harder to feed and help those who are hungry and in need.

Abbess Helewise gets a visit from her past when her Leofgar, her eldest son (she was a widow when she entered the nunnery and had fostered her two young sons out) whom she's not seen since he was a child, comes calling at Hawkenlye. His wife is ill, seemingly in the midst of a post-partum depression, and his fourteen-month-old son has developed fears and terrors and refuses to speak. Professing to want them under the care of the Abbey's well-known healer, Leofgar spends some time with his mother and Sir Josse, who happened to be there himself with a bit of a fever and cough. Soon it becomes apparent that the young family is on the run from something or someone--but what, or whom? When a man is found hung from a tree a short distance from the Abbey, Leofgar and his family disappear in the night, and the Abbess and Sir Josse set out to discover the mystery, and of course eventually do.

I enjoyed this book more than the last one in the series, which seemed a little long-winded and unfocused. This one had me wanting to eagerly read on, and getting to know a bit more about Abbess Helewise's past was interesting, too, although much of the contents of her dreams and memories were rather, shall we say, unseemly for a nun! I'm by no means a prude, but nun + romance just doesn't add up to anything I really want to read, and I do hope THAT trend doesn't continue, but I am still looking forward to the next.

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

Abbess Helewise’s son Leofgar along with his wife Rohaise and son Timus show up at Hawkenlye seeking shelter. Timus is mute and Rohaise fears that Timus will be taken from her. The story unfolds that their priest suggested Timus was a changeling and was going to take him away until the spell could be broken. Josse visits the Abbey at about the same time and he succeeds in getting Timus to laugh. Bit by bit the rest of the story of their being there comes out, but just as it seems they’re all recovering, Leofgar takes his family and flees in the night. Why? Where did they go? Josse and the Abbess seek to find out.
Although I've enjoyed all the books in this series, I enjoyed this one especially. I think it's because it gives a deeper look into Helewise and her life prior to becoming a nun.

[Ksenija · Rating 2 out of 5]

A very weak plot stretched out beyond limits. I guessed the culprit around page 80. On the other side, story telling is quite vivid and that is the only reason why I reached the end of the book. I found it hard to get accustomed to the overly artificial language and florid expressions of the simplest things. This however, improves where the story gets more intense. However, if you are curious about the medieval fiction suspense novels, I suggest to start with Elis Peters's adventures of brother Cadfael. They are far more amusing.

[Lynne Tull · Rating 2 out of 5]

This story left me cold. I didn't like the flashback to Helewise's life before the Abbey. It seemed to be added to appease the readers that want a little spice in the stories. I think that was not necessary. There has always been an under current of some chemistry between Josse and Helewise. The mystery and its solution seemed to jump from supposition to supposition. Still recommending.

[William · Rating 2 out of 5]

I loved the first seven Hawkenlye books, but I could barely finish this one. It took half the book before I even started to care about what was going to happen and even then, it never really grabbd me like the previous books.

[Jan Lynch · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is my first Hawkenlye Mystery, so I'm reading the series out of order. Given that I've been enjoying mysteries lately, the prospect of "medieval crime fiction" felt like another fun form of escapism. The medieval setting is nicely drawn though characters feel a bit like modern men and women playing medieval dress-up. The story itself moves fast, but perhaps offers a bit too much explanation and resolution for my tastes. Still, I liked the mystery well enough to read more of Alys Clare's writing. The story moves quickly, the characters are mildly entertaining, and--for those who like this--there is plenty of steam for a series that centers around a nun.

[Jazzysmum · Rating 3 out of 5]

We have already had a look at Sir Josse's back story in this series- "The Faithful Dead".
In this one it was the turn of Abbess Helewise to dream and remember her life before she took the veil and came to the Abbey.
We get to meet he eldest son Leofgar who has troubles linked to Helewise's time as a wife and a mother.
I found some parts of this book a little annoying, and had mixed feelings about some of Helewise's decisions - she followed the trend of the times and as a very young widow made the best choice for her family.

Old sins certainly did come back to roost and the drama of the book showed this.

I did enjoy this even though some characters annoyed.

[Ruhani · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first Hawkenlye mystery. I was away at a conference and found this book in the hotel library. I didn't think I would be able to finish it before I had to leave since my schedule was so tight but I did finish it! And was totally charmed by the mystery.

[Mary Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book focuses on the early years of Helewise. Great story. Looking forward to next one.

[Joan Elizabeth Greenop · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent read

Couldn't wait to get settled down and read what happened next. So we'll written you feel your there with them.

[Phillipa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Found this surprisingly enjoyable. Thanks for the recommendation, sis.

[Heather McCloud · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one was very sad--but I always enjoy the mystical and pagan elements!!

[Joan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great story with a twist at the rather sad ending.

[Eileen Lynx · Rating 5 out of 5]

An interesting story. Tells the history of Helewise.

[Ruth · Rating 2 out of 5]

c2005. Another enjoyable read from Ms Clare. Especially after a run of some either intense or intensively awful books. A beginning, a middle and an end! Phew - at least there are some authors that still do this. This book manages to add yet another dimension to Abbess Helewise and her relationship with Josse. I would not describe this as the most fiendish plot ever - despite the blurb on the back focussing on the flesh eating pigs! "And, with the removal of the dark lens imposed by the long burden of her guilt, at last she was able to see her own past through open, honest eyes."

[Carole Moran · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting, but not gripping, at least to me. From the Hawkenlye Mysteries, this book focuses more on Abbess Helewise's life before coming to the nunnery and less on the mystery, which is somewhat predictable. In spite of that, the Hawkenlye series is very readable. This one takes place in England in 1193.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

An absolutely wonderful book in a rather unfortunately inconsistent series. Well written with marvelous characters and a compelling mystery set in both the time of Abbess Helewise's youth and marriage before she comes to Hawkenlye and the current day, blending both seamlessly.

[Jeannen · Rating 3 out of 5]

7th or 8th in the series that I discovered summer of 2006. There have been a couple in the series that I couldn’t get into, but this one has a good tight story.

[Ma'lis Wendt · Rating 4 out of 5]

The more Hawkenlye mysteries I read, the better I like the series.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was kindly sent by Gundula. Even if I'm not reading this series in any particular order, I'm enjoying quite a lot the stories with Abbess Helewise.

[Marg Corjay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting historical mystery series

[Alissa McCarthy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a new spin on the series. Further insight into the Abbess' life prior to entering the abbey. A lovely, easy read.

[ricky]

Very enjoyable

A good solid historical crime mystery following in the footsteps of Ellis Peters. A very likeable collection of characters and full of atmosphere.