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| Dragon's Lair: A Medieval Mystery | 
| Author: Sharon Kay Penman
Publisher: Putnam Adult
Category: Book
List Price: $23.95
Buy Used: $0.75
You Save: $23.20 (97%)
New (13) Collectible (14) from $3.75
Avg. Customer Rating:  41 reviews
Sales Rank: 485052
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 322
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.1
Dimensions (in): 8.6 x 5.7 x 1.2
ISBN: 0399150773
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.54
EAN: 9780399150777
ASIN: 0399150773
Publication Date: October 13, 2003
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
The long-awaited third novel in Sharon Kay Penman's much-loved medieval mystery series.
July 1193: Richard Lionheart, eldest and most favored son of Dowager Queen Eleanor of Aquitane, languishes in an Austrian dungeon, held for ransom by the Holy Roman Emperor. Lusting after the crown in England, his brother John plots with his country's bitterest foe, King Philippe of France, to see to it Richard never leaves Austria alive. But the Queen has already begun to meet the ransom demands, and it is only a matter of time before the Austrians turn over their royal prisoner. And then one of the ransom payments vanishes in the fastnesses of Wales, itself wracked by rebellion and intrigue. Into this maelstrom, Eleanor sends her trusted man, Justin de Quincy-and murder soon follows.
First introduced in The Queen's Man-an Edgar nominee for best first mystery-Justin de Quincy returns in what may well be Penman's strongest mystery to date.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 36 more reviews...
 lots of fun November 7, 2008
Penman sure does know how to create a world where you can vanish from the everyday world.
 Just couldn't get into this. May 12, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
Honestly, I can't get into this book. It's got potential, and has a good base theme, but Justin is too driven by sex and is weak minded, and his spat with his father, his pregnant mistress, and his wanting to have sex with every other woman he meets gets old. There isn't enough conversation and much in the book devoted to him actually interacting with the queen. Also, not enough about Richard the Lionhearted and his brother John. The royal family is actually a very small player in this novel. The novels should be called The Justin Series because the focus seems to be only on him. If you are looking for historical fiction related to the kings Richard The Lionhearted and John, or even Queen Eleanor, you are not going to feel satisfied after reading this book. The mystery in this medieval mystery isn't captivating, moves sluggishly, and instead of focusing on the royalty that MADE this history, focuses on some character that the author dreamed up and his galavanting around. "F"
More Penman January 7, 2008
Just more Penman, she could add more specifics, to her historical fiction, instead she just sets her characters in the times. For example, she could describe what they eat, how it was prepared etc...
Dragon's Lair November 8, 2007
Sharon Kay Penman writes a very interesting mystery set in the 12th century before all our technology assisted the crime solvers to ply their trade in a more surfooted manner. She intertwines this with an interesting and dangerous mission for Justin to preform for the Queen of England, the keen and political Eleanor in an effort to protect the throne for her beloved son, Richard. Lest love be out of the picture, there is also a love story amid all this.
Ransom demand April 2, 2007
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
King Richard, caught while on his way back from the Holy Land, has been imprisoned by Henry VI, King of Germany and Holy Roman Emperor. Prince John, Richard's hated brother (and the same Prince John from the Robin Hood stories) is plotting with the French king to make sure that Richard doesn't leave prison alive.
Henry sets the ransom at an impossible 150,000 marks (perhaps five times the annual income for the English Crown under Richard), and the Dowager Queen Eleanor has set about raising the ransom. In Wales, a sizable portion of that ransom has gone missing, and she sends Justin de Quincy into Wales to find it.
Davydd ab Owain, Prince of Wales, suspects his nephew, Llewellyn ab Iorweth, who would later grow to be one of the greatest of all Welsh princes. He is married to Emma of Anjou, the highborn half-sister of Richard's and John's father - and Eleanor's deceased husband - King Henry. Davydd is incensed when Justin approaches the problem logically, wanting to inspect the site the ransom was to have been stolen from, conducting interviews, etc.
While not as intricately plotted as the next book in the series, Prince of Darkness, this nevertheless is a fantastic read, especially if you've read and enjoyed Penman's historical fiction, and amongst those, namely Here be Dragons.
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