The Moneylender of Toulouse

Fools' Guild #7

by Alan Gordon

In 1204 A.D., Theophilos, jester and agent for the Fools’ Guild, is sent to Toulouse with his jester wife, infant daughter and young apprentice with one simple mission – get the current Bishop to quietly retire so that the position can be filled with one more sympathetic to the Guild's goals. Arriving just before Christmas, they quickly learn that the Bishop is in some hot water with a man widely known as the local money lender. A man who, a day after pressing the Bishop particularly hard, is found floating face down in a tanner’s vat.  

 

Now, with time running out for him to accomplish their mission and thus protect the Guild, Theophilos has but one option left: find out what actually happened the night that the Moneylender of Toulouse ended up so spectacularly dead.

Genres: Mystery, Historical Fiction, Fiction, Historical, Historical Mystery, Medieval, Adventure

322 pages, Hardcover

First published May 13, 2008

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Alan Gordon is the author of the Fools' Guild mysteries. His short fiction and essays have appeared in Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine, The Drood Review of Mystery and the Medieval Academy Newsletter. He lives in New York City with his wife, Judy Downer, and son, Robert. By day, he is a lawyer with the Legal Aid Society.

Series:
* Fools' Guild

Reviews

[Spuddie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just cannot praise this wonderful mystery series enough! Usually, when I find a series where I absolutely love the main character and their family/friends, there's a lack somewhere else--the writing is clunky or the plot wanders or the grammar is horrible or something...this series shines on all fronts, and add to that list a sense of immersion in the time and place (Toulouse, France in 1204) and sneaky history lessons--because I always learn something interesting from the series, even though it doesn't feel like I went to school...school was never this much fun!

Theophilos (a fool--aka a jester) and Claudia (his foolish wife) their infant daughter, Portia (a burgeoning fool herself) and their apprentice Helga are sent to Toulouse by the leader of the Fools Guild with a mission--to replace the current Bishop with one of their own. Not long after arriving, however, the plot thickens when one of the city's prestigious moneylenders--who, coincidentally, had a bit of an altercation with the Bishop the previous day--is found dead in a tanning pit, the obvious victim of foul play. This might make the Fools' job easier...or will it?

If you haven't read the Fools Guild series, I implore you--you must! Begin at the beginning (as they say) with Thirteenth Night and make your way through. This is one of the few mystery series that I have collected in hardcover and have on my Keeper shelf to enjoy again and again. There is only one left in the series that I haven't read--I've been rationing them--which makes me sad...but then I can start at the beginning again, so it's not all bad.

[Christopher Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Theophilos, going by Pierre now, is sent to Toulouse to replace the deceased Head Fool for the town. For once, the outgoing head died of old age, but Pierre has a job: depose the sitting Bishop and replace him with a better, more Fool-friendly one. Meanwhile the current Pope still is hostile to the Guild and has banned several Foolish traditions.

Soon the bodies start to pile up as Pierre and his family have stumbled into an ongoing mystery in town and they have to clean up that before they can figure out a way to depose the Bishop... or is he involved?

The overall mystery is very complicated and tangled, with multiple factions struggling for control of the city and its wealth, and many personalities are involved. By this point in the series, Theophilos is very skilled and mature, very capable and in charge. The mystery resolves pretty well although I am still not clear what exactly that book everyone was after really was all about.

[Ali · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great mystery writer who's half comedian and half historian. The series is all about a jester in the 1200s whose guild runs top-secret spy missions in the name of peace. That's right, it's 007 in tights.

[Kanea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great addition to The Fools Guild series! A quicker read I found then the one before it, with interesting new side characters I look forward to seeing more of! Without giving anything away I hope, what's interesting about this one is the sudden feeling that the world around our beloved fools is changing and what that change is we do not yet know? Nor mayhaps how they will adapt to this changing world! All in all im excited to read the next, as this one did not disappoint!

[Red Claire · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another absolute gift from Alan Gordon. Heavy on the political intrigue and exposing a lot of darkness in the human soul, it also counters them with a clear evocation of a time, a place, and human warmth, trust, solidity and family.

[Pat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Worth reading all of this series. Well developed characters, a solid historic backdrop, and entertaining dialog. What's not to like?

[Bob · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun to read. This series has been both entertaining and educational since the stories are drawn from primary sources.

[Mira · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love this series but this one was a tangle I found hard to follow. Looking forward to the next (and last?) but worried the tone is becoming much darker...

[Brad · Rating 5 out of 5]

A brilliant and fun mystery, I enjoyed every page. This was the first read of the series and it will not be my last!

[Dale · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is about the 6th in the jester series by Alan Gordon, and one of the best. In this novel, Theophilus and Claudia are dispatched to Toulouse to depose the local bishop, who has been antithetical to the Fools' Guild. On arrival they find the bishop in a verbal altercation with a local moneylender. The following morning the moneylender is found murdered, face down in a tanner's pit with a hole in his skull.

Theophilus is drawn into the murder investigation by the bishop's assistant, and soon finds himself embroiled in a local power struggle between the Count of Toulouse and a cartel of local merchants.

The series has grown increasingly serious with each novel. In this one we have some faint references to contemporary American politics, in the conflict between justice and financial power. There's nothing overtly allegorical, but just a few faint echoes.

The novel is well-written and thoroughly enjoyable.

[Pat · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am just starting this book, but I know I will love it!

Though I'm not a huge fan of "historical" fiction as a rule, Alan's books take me happily back to medieval times, when the "fools" (aka jesters) did more than just entertain royalty; they had a tight, secret system of obtaining and transferring information about the politics of the times - hoping to keep their world on an even keel, as much as possible.

Alan's descriptions of the peoples, places, lives, loves (and hardships) make that world come alive. And I totally love Theo and his family!

[Pam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Theophilos and his wife Claudia arrive in Toulouse to help change the bishopric to Folc, a monk and former fool. There are two murders, and a book must be found. In the middle of all this, Theophilos has become chief fool of Toulouse and how he makes the established fools accept him is important. This is a marvelous historical mystery set in 1205. The story picks up from where the previous book finishes. The puns between characters are great. I highly recommend this series.

[Debbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although the actual mystery was only so so, the characters, setting and humor were great and I plan to go back and read more of this series. The book is set in early 1200s. Jesters or fools belong to a secret society which tries to keep peace in Christiandom. The main character is funny and irreverent. He and his wife interact like Nick and Nora, but with "Nora" being let in on the goings on.

[Mike · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nothing revolutionary, but again I am impressed by the way that Gordon makes such relatively short novels feel so packed with twists and turns. Here he makes the city of Toulouse as well as its inhabitants come alive as we see Theophilos and his family arrive in town with the goal of deposing the current Bishop in order to replace him with one more sympathetic to their cause.

Murder, conspiracy, wordplay, intrigue, foolishness.

Good stuff, very well written.

[Liesel · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an entertaining book that I realized was the most recent in a series. I think I'll try to go back to the beginning and see if I appreciate this one more. The ending felt a little thrown together to me, but, then, I don't read many mysteries. I did enjoy the plot of jesters being secret agents.

[Momkersch · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gordon's characters are very likable, and he places them in historical settings that interest me. While his novels are touted as being historically accurate, there are quite a few anachronisms. This was the fourth book I read in his series, which shows that they have kept me entertained. They don't need to be read in sequence because he retells pertinent history.

[Patricia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I confess I loved this book (as I have ALL of Alan's to date) and finished it, like, the day after my posting. (Sorry, Alan!) Misplaced my password and totally forgot.

The next book in this delightful (and educational!) series, The Parisian Prodigal (2010), was equally intriguing, funny, smart and poignant. I'd surely love another Fools' Guild mystery! :)

[Jo Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a lot of fun to read (and I needed a fun book after the last couple of books I read.) It's not much of a mystery but the dialogue is very clever. It's part of a series and I want to read more of them.

[Jeanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

God bless whoever left this in the Hotel Chania - this book kept me from going crazy with boredom during a vacation. Quickly paced, smart, and I even learned some things I didn't know about the medieval/renaissance world. Good stuff all around.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great, quick read. Clever, down-to-earth characters, fascinating historical details that don't feel inserted by the author for their own sake, and a suspenseful plot. I will seek out the other "Fools' Guild" books!

[Tim Hicks · Rating 4 out of 5]

What the others said. Good fun, if you ignore the dialogue that's a thousand years out of place (and you should!). Nice integration of some real history.

I'll definitely read the rest of the series now.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good mystery with some historical glimpses into Toulouse in the Middle Ages.

[Susan Baumgartner · Rating 4 out of 5]

My entry into this series. Amusing and entertaining. Dry humor, fun character interactions. I'll come back for more.

[Fuschia · Rating 3 out of 5]

A delightful fun read (even though I accidently read the sequel #8 first).

[Kathy Davie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh man, makes me want to reread the history of Provence and the whole dual popes controversy. Fascinating writer with a very intriguing story.

[HadiDee · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm loving this charming series

[Kayme Henkel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another enjoyable read, really liked the new jester, Palardit and watching the development of Helga.

[Kitty · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a fun piece of alternative history. I expect I'll read the rest of the series. Starting in the middle wasn't intentional, but I think it won't hurt.

[Alison C · Rating 5 out of 5]

Re-read.

[Regine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tricky.