Ariana Franklin is the pseudonym of a well-known writer of historical fiction. She lives in the UK with her husband, the film critic and broadcaster Barry Norman.
 Grave Goods (2009)
England, 1176. Beautiful, tranquil Glastonbury Abbey-according to legend the last resting place of King Arthur-has been burned almost to the ground. The arsonist remains at large, but the fire has uncovered two hidden skeletons, a man and a woman. The skeletons' height and age send rumors flying-could they be the bodies of King Arthur and Queen Guinevere?
King Henry II hopes so. Struggling to put down a rebellion in Wales, he wants definitive proof that the bones are Arthur's. If the Celtic rebels are sure that the Once and Future King will not be returning fro the dead to aid them, Henry can stamp out the rebellion for good. He calls on Adelia Aguilar, Mistress of the Art of Death, to examine the bones.
Adelia and her household ride to Glastonbury, where the investigation into the abbey fire will be overseen by the Church authorities-in this case, the Bishop of St. Albans, father of Adelia's daughter. And as if the task of solving the mystery weren't daunting enough, an unexpected evil waits in the woods near Glastonbury.
 Death Maze (2008)
Shortlisted for CWA Ellis Peters Historical Award 2008
The second medieval thriller featuring female medical sleuth Adelia Vesuvia Rachel Aguilar.
Rosamund Clifford, the mistress of King Henry II, has died an agonizing death by poison-and the king's estranged queen, Eleanor of Aquitaine, is the prime suspect. Henry suspects that Rosamund's murder is the first move in Eleanor's long-simmering plot to overthrow him. If Eleanor is guilty, the result could be civil war. The king must once again summon Adelia Aguilar, mistress of the art of death, to uncover the truth.
Adelia is not happy to be called out of retirement. She has been living contentedly in the countryside caring for her infant daughter. But Henry's summons cannot be ignored, and Adelia must again join forces with the king's trusted fixer, Rowley Picot, the bishop of St. Albans, who is also her baby's father.
Adelia and Rowley travel to the murdered courtesan's home, in a tower within a walled maze-a strange and sinister place from the outside, but far more so on the inside, where a bizarre and gruesome discovery awaits them. But Adelia's investigation is cut short by the appearance of Rosamund's rival: Queen Eleanor. Adelia, Rowley, and the other members of their small party are taken captive by Eleanor's henchman and held in the nunnery of Godstow, where Eleanor is holed up for the winter with her band of mercenaries, awaiting the right moment to launch their rebellion.
Isolated and trapped by the snow and cold, Adelia and Rowley watch as dead bodies begin piling up. Adelia knows that there may be more than one killer at work, and she must unveil their true identities before England is once again plunged into civil war.
Rights Sold
Portuguese/Brazil only - Editora Rocco Ltda.; Italian - Edizioni Piemme Spa; Norwegian - N.W.Damm & Son A/S; Swedish - Forma Publishing Group; Spanish/World - Grupo Santillana de Ediciones; Danish - Aschehoug Dansk Forlag (Lindhardt & Ringhof); German - Verlagsgruppe Droemer Knaur; United Kingdom & Commonwealth - Transworld Publishers Ltd; Korean - WoongJin Think Big Co., Ltd.; Russian - AST; Polish - Wydawnictwo Amber Sp. z o.o.; Dutch - Unieboek NV
 City of Shadows (2006)
Ariana's first novel, City of Shadows, was a Booksense pick in Fall 2006.
"City of Shadows has all of the elements of a good historical tale ---- drama, action, duplicity, and secrets. Literate, ambitious, and adventurous. Crowded with detail and depth..."
- Steve Berry, New York Times bestselling author of The Templar Legacy
"Sometimes a novel keeps you pinned to your chair, and the characters stay with you long afterward. Ariana Franklin gives a new, exciting face to one of the darkest secrets of the early Twentieth Century."
- Charles Todd bestselling author of the Inspector Ian Rutledge mysteries
 The Mistress of the Art of Death (2005)
Ariana's second book, The Mistress of the Art of Death, described as “Kathy Reichs in the 12th Century”, was a sensation at the 2005 Frankfurt Book Fair where multiple territories were sold. UK rights on this and the next book were pre-empted by Francesca Liversidge at Transworld Publishing, which set off bidding wars all over Europe.
Rights Sold
Droemer (German); Piemme (Italian); Unieboek (Dutch); Suma de Letras (Spanish); Rocco (Brazilian); Damm (Swedish); Damm (Norwegian); Aschehoug (Danish); AST (Russia); Putnam (US); Other sales pending.
US rights for The Mistress of the Art of Death and The Serpent in the Garden, both featuring Adelia Ortese, were sold to Putnam. |
