The first book in a new murder mystery series and off to a great start. The mystery kept me guessing and I can't wait to learn more about the characters

This novel is well researched, and well written with descriptive detail. I really liked the characters and enjoyed the mystery.  
Many thanks to Sapere Books and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

This story is told by Master Mercurius looking back through his diary. In 1671 he is a cleric at the university in Leiden. He has been asked for as “a quick wit, a knowledge of God’s law and abundant energy” to go to Delft to help the mayor investigate the disappearance of 3 young girls. Unfortunately 1 of the girls is found buried in a field with a cross over her.
Mercurius is an unusual cleric hiding the fact he is a Catholic and also ordained as a Protestant Minister. He makes a friend in artist Vermeer who’s work will help in the investigation. This is a glimpse into life in 1600’s Holland and Mercurius is a character you connect with and would like to follow in future endeavours.
I was given an Arc of this book by Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

In 17th century Netherlands Master Mercurius is a cleric at a university charged with finding a murderer in Delft. A man has abducted three girls and murdered one of them leaving the upstanding men of Delft to try and help Mercurius. His help comes from several sources but Vermeer is perhaps his favourite. The artist provides an alternative eye for detail and a sympathetic ear.  

With flashes of humour and delving in and out of Dutch history, lifestyles, religion and poverty there is a lot going on in this book. I found it a bit of a slow start but once Mercurius gets going he rattles along the cobblestones to his conclusion. Looking forward to his next investigation.

Very well written book.  The author clearly did his research.  Unfortunately, I just couldn't get through it though.  The mystery was not compelling enough for me to want to continue reading.

Loved this book.  An excellent murder mystery set in the time of Vermeer which had me going off at a tangent to find out all about him. This gave the plot an extra dimension as it was so well researched.  Humorously written and very easy to read and invest in the various characters.  It has opened my eyes to a new period of history and a new country that i knew very little about.  That isn't that the sign of a good book that it leads you onto learn new things whilst thoroughly enjoying the fictional story?

I've not read any of his other books but will definitely do so now.  Thoroughly recommend this book!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Sapere Books for an ARC in exchange for an honest review

Rating:   4 stars
I feel very lucky to have received this first entry into Graham Brack’s new Master Mercurius historical mystery series.  It is a bang up start in a mash up of my two favorite genres, Historical Fiction, and Mystery.  The story is set in The Netherlands in 1671, specifically in the town of Delft.  The authorities have asked for some help in solving a murder on one young girl, and the disappearance of two others.

The mayor asks for help with the murder investigation, and the Rector sends Master Mercurius.  They look to him solve the murder, and find the two remaining girls before they freeze to death in the bitter winter weather.  Mercurius is a member of the faculty at the University in Leiden.  In order to teach at the University, he has to be an ordained Protestant minister.  The Netherlands is a Protestant country at that time after all.  However, he has a secret.  He is also been secretly ordained in the Catholic faith while on a trip to France.  

During the course of his investigation, he comes across real Dutch historical figures of the time.  The artist Vermeer helps by drawing the crime scene for instance.  The author has such a wonderfully light touch with language used in the book.  There is just enough archaic language used to remind you this is not a modern story.   However, not so much of it that it overwhelms the reader’s language comprehension.  I also enjoyed the wit and humor sprinkled through what could have been a heavy-toned book.   

Overall, this is a great start to a new series.  I would recommend it to both Historical Fiction, and Mystery readers.  I enjoyed this so much that I have already pre-ordered the next book in the series, “Untrue Till Death”.  August 10th, 2020 is the current publication date.  I suspect that if you read this first book in the series, you will also be compelled to pre-order the second one as I was.   Well done, Graham Brack! 
‘Thank-You’ to NetGalley; the publisher, Sapere Books; and the author, Graham Brack, for providing a free e-ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Not having come across any of this authors works before, I wasn’t quite sure what I was getting into here but Death in Delft proved to be a entertaining read that was a change of pace from my recent titles. An introspective and tightly plotted historical mystery brought together with an edge of dry humour, this caught and held my attention from the first page to the last.

Three children have gone missing in Delft, one of then found dead in a hastily marked grave, Master Mercurius is sent to investigate. I liked the fact that this was set off the beaten track and personally felt that Brack succeeded in his mission to bring this small seventeenth century Dutch community to life. He portrays the attitudes of the time well not just in the way Mercurius sees the world, but in how those around him interact and live. Mercurius is a man of the cloth and is, through a quirk of the times, ordained as both a Protestant and Catholic priest. There is some shrewd religious commentary here that brings an additional depth to the proceedings, but Mercurius is also a very down to earth character with a wry and perceptive sense of humour that shines through at some unlikely moments. It makes for a rich and vibrant setting for this novel, one which explores attitudes to religion, being born out of wedlock and holding a different set of religious values to those around you.

