Scan barcode
dwarvenwarden's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
3.75
Having this read to me by Odo (from Star Trek Deep Space 9 fame) was quite the treat.
marcyb100's review
4.0
A very interesting book covering both the political intrigue of France under Charles VI and details of detective work at the time. At times, it was a little hard to keep track of what was going on, but overall, it was a fascinating look at the time.
jobustitch's review
3.0
Interesting story, but I think this book is more history than true crime detection.
cemoses's review against another edition
3.0
The book is not bad; it is just terribly miscast as an historical detective story rather than a story about a political assassination and its consequences.
For me the book did not work as a mystery-and I like historical mystery and crime both true and fiction. The author did not persuade me that Guillaume de Tignonville who is the "detective" in this book did anything unique for his era in trying to pursue the people who committed the assassination. For it to be a true crime book I would have wanted more information on how murder was handled in that time period and what Guillaume de Tignonville did that was different. Also I felt I did not get sufficient information on the crimes of the two people who claimed they were clerics whom Guillaume de Tignonville executed (a previous set of crimes in which the book's "detective" handled). In addition, I did not like the fact that in the book first Mr. Jager describes the crime and who saw the crime and then writes about the depositions of the people who saw the crime occur. It is repetitive. How the crime happened and the witnesses to the crime saw should be written about only once.
However, I did like a lot of the history in the book. I think the book better would have been described as "Assassination and its Effects". The book had good descriptions of Paris; at times I felt I was there. I was intrigued that the French nobles let a King whom everyone seemed to think was insane for much of the time rule France. Much of the history both the civil war in France and the wars between the French and English was interesting.
In short I thought the book did provider some interesting history but it was not good as a mystery or detective story.
For me the book did not work as a mystery-and I like historical mystery and crime both true and fiction. The author did not persuade me that Guillaume de Tignonville who is the "detective" in this book did anything unique for his era in trying to pursue the people who committed the assassination. For it to be a true crime book I would have wanted more information on how murder was handled in that time period and what Guillaume de Tignonville did that was different. Also I felt I did not get sufficient information on the crimes of the two people who claimed they were clerics whom Guillaume de Tignonville executed (a previous set of crimes in which the book's "detective" handled). In addition, I did not like the fact that in the book first Mr. Jager describes the crime and who saw the crime and then writes about the depositions of the people who saw the crime occur. It is repetitive. How the crime happened and the witnesses to the crime saw should be written about only once.
However, I did like a lot of the history in the book. I think the book better would have been described as "Assassination and its Effects". The book had good descriptions of Paris; at times I felt I was there. I was intrigued that the French nobles let a King whom everyone seemed to think was insane for much of the time rule France. Much of the history both the civil war in France and the wars between the French and English was interesting.
In short I thought the book did provider some interesting history but it was not good as a mystery or detective story.
erboe501's review
4.0
For a history book, this was a very easy read; I had no trouble following the chain of events or characters. Besides learning about the murder and investigation central to the story, I learned a lot of extraneous but interesting details about life in the 15th century, such as how criminals were hanged at a gibbet that could hold 60 bodies at a time or how it was customary for Parisians of all classes to sleep naked. I'm in awe that this document remained in tact over 600 years so that it could be retold with such detail today. It's magical to have captured the voices of so many normal, otherwise forgotten Parisians of the time. I was honestly a little surprised at how quickly the murderer was discovered. This book is about more than just the investigation, it's about the catastrophic repercussions of Louis's death. I got a little more detail on the physical layout of Paris and its streets than I wanted, but other than that, a quick and fascinating read. Also, it made me very glad that I didn't live in 15th century Paris, or England for that matter.
anitaw16's review
3.0
The book was fascinating and informative but, as other readers have pointed out, the subtitle is misleading; the killer is revealed in the first half of the book and the methods used to discover his identity are not exactly groundbreaking. The second half of the book deals with the violent unrest (including war with England) resulting from the murder. The author does an excellent job of illustrating the commonplace barbarity, both sanctioned and unsanctioned, of this time period.
mwgerard's review
4.0
Centered around the brutal and shocking assassination of the Duke of Orleans, brother to the King of France.Returned home one night, he was set upon by a gang of mounted ruffians who bashed in his skull and left him for dead on the cobblestone street of Rue Vieille du Temple.
Jager’s retelling of the incident leads with an introduction of the Guillaume de Tigonville, “provost of Paris — the city’s chief of police. Knight, diplomat man of letters, and man of law, her was also very likely one of history’s first detectives”. Jager also gives the reader plenty of setting and background — even some illustrations — on medieval Paris, of France, and of European politics. He describes the complicated royal hierarchy and court system, tensions with England, and daily life in Paris.
Please support independent reviewers and read my full post here:
http://mwgerard.com/review-blood-royal-by-eric-jager/
Jager’s retelling of the incident leads with an introduction of the Guillaume de Tigonville, “provost of Paris — the city’s chief of police. Knight, diplomat man of letters, and man of law, her was also very likely one of history’s first detectives”. Jager also gives the reader plenty of setting and background — even some illustrations — on medieval Paris, of France, and of European politics. He describes the complicated royal hierarchy and court system, tensions with England, and daily life in Paris.
Please support independent reviewers and read my full post here:
http://mwgerard.com/review-blood-royal-by-eric-jager/