Posts by Vicki J Kondelik

A beautifully-written historical novel, with some fantasy elements, about a young man, born in the bell tower of a Swiss mountain village in the eighteenth century, who grows up with a beautiful singing voice and an extraordinary sense of hearing. He falls in love with a young woman from a wealthy family, but he has a secret he keeps from the woman he loves.

In the first of a new mystery series set in ancient Rome, Flavia Albia, adopted daughter of author Lindsey Davis' popular series detective Marcus Didius Falco, investigates a series of random poisonings.

The Witch Hunter's Tale is the third in a mystery series featuring midwife Bridget Hodgson in York, England, during the English Civil War of the 1640s. A bitterly cold winter is blamed on witches. Will Bridget be able to stop the witch hunt before she, or someone close to her, is accused of witchcraft?

In Shroud for a Nightingale, by the late P.D. James, one of the greatest mystery authors of all time, detective Adam Dalgliesh investigates the murders of two student nurses.

Author Lindsey Davis, best known for her Marcus Didius Falco mysteries, tells a compelling love story set in ancient Rome, from a slave's point of view.

A Demon Summer is the fourth in a series of mysteries featuring Max Tudor, a former MI5 agent turned Anglican priest. Unlike the others in the series, which are set in a tiny English village, this one takes place in a convent.

This short novel consists entirely of a monologue by a librarian in a small town in France. She speaks about the role of the library in society, her love life or lack thereof, her snobbish colleagues, her reflections on French history, and the deficiencies of the Dewey Decimal system.

The Guest Cat by Takashi Hiraide is a beautifully written short novel about a couple living in a quiet neighborhood in Tokyo, who come to love the neighbors' cat, who visits them every day. Through their love for the cat, they come to love each other better as well.

Ariel by André Maurois is a fictionalized biography of poet Percy Bysshe Shelley, focusing on his romance with his second wife, Mary Shelley, who became the author of Frankenstein.

The Scarlet City is a fascinating novel about a young man's quest for his parentage in 16th century Rome.