The mystery elements of the novel are well done as well; Mercurius meets a variety of the town folk during his investigation and hints, red herrings and solutions are spread throughout the book. I realised what was going on mere pages before Mercurius himself, which is a mark of a well scripted plot; not too obvious but equally not relying on a shock reveal you couldn’t have seen coming. The various characters are strongly portrayed as well, with differences and similarities depicted across the social scale. 

All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed this and will certainly look out for more novels by Graham Black. It’s well researched, intricately plotted and has characters that spring to life off the page. I believe he has written a series set in contemporary Prague, so that’s certainly where I’ll be looking never, although I hope he continues this into a full series.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for my free review copy of this title.

In 1671, Master Mercurius (of the University of Leiden) is sent to Delft to investigate the disappearance of three young girls. Three 8 year old girls have been abducted and one found dead. Master Mercurius is an interesting character. He is an ordained priest in the Reformed church as well as a secretly ordained Catholic priest. I enjoyed this historical mystery. The setting and time period were well evoked and I liked that the story took place over the space of one week. The structure of the book was of an older Mercurius writing his remembrances with the book opening with a prologue and ending with an epilogue. There wasn't a ton of action, but the plot moved along without seeming to drag too much. This is a reissue of a book that came out in 2014 under the title, "The Allegory of Art and Science" and was shortlisted for the CWA Debut Dagger Award.

Graham Brack  immerses us in a seventeenth century murder mystery in Death in Delft.  Master Mercurius is called from the University of Leyden to help the Mayor of Delft solve the death of a young red haired girl and find two other missing girls.  He is helped by the painter Vermeer and scientist Van Leeuwenhoek.  Intricate plot and interesting historical setting.

Death in Delft by Martin Brack is the first in a new series. Set, not surprisingly in Delft in 1671 the plot is based around 3 young girls who have been abducted, one turns up dead and our hero Master Mercurius a protestant protest who is also a secret catholic, is called on by the mayor to try to solve the murder and find the two remaining girls before they are killed.

As a crime novel this might be quite standard fare though well executed, what makes this more interesting is the rich imagery of 17th century Delft, the currents of repressed religion post reformation and the insertion of the painter Johannes Vermeer and the scientist Antonie van Leeuwenhoek who discovered protozoa into the plot. The novel is in the form of a journal by Mercurius and has a dry humour running through his dialogue with the reader.

I was surprised how much I enjoyed this, I’ll give the next one a go.

I had recently read a historical murder mystery and found it to be disappointing. So, going in, I wasn’t expecting much out of this one either. But that was before I encountered the self-deprecating style of the narrator.

The protagonist is a cleric who’s secretly Catholic but owes his job and living to his being ordained as one of the Protestant clergy. He’s sent to the city of Delft when three serial murders — all young girls — take place.

Even though the theme of the book is a gruesome one, the narrator’s humor helps make the book less darker. He’s witty and smart too and willing to keep an open mind while mocking others who don’t.

Aside from a likable protagonist, the smooth flow of the plot and the writing are two other reasons why I enjoyed reading this book. We also have the pleasure of reading about Vermeer and Leeuwenhoek as characters!

Now imagine how big of a dolt you have to be if you read Vermeer and fail to recognize that it isn’t a character named after the great artist but the artist himself! Anyway, it took me quite a while to get there but I did.

I didn’t get we were talking about the Leeuwenhoek either. Not until I read the word, animalcules. That’s when I squeed! This guy was observing blood cells and yeast cells way back in the 1600s. He was partyin’ with Peter the Great as the two geeked out over eel tails! Here’s another interesting write-up on his findings on yeast.

All in all, a really fun read by a new author, which made me see what else they have written. I’m going to try it all!

I requested this book on Netgalley and I’m so glad I did!

A beautifully simple tale told in the words of Master Mercurius, himself a simple soul with a wonderful wry sense of humour.  We meet both  the artist Vermeer and the father of microbiology Leeuwenhoek in the search for three missing young girls.  My only query was the assistance given to the master from a barely two year old child!  However, apart from this exceedingly small matter, I very much look forward to reading the further adventures of  the very likeable Master Mercurius.  A man I would have liked to know!

Meet Master Mercurius, a 17th century Dutch Protestant cleric, although actually a Catholic, who works at the University.  He is invited to Delft to help with a mystery - three girls have been abducted, one of whom has been found dead.  

The book is well written, with a lovely turn of phrase and inherent sense of humour.  The author paints a credible picture of Holland at this time, and takes the reader skilfully through the story, which is believable and different from the standard historical 'whodunnit'.   The prejudices of the local populace against those having children out of wedlock, against the Catholics and against anyone different from them is well portrayed.

I really enjoyed it, and hope there are more stories of Master Mercurius to come!

Thank you to NetGalley and Sapere Books for allowing me access to the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Historical crime thrillers seem a growing industry, particularly those set in the 17th century and featuring such keen minds as Shardlake, Giordano Bruno and Marwood. Our investigator is Mercurio, a minister based in the university at Leiden, who is sent to Delft to investigate the disappearance of 3 young girls.

The first person narrative is engaging and the joking little asides work well in the main. There is very little mystery in the end but the story is well told and I appreciated its relative brevity (particularly in contrast to the bloated narrative of the most recent Shardlake).

In addition, we are introduced to a number of luminaries from Delft society, some familiar like Vermeer, other previously unknown like van Leeuwenhoek, a prominent scientist of his day.

An enjoyable read and I look forward to the further adventures of Mercurio.

In the Mid-17th century three girls disappear in the town of Delft.  When one is found dead the town's Mayor contacts the University in Leiden asking for help, Master Mercurius is dispatched.  The weather is bitterly cold and there is little hope of survival for the other two girls if he cannot solve the crime.
This is a simple and quite entertaining historical detective novel.  The setting is unusual in that it is in a Dutch Republic that is just starting to be prosperous and where religious conformity is everything.  The only discordant note for me was the shoehorning of known figures into the narrative, there was no great need to place Vermeer and Van Leewunheok into the story, I felt it was a novel device too far.  In fact the story bounces along at a pace and this si a quick and undemanding read.

Any time a new historical detective series becomes available, I love to give it a try. This is a fine opening to Graham Brack's new series. Of course there's only so many directions an Early Modern or Renaissance detective mystery can move in but I was surprised and delighted by some of the twists and turns. I will look forward to more.

An excellent historical mystery with a terrific MC.
I found this story engrossing and entertaining.
The characters are well thought, the historical background is vivid and the mystery is solid.
I look forward to reading other stories in this series.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

Death in Delft is a historical thriller set in the 17th century in the Netherlands where Master Mercurius, a Protestant minister, is appointed to solve the disappearance of three girls in Delft. He travels from Leiden to Delft, and there he meets with very interesting characters, which are actually based on real historical figures and who will contribute in solving the mystery.

The three kidnapped girls are of the same age, but come from very different backgrounds –from working and poor families to high class. When Mercurius arrives in Delft, the first girl, Gertruyd has been found dead, which further complicates things –and makes it a matter of time finding the other two girls.

Our main character, Mercurius, is an intelligent man, critical yet extremely practical. It is very easy to empathize with him since very early on in the story –he is quite down to earth, sometimes cynical in his own thinking, but one can relate to him in many aspects, including doubts about himself, the work he does, his capacity, etc. All this will contribute to his task of finding the person responsible of the disapparances.

I enjoyed the descriptions of 17th century life in Delft –in fact, I was first attracted to this book because Vermeer is one of my favorite painters and I thought it was a very different approach or remaining of his life. How could such an exquisite painter be involved in a crime? But Brack did it –and found a perfect role for Vermeer within the story and also respecting what is historically known from Vermeer. Overall, we get a very good picture of daily life in a Dutch town of the times, of the back and forth of religion in a reformed country that at the same time, was very practical in terms of religion, and of differences between the lower and higher class.

The mystery itself –I didn’t see it coming! I really had no idea who the suspect would be until Mercurius starts connecting the dots and revealing the mystery. I will only say that the reason behind the crimes was a really sad one and not as gruesome as I expected it to be from a thriller (but this is because I read a lot of crazy stuff from true crime and other twister thrillers). On this aspect, I might have enjoyed a bit more is the reason behind the kidnapping had been a bit “darker”, though by no means this hindered my enjoyment of the book.

I am definitely looking forward to read more of the mysteries Mercurius will need to solve and also get to know more about the Netherlands in this period, including scientific discoveries and art!

17th century Delft, there are three missing girls and then one is found in a shallow grave. Master Mercurius, ordained minister (and secret Catholic priest) is sent to investigate. As an outsider he enlists the help of local Burghers to uncover the secret behind the abductions. And in the midst of a bitterly cold winter, to find the two remaining girls - hopefully alive. 

Brack's depiction of life in 17th century is very well done, as is his depiction of some famous historical figures of the time. He introduces us to scientist Antonie Van Leeuwenhoek, painter Johannes Vermeer, and physician Reineer de Graaf, all of whom use their various skills to assist Mercurius. Mercurius is a cleric who is not overly pious. He is also practical, logical, intelligent, and humorous. He is truly  a very engaging protagonist. 

The story is told in the form of memories of past events, and in the first person. It's a form of writing that I'm not a fan of, and while Brack does better than most, in the end I felt it resulted in a longer than necessary narrative.