Wednesday, January 16, 2013

A look at Theresa Tomlinson's mystery of Anglo-Saxon Whitby, A Swarming of Bees

Theresa Tomlinson's A Swarming of Bees is her first adult novel, a smooth historical mystery set in Anglo-Saxon times.  Her previous books have been geared toward children or YAs.

This was a recent purchase.  I'm not sure where I first came across it... maybe on Goodreads, maybe on a blog.  You don't see too much fiction set in England centuries before the Conquest, unless it's about the Romans or King Arthur (or written by Bernard Cornwell), but novels of early medieval times have always appealed to me.  I wish there more of them.

Fridgyth is an herb-wife at the double monastery at Streonshalh in Northumbria in 664 AD, a year that anyone familiar with the period will recognize.  While Fridgyth tends to her duties outdoors, a large religious debate is in progress inside.  Kings, queens, bishops, and other church leaders from far and wide have gathered to decide on a controversial issue that will have far-reaching impact: whether to follow Roman or Celtic practice in calculating the date for Easter and the style for monks' tonsures. 

The Synod of Whitby, as it would later be known, involved complex and lengthy liturgical arguments, but Tomlinson makes them understandable for the reader.  She provides good examples of each party's concerns and lays the royal families' genealogical relationships out cleanly, too.  

As her quiet community reels at the shock of King Oswy's ruling — he decides in favor of Rome — Abbess Hild confides her despair to her good friend Fridgyth while keeping her guests entertained and well fed.  Two young Irish scholars arrive in the midst of this troubled atmosphere, and at least one of them is other than he seems.  Then a virulent strain of plague hits Streonshalh, which makes it hard for Fridgyth to notice at first that some of the deaths had a more sinister cause.  Once she does, her investigation begins in earnest.

Despite the spread of Christianity, pockets of pagan belief still linger in 7th-century Northumbria, especially amongst the common people. Fridgyth herself is half-pagan, and she has the amusing habit of exclaiming "Blessed Freya!" at unguarded moments.  She also defends her non-Christian friends' wishes to burn their dead and their belongings... she even urges it, saying that fire will kill off the plague.  Even while serving as leader of her religious flock, Hild practices tolerance as well.

Tomlinson gradually weaves Fridgyth's personal history into the storyline.  She's no longer young — like Abbess Hild, she's in her fifties — but her present circumstances call to mind her lost family, and the possible rekindling of a lost love.

Although Fridgyth is a fictional character, much of the novel's historical background can be found in Bede, including the presence of a cowherd named Caedmon with a gift for lyric poetry.  (His imagined verses are included, and they're very good.)  The seaside setting of Streonshalh is easy to picture, from the monks' heather-thatched huts to the area's rocky cliffs and the curious snakestones found beneath them.

In this realistic yet gentle mystery, the harsher aspects of life are treated accurately without being presented in burdensome detail.  The version I read has some typos and misplaced punctuation, and one section of repeated text, but was otherwise well edited. A novel of strong women, warm friendship, and political intrigue set at a turning point in English history, A Swarming of Bees may be written for an adult audience, but YAs should enjoy it too.

A Swarming of Bees was self-published through Acorn Independent Press in December 2012 at £7.99 (pb, 290pp).  American readers can buy it on Kindle at $4.99 (it's worth it).  The latter two pictures are public domain images from Wikipedia.  [Update, 1/18:  Per the author, the book is in a 2nd print run, and the errors have been fixed.]

13 comments:

  1. Thanks for the heads-up, Sarah. I'm always on the lookout for books set in the Anglo-Saxon period and will certainly be buying this one. I've enjoyed several of Teresa Tomlinson's YA novels, including "Wolf Girl", which is set at Whitby Abbey and features Abbess Hild, though it is set a year or so before the Synod.

    The Synod doesn't turn up much in fiction, though it is a major event in Melvyn Bragg's "Credo", which I also enjoyed, though the heroine's stubborn determination to become a Christian martyr did sometimes make me want to kick her into touch!

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    1. Hi Annis, I ought to read some of her YA novels, including "Wolf Girl." The tone is probably very similar to this one. Her website explains why she felt this was geared more toward adults, and I can see it as far as the age of the heroine, but I didn't feel the details of death and illness were especially gruesome -- or anything that YAs aren't used to reading already.

      "Credo" I read and enjoyed some time ago, although I wish I remembered more details! In the US it has the pseudo-Arthurian title "The Sword and the Miracle," which doesn't fit at all.

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  2. Sounds interesting. I do enjoy novels about pre-Norman England. It's a bit softer than my usual Cornwell-ish tastes but a change in pace can be a good thing.

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    1. It's definitely much quieter than Cornwell!

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  3. Darn, I see I spelt Theresa's name without the "h"- sorry about that, Theresa!

    Just thought I'd mention that I was able to buy the Kindle version from Amazon without any problems, and I live in New Zealand. I guess publisher's rights must account for the fact that mostly I have no trouble buying Kindle editons from Amazon, but sometimes, quite randomly, I find I'm blocked out.

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    1. Thanks for reporting back. That's good to know, and it makes sense with self-pubbed books because the author will own all the rights.

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  4. Actually, now I think about it, I'm pretty sure I remember Caedmon making an appearance in "Wolf Girl" as well. Could be that TT found these characters so appealing that she decided to reprise them for her adult novel.

    I recently had word, too, that Charles Barnitz has written a historical mystery set during the reign of King Offa of Mercia, called "Frith's Seat". If it does well it will be the start of a series. He decided to self-pub after being told by his agent his work was "too Anglo-Saxon" to be of interest to publishers! I've downloaded a copy, but not had a chance to read it yet.

    Barnitz has only ever published one novel before. Despite being something of a cult classic, "The Deepest Sea" never really took off, which is a shame. It's great fun :)

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    1. Today the author was in touch via Facebook letting me know she hopes to write more about Fridgyth. I hope so too! Caedmon in this one was a great character.

      Thanks for the heads-up about Charles Barnitz's mystery. "Too Anglo-Saxon," love it. That's what interests me in the first place! I've downloaded the sample. "The Deepest Sea" sounds like a hoot!

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  5. Must admit I hadn't come across a "frith seat" before, but here's the Frith Stool at Hexham Abbey in Northumberland, if anyone's curious.

    Good news that Theresa Tomlinson is thinking of going for a series as well. I've just started "A Swarm of Bees" and enjoying it very much.

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    1. I had fun browsing around the Hexham Abbey site. The concept of a "frith stool" is new to me, although I'm familiar with the idea of sanctuary, of course. Thanks for the link. Will be curious to hear your thoughts on the novel after you're done!

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  6. Oh dear, make that "A Swarming of Bees"! I'm not just having a senior moment, but a senior day :)

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  7. Great review! I've just finished A Swarming of Bees and liked it very much (will review soon). I'd be very happy if Fridgyth solves as many mysteries as Brother Cadfael :-) Caedmon did appear in Wolf Girl as an important character.

    'Too Anglo-Saxon', sigh. Thank heavens for small presses and self-publishing, which at least mean that good books set in unfashionable eras have a chance of finding an audience.

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    1. Hi Carla, and thanks for your comments! I should have guessed you'd read A Swarming of Bees already :) I look forward to reading your review. Agreed... it's good that authors writing in this fascinating period have options for reaching readers, because they (we) are out there.

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