What readers think of Heresy, plus links to write your own review.

Fans of historical fiction and mystery novels will find Heresy a successful blend of both genres. King Henry the Eight's lust for Ann Boleyn and a desire for a male heir resulted in a break from the Roman Catholic Church. The result of this action is the background setting for multiple murders at Oxford University in 1583. A possible romantic interest and the hunt for rare manuscripts enhances the plot and keeps the pace moving.

I enjoyed this book - the story line is strong; the characters are well developed and I cared what happened to them. It was suspenseful until the end. Good news bad news: Good: In addition to being an enjoyable book, I learned considerable information about the period of time (1580), Oxford University, the Catholic Church, etc; Bad: it was so story driven and so suspenseful I wouldn't stop reading long enough to research more history and gain additional background of the time period and situations. However, I will pursue the interest the book sparked by reading more history for that time and setting. The author was kind to the reader by NOT filling pages with meaningless "filler". Although there are graphic parts to the novel, I would not classify them as unnecessary. Part of my criteria for giving a book a "good" rating: would I recommend it to book clubs and friends - yes; and if l lost the book, would I seek another one out to finish it - yes; and would I read another book by this author - yes. Good book.

I am fond of historical mysteries. The book Heresy by S. J. Parris is reminiscent of the books of C. J. Sansom (Dissolution, etc.) and was well researched and interesting. It takes place during the reign of Elizabeth I and involves her spymaster Walsingham. There are a series of murders at Oxford University that must be solved by the main character, based on the real life person of Giordano Bruno. The story dragged in a few places where it became a little too scholarly, but it was mostly fast paced and entertaining.

This book reminds me of other historical fiction/mystery novels and is a good representative of the genre. Plot is surprisingly good, and the tale moves along well.

Heresy is a new book in the realm of Medieval whodunits, with something for every mystery reader: spies, cryptic texts and codes, grisly murders and even a little romance.

While at times it moves rather slowly, with a lot of historical detail & debate thrown in, at the last part of the book the action picks up, the story unravels and all is made known. Throughout, the author's writing is very good, although I think she spent more time on plot rather than on her characters.

My understanding is that this is the first of a planned series, and hopefully the author will flesh out the ongoing characters a bit more. However, I liked this book, both for plot and writing. I'd recommend it to people who like CJ Sansom's Tudor era-based books, and to those who like historical mysteries in general, and people interested in the history of religion in England and Europe during the Tudor period.

An extremely entertaining read, particularly for anyone who enjoys historical fiction and mystery thrillers. Heresy follows the story of Giordano Bruno, a monk and scientist during the Elizabethan era, who is sent to Oxford on an undercover mission by Sir Francis Walsingham. While at Oxford, Bruno becomes central to the search, as well as a target, for a killer who is murdering Oxford professors and students. Filled with plot twists and turns, I truly enjoyed Heresy and look forward to other books in this series. Although not written in the same era and lighter in style, Heresy reminded me of Iain Pears' Instance of the Fingerpost and Umberto Eco's Name of the Rose.

For fans of historical thrillers (i.e. Cadfael series) this is for you. A very clever,sophisticated who-dunnit with twists & turns along the way. The writing is good; not great... I did find myself plodding through some sections .

Readers of historical mystery novels will welcome the publication of Heresy by SJ Parris, a fast-paced novel of multiple murders at an Oxford college during the middle of the reign of Elizabeth I. Our detective protagonist is the Renaissance savant Giordano Bruno—excommunicant former monk and tutor in the study of memory to the King of France—whose latest move to escape the Inquisition on the continent is flight to England, where he becomes a somewhat unwilling spy in Walsingham’s secret service.

Charged with rooting out Catholic dissidents at Oxford, Bruno finds himself an outsider looking in, a good position for a detective, but a dangerous one for a foreigner and a nominal Catholic during this period of English history. The novel is cleverly plotted (it kept me guessing the identity of the murderer until the denouement), easily mixes historical with fictional figures, and gives a good sense of the intellectual and political atmosphere of the period. The Catholic threat to England’s stability as portrayed in the novel resonates with our own contemporary concerns regarding homeland security. Readers will need to be on the alert (or be able to flip easily back and forth) early on, when a number of characters are introduced all at once at Oxford. The ending implies that there will be additional books in the series, and I look forward to the author developing his major characters more fully in the future.