Some time back, I read The Service of the Dead and really enjoyed it. So I decided to continue, but since the second book was unavailable, I decided to read The Apothecary Rose, which is the first book in the Owen Archer series and also by Candace Robb. Like The Service of the Dead, The Apothecary Rose takes place in York, albeit much earlier (the 14th century, to be precise).

Owen Archer, the protagonist of The Apothecary Rose, was the Master of Archers. When he loses his eye, his master offers to turn him into a spy. Sadly, his master the Duke dies after a few months and Owen goes into the service of the Archbishop of York and Lord Chancellor of England, John Thoresby. As his first task, Owen is to investigate the death of Thoresby’s ward, who died of poisoning in York. Taking the disguise of an apprentice, Owen starts to look into the murders and finds that his initial suspicions may not have been correct.

Since I enjoyed The Service of the Dead, I was pretty sure that I was going to enjoy The Apothecary Rose. And I was right. Owen was an interesting protagonist, still hurting from the loss of his eye but intent on seeking the truth. His master (technically still apprentice), Lucie, was also great. She wasn’t born in the greatest of circumstances, but the fire in her doesn’t die. Seeing how the two of them interact (aided by Bess, Owen’s landlady) was interesting and I liked seeing how the both of them grew.

Given that I read a post from Katie about the presence (or lack of) religious characters in fiction, I found myself paying attention to the way Christianity fit into the book. This is definitely not typical ‘Christian fiction’, but England at that time was a ‘Christian nation’ in the sense that the Church was a huge part of their lives. And I thought that this book reflected it pretty well – there were religious characters (like the monks), but even non-religious characters like Owen and Bess talk about religion like it’s a big part of their life. For example, the way Owen treats the loss of his eye and talks about it to others, or the way Bess refuses to speak ill of the dead (although the latter is more superstition than religion – but it mixes together). There’s also a summoner, who works for the Church, and his mother who’s on the fringes of it and I thought the way the two of them were portrayed was well done.

The setting of York was great too, although it’s not a place I’d want to visit. Owen notes that it stinks like London, and the York Minster isn’t complete, so it’s probably not for tourists. As a reader, though, I was thoroughly drawn into their world and wanted to know more about York in that time.

The Apothecary Rose is perfect for fans of medieval mysteries. The setting is great, the characters are fantastic, and of course, I really enjoyed the mystery. If you’re interested in history, I’d recommended reading all the way to the end of the author’s note. The author talks about the time in which the book was set, as well as explains some liberties she took with the time period (stuff like Guilds) to help craft her characters. And of course, talks about which characters were based on real people.