A Shrine of Murders

New York: St. Martin's Press, 1993. BH4 - A first edition (stated with complete numberline) hardcover book in very good condition in very good dust jacket. Dust jacket has some wrinkling and chipping on the edges and corners, dust jacket and book have some bumped corners, light discoloration and shelf wear. Although not marked in any way, this copy comes from the personal collection of Otto Penzler, legendary editor and founder of the Mysterious Press, an award-winning icon in the genre. Being the First of the Canterbury Tales of Kathryn Swinbrooke, Leech and Physician. 8.5"x5.5", 195 pages. Satisfaction Guaranteed. Geoffrey Chaucer's Canterbury Tales forms the backdrop for this ingenious novel, the first in a series of medieval mysteries introducing a unique character: Kathryn Swinbrooke, a physician and chemist practicing in fifteenth-century Canterbury, site of the cathedral and the relics that draw pilgrims from across England and Europe. C.L. Grace has based this character on the interesting fact that women doctors played vital roles in English medieval medicine, only to be excluded from the profession in subsequent centuries. A Shrine of Murders revolves around a series of terrible deaths that paralyzes Canterbury and threatens the holy shrine. The deaths are announced by bits of doggerel - short poems that may contain clues to the murderer's identity - pinned to the great cathedral door. Kathryn, a physician with an independent reputation in local affairs, is asked by town officials to investigate, since the murder victims have been poisoned, and a chemist's expertise is needed. Kathryn is joined by Colum Murtagh, a rough-mannered Irish soldier for the crown. Where Kathryn is skillful, Colum blunders; but Colum is able to open doors that a woman cannot enter. Working together, the two struggle to find a murderer whose tastes are literary, but whose motives are deeply personal.. First Edition. Hardcover. Very Good/Very Good. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall.