The Raven’s Price: A Margaret of Scotland Medieval Mystery
The Raven’s Price, set in 1071, is the second book in a mystery series anchored by Queen Margaret of Scotland as the sleuth. Lewis’s prior 10-book series featured Ela of Salisbury as the crime solver. Margaret and her sister, Christina, accompany King Malcolm on a visit to the damp and cold northern court of the Lord of the Isles, a man called The Raven. Margaret’s goal is to rescue a young nobleman serving as an enslaved horse trainer. The young man is the son of a retainer in Margaret’s court. The Raven asks for the hand of Christina as wife. As this group arrives for their visit, the body of a young woman is found. It turns out similar murders have happened from time-to-time over decades. Who could be the murderer? Clearly not The Raven, much as Margaret would desire for him to be guilty, to save her sister from the proposed marriage.
This cozy mystery is a charming, easy read. The tone has modern syntax with anachronisms that distract the reader. The well-depicted setting and shifting candidates for the role of murderer of young girls can hold the reader’s attention. Christina has the widest character arc as she shifts from a desire to become a nun to falling for The Raven’s charms in his pursuit of her as a wife. Margaret is a new mother and still young. As Lewis develops the series, it will be interesting to watch Margaret grow into a role that will lead to sainthood after her death.
