The new historical mystery series you need to get your hands on! Perfect for fans of Andrew Taylor, C J Sansom, S J Parris and Ken Follett.
Three missing girls. Only one body. Where are the others?
1671, Delft
Three young girls have been abducted from their homes.
The body of one has been found in a shallow grave. The other two are still missing.
The murder has shocked everyone is the … missing.
The murder has shocked everyone is the peaceful city of Delft and the mayor is desperate to catch the perpetrator before panic can spread any further.
With the bitterly cold January weather intensifying it is doubtful that the other two girls are still alive.
But whoever took them is still at large.
The mayor requests the help of Master Mercurius, a gifted cleric from a nearby university, and local artist Vermeer, who uses his skills to sketch the crime scenes.
Can they find the missing girls before it’s too late? Will Mercurius be able to track down the killer?
Or will more victims succumb to Death in Delft…?
Death in Delft is the first historical murder investigation in the Master Mercurius Mystery series: atmospheric crime thrillers set in seventeenth-century Europe.
THE MASTER MERCURIUS MYSTERY SERIES:
BOOK ONE: Death in Delft
BOOK TWO: Untrue Till Death
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Thanks to Sapere Books for an ebook ARC. This period piece, set in the Dutch Golden Age, was wonderful from beginning to end. A very enjoyable, quick read. With a memorable MC, great descriptions of Delft, and the interesting minor characters, I was very pleased with this novel, and am anticipating the 2nd book. Master Mercurius is such a good character. Recommended.
#DeathinDelft #NetGalley
‘Death in Delft’ was the first I’d read of Graham Brack’s series about Master Mercurius, a 17thC philosopher sent from Leiden to solve a murder involving the artist Vermeer. I was captured at once by his self-deprecating humour, and his fear of being unmasked, not just as a fraud, but as a Roman Catholic priest masquerading as a Nonconformist. A light-hearted, page-turning read for anyone who enjoys an historical murder mystery!
Master Mercurius, a University professor, minister, and priest, is sent from Leiden to Delft to discover who has murdered three eight year old girls. One great thing about this book is the logical reasoning Mercurius uses as he sifts clues and makes connections. Another is that the artist Vermeer is one of the important characters in this novel of seventeenth century mystery, and we learn about him as a man, an artist, and a father. Van Leewenhoek, a scientist who specialized in magnifying glasses and was among the first to identify microbes, plays an equally important role. Finally, the story contains Mercurius’ musings on several universal ethical and moral questions, which mad for a deeper reading experience. Written as a journal, looking back to his first investigation, Mercurius is a careful and detailed narrator.
1671, Delft & thee young girls have been abducted from their homes. The body of one has been found in a shallow grave. The other two are still missing. The murder has shocked everyone is the peaceful city of Delft and the mayor is desperate to catch the perpetrator before panic can spread any further. With the bitterly cold January weather intensifying it is doubtful that the other two girls are still alive. The mayor requests the help of Master Mercurius, a gifted cleric from a nearby university, and local artist Vermeer, who uses his skills to sketch the crime scenes.
I’ve loved the author’s Josef Slonský’s so was excited to read the first in a new series & I wasn’t disappointed. Another well written page turning read. The characters have depth & are well portrayed. The mystery held my interest from start to finish. I liked Mercurius especially his sense of humour. I also liked that it was Vermeer who finds the connection with that helps solve the case. The book also gave an insight as to life in Delft in the seventeenth century. I look forward to more in the series
My honest review is for a special copy I voluntarily read
Can’t go wrong reading this book if you like history with mystery and wonderful characters
Well-written story about a collaboration of great minds in 1600s Delft, and an accurate portrayal of life in Europe’s only major republic at that time.
Very enjoyable read. I really loved the Dutch humor throughout, being self-deprecating, sarcastic and incisive, at times laugh-out-loud, for this Dutch reader missing my culture. The mystery, set in 17th Century Netherlands, is historically informative, culturally intriguing and written in a fast-paced style such that the book is quickly read and fulfilling. My second book by Mr. Brack and I look forward to his next one, already ordered in advance of publication!
Great historical novel!
good historical mystery
Working in The Netherlands for 23 year, (I taught children of the military}, I enjoyed the local in which the story took place. the lead character was believable and consistent. The book would have profited from tighter editing.
An extremely good historical whodunit! Not yet up to Ellis Peters and Brother Cadfael BUT will probably reach that level after one or two more books.
Well researched and worked those historical details in quite well.
Recommended to historical fiction buffs.
Interesting twists with characters. Set in 1600s Holland and describes life styles at that time. The artist, Vermeer, is one of the characters but is just an average resident who happens to draw and paint.
I enjoyed the characters and thought it was well written
loved the locale and time frame also the characters were very interesting and unusual. A murder mystery with twists.
I struggled between a 3-star and 4-star rating for this and decided to go with 4 stars for Master Mercurius’s wit. e.g.
“I once went to France and everywhere else has seemed so much better since then.”
The story was engaging and the storyline twists were believable. There is a fair amount of theological material in the story but with Mercurius being both a Catholic priest and a Protestant minister, his wrestling with the conflicting dogmas made for a much more likable character. The clues that lead to solving the “crime” are slowly pieced together.
I liked this well enough that the 2nd book in the series is in my TBR (To Be Read) pile.
Wonderful history with clever & effective connection of Vermeer and his family.
This novel fits in well with the books I have read recently on the Reformation.
I am a big fan of “cozy” mysteries and have particularly enjoyed those that are set in the far past, such as the Brother Cadfael series. This book is set in the 1600s in Holland and has an interesting solution. I have already pre-ordered the next bok in this series.
Fans of CJ Sansom will enjoy Graham Brack’s Death in Delft. This historical murder mystery is an interesting read with great characters. Master Mercurius, a Leiden University academic, will have to be quite vigilant to investigate the kidnapping of three young girls. Upon his arrival in Delft, one child will have been found dead, two are still missing. This was an interesting, enjoyable thriller. The fact that Brack has done his research on the Dutch Golden Age helps it along quite a bit. His descriptive prose enables us to imagine life in Delft in 1671. Well worth the read.
This was a well written mystery. I did think it was a bit wordy at times and kinda felt a bit stiff. The mystery had a bit of a twist at the end. I enjoyed the story. Thanks to Sapere for the copy