Book Review: Day of Wrath

Reviewed By: Harriet Klausner

Day of Wrath     Amazon US HC Amazon Canada HC
Iris Collier
Class/Genre:   Mystery
St. Martin’s, May 2002, $23.95 320 pp.

Henry VIII sