In mid-seventh-century Ireland, Sister Fidelma of Cashel-sister to the King of Muman, an advocate of Brehon Courts, and religieuse of the Celtic Church-returns hastily from a pilgrimage to the Shrine of St. James. The news that brings her back is that her companion and friend, the Saxon monk Brother Eadulf, is under arrest for a serious crime in the neighboring kingdom of Laigin. Riding furiously through hostile territory, she arrives only to find out she is too late. Eadulf has already been tried and found guilty of the murder of a young girl. Even worse, Laigin's king has abandoned the traditional judicial code of Ireland in favor of the ecclesiastical Penitential from Rome-and under this code he is to be executed the following morning. Convinced that her friend is innocent, Fidelma has only twenty-four hours before his execution to come up with evidence persuasive enough to sway the king into allowing an appeal of Eadulf's conviction. Facing a king determined to make an example of Eadulf and an old adversary of her own, Fidelma soon realizes that nothing is as it was portrayed, and behind the heinous crime is an even more shocking conspiracy. Now, Fidelma must unravel her most perplexing puzzle before time runs out for her closest companion. Series protagonist Sister Fidelma of Cashel (Act of Mercy) attempts to save her Saxon monk friend, Brother Eadulf, from wrongful execution. A faithful rendering of life and justice in seventh-century Ireland. Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. Sister Fidelma, premier seventh-century sleuth and advocate of the Brehon law courts of Ireland, returns to solve another mystery steeped in authentic medieval detail. This time, Fidelma has a decidedly more personal stake in the outcome of her investigation since it is her dear friend Brother Eadulf who stands accused of a heinous crime. With Eadulf's execution date already set, she races against the clock to prove him innocent of the rape and murder of a 12-year-old novitiate. Though an eyewitness has identified Eadulf as the perpetrator, Fidelma probes beneath the surface of the circumstantial evidence, exposing a despicable white slavery ring masterminded by an embittered female cleric. Underscoring this tautly constructed whodunit is a fascinating subplot involving the historical clash between the Celtic Church of Ireland and the Roman Church. Tremayne provides another evocative and intelligent chapter in the Sister Fidelma chronicles. Margaret Flanagan Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved "... another solid installment in this well-established medieval series." -- Publishers Weekly  "Tremayne’s history is intellectually stimulating." -- Kirkus Reviews  "A faithful rendering of life and justice in seventh-century Ireland." -- Library Journal Peter Tremayne is the fiction pseudonym for Peter Berresford Ellis, a prominent author on the ancient Celts and author of numbers works of history and scholarship. As Tremayne, he is the author of ten books featuring Sister Fidelma, most recently Act of Mercy . He lives in London   Our Lady of Darkness Chapter OneThe horses cantered along the dusk-shrouded mountain road. There were four of them, snorting and blowing as their riders urged them forward. The travellers consisted of three men and a woman. The men wore the garments and weaponry of warriors but the woman was distinguished from her companions not only by her sex but by the fact that she was clad in the robes of a religieuse. While the evening gloom cloaked their individual features, it was clear from the state of their mounts and the fatigued attitude with which they rode them that the four had journeyed many a kilometre that day.‘Are you sure that this is the right road?’ called the woman, casting an anxious glance around at the entangling woods through which they were rapidly descending. The track across the mountain dipped steeper into the valley. Below them, just discernible in the fading light, was a broad glen with a sizable river snaking through it.The young, dust-covered warrior who rode at her side spoke out.‘I have ridden many times as a courier from Cashel to Fearna, lady, and I know this route well. A kilometre or so ahead we will come to a place where another river flows from the west to join the river you see below us. There, by the joining of the rivers, is Morca’s inn where we may spend the night.’‘But every hour counts, Dego,’ replied the woman. ‘Can’t we press on to Fearna tonight?’The warrior hesitated before replying, doubtless wondering how to make himself firm but phrasing his words with respect.‘Lady, I promised your brother, the King, that I and my companions would keep you safe on this journey. I would not advise travelling in this countryside at night. There are many dangers in this area for the likes of us. If we stay at the inn and make an early start in the morning, we will be at the castle of the King of Laigin well before noon tomorrow. And we will