I liked this book, but the mystery plot was pretty thin. This book shines in the portrayal of England in t490s and the Corpus Christi plays. The author captures the flavor of the times and dispels many misconceptions about this time period.

This is the first book I've read by this author. She has a knack for incorporating language that sets the tone for this era without making it obtuse. This is the 7th book in the Joliffe the Player series but I was able to read it on its own.

If I didn't have so many other books to read, I'd seek out more of this series. It feels like something BBC would pick up to make a series out of.

The books might be too slow or too light on the murder mystery for some readers. But if you like historical fiction, give this a try. ( )

Joliffe is on his way to Coventry, to join his group of players in the festival of Corpus Christi, a day when the Guilds of the town sponsor players to perform several plays from the life of Christ, each group performing the same play, but on a portable stage which is moved around the town. On his way to the town he meets with his contact from the Bishop who asks him to be on the lookout for intrigue from the Lollards, and for anyone who can give a clue to the whereabouts of one of his informants who has gone missing. It isn't long before Joliffe finds himself in the middle of a murder investigation.
I loved the in depth look at the plays of this time, the workings of a medieval town and the people Frazer fills her books with. As always, they leap off the pages and seem to be living. ( )

This is one of my favorite series along with the Dame Frevisse stories that Joliffe spun off of. I enjoyed this book very much but, it lacked the spark that the other books have had. Joliffe spent too much time ruminating various things in his head. He spent a lot of time just walking around thinking - not a lot of doing. It made the story drag in spots for me. I missed the interactions with Basset and the other players too - the warmth of those moments was lacking in this book.

I enjoyed learning more about the plays done in medieval times and as usual Margaret Frazer brings that time period to life in wonderful ways. ( )

Another in the excellent Joliffe series. The story drags just a bit in the middle. There is not a lot of character growth - this is more of a traditional mystery than some others in the series. There is a wealth of historical information, even more so than usual - and as Frazer always makes the 1400's come alive, it is a treasure. This is the best part and great strength of this book. It is much more fulfilling to read if you have already read the prior books in the series. ( )

"A play of heresy" is the latest in a series of historical mysteries set in England in the 15th century and featuring Joliffe the Player (and spy); and the book is more enjoyable if you have read the other novels.

Joliffe returns to his troupe of players after working as a spy on his own for some time. They are currently in Coventry, preparing their part in the circle of plays performed for the whole town on Corpus Christi. But Joliffe is assigned another part but that of a player - a merchant and fellow spy has gone missing and Joliffe is charged with finding out more about it. Coventry has some years ago been centre of the Lollard heresy, and there's suspicion they are involved in this.

Soon the body of the missing merchant is found, dead for some time. Joliffe discovers that the murdered merchant was the son of a convicted Lollard heretic, and rival for the affection of a young widow. While he tries to decide which of these trails lead to the killer, another young merchant is found dead, who is also a co-performer in the play Joliffe prepares for Corpus Christi festival.

The novel's greatest strength lies in the depiction of 15th century life in England. Frazer describes the scene and the characters in such details that you truly feel immersed in the past, without ever sounding like a history textbook. The pace of the book is rather slow, but that makes for a leisurely read and left me time to savour the historical setting.

The murder mystery, on the other side, is rather average; I could guess the solution for both murders quite some pages ahead. Frazer tries to make it more interesting by dangling the involvement of Lollard heretics in front of our noses but fails to provide any plot going with that - the Lollards remain elusive throughout the book.

I got the impression that Frazer was much more interested in how the medieval religious plays were performed. And actually I agree with her, I enjoyed the parts of the book where the rehearsals and preparations of the play are described best.

That may sound like a negative review, but I enjoyed the book very much as a historical-cum-murder novel. But compared with Frazer's earlier novels, especially the Dame-Frevisse-Series, it feels a little faded - the characters come a little less to life, the murder mystery is less interesting. If you haven't read anything by Frazer yet, I would start there. ( )