Company Of Liars By Karen Maitland

Company of Liars is a well written historical novel set at the time of the Great Plague in Europe, 1348. The disease has just reached the shores of England and the populace are starting to panic as it spreads across the country, sparing no-one. Although this is the background, the tale essentially revolves around the lives of nine central characters as their circumstances force them to travel northwards, trying to out-run the pestilence snapping at their heels.

The principle character of the group is Camelot, a seller of fake relics. He gradually picks up other travellers as his journey progresses, each with their own curiosities and secrets. There is the Venetian musician Rodrigo and his apprentice Jofre, accustomed to the courts of nobility but discharged by their Lord; the one-armed storyteller Cygnus; the painter of shrines and chapels Osmond and his pregnant wife Adela; the magician Zophiel; and the midwife Pleasance who has the adopted the role of guardian to a precocious white-haired girl who reads runes, Narigorm.

As the book progresses each character reveals their own story in more depth, and as you would expect nobody is who they first appeared to be. They have all lied about their history, hence the title of the book. This should not surprise the reader; the beauty of this work is finding out what happens next and what the consequences of their decisions lead to. One by one the travellers fall by the way-side, and it soon becomes apparent there is something sinister afoot.

Maitland writes descriptively and the atmosphere of the novel is spot-on, with the plot set at an enjoyable pace. She has clearly done her research into the chosen historical period and there are no complaints when you turn the final page. However, there is something missing from this work that prevents it gaining a place amongst my favourites. It doesn’t quite challenge enough – the mystery has too many clues laid out for you and doesn’t challenge the reader enough. There are not really any “Aha!” moments, where you are genuinely surprised by any turn of events.

In summary, this book is well worth a read, particularly for fans of the genre, but it is unlikely to be a novel you return to after the first reading.

By: G Bailey

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