Verdict of the court

Set in late December 1519, Harrison's subpar 11th Burren mystery (after 2013's The Cross of Vengeance) takes Mara, the brehon (examining magistrate) of the region of Ireland known as the Burren, to Bunratty Castle, which falls within the jurisdiction of her unpopular colleague, Brehon Tomas MacClancy. Mara is looking forward to a week of relaxing during the Christmas season, but she soon has a murder to solve-that of MacClancy, stabbed during a banquet. The knife wound is so shallow that even the local king, Turlough Donn O'Brien, Mara's husband, wonders how it could have been lethal. Whodunit fans will easily guess the explanation. In addition, battle scenes dominate the book's last section and threaten to overwhelm the crime solving. Given the author's strong track record, readers can reasonably hope that she will return to form in the next installment. Agent: Peter Buckman, Ampersand Agency (U.K.). (July) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

The Christmas festivities planned by Mara, a "Brehon" who dispenses justice in 16th-century Ireland, are spoiled by the murder of a fellow judge. Although Mara (Sting of Justice, 2009, etc.) normally works in Burren, Christmas 1519 finds her and her scholars at the Castle of Bunratty at Thomond, the principal seat of her husband, King Turlough Donn OBrien, whos celebrating 20 years of rule. The connubial reunion is welcome, for although the royal couple have been married for 10 years and have a lively young son, they often spend long periods apart. Turlough is a genial man and a good soldier, but his succession is jeopardized by Conor, his oldest son, whos sickly and unlikely to be accepted by his people. Mara quickly realizes that the unpleasant undercurrents shes picked up are connected to Brehon MacClancy, whose statements contain subtle threats against unknown enemies of the king. When MacClancy is discovered dead in a room filled with some of the kings closest friends and several observant children, Mara resolves to find the killer. Brehon law has a set fine for every offense. Even murder is punishable by fines, not physical punishment. Mara has the unpleasant duty of questioning people she knows well. Even one of her former scholars has a motive for killing the unpopular old man. A vicious attack on Mara by an assailant who leaves her for dead makes it clear that the killer will stop at nothing to escape detection. The information on Brehon law that prefaces each chapter adds historical interest to this diverting mystery, even if Mara is no match for Peter Tremaynes seventh-century Brehon Sister Fidelma. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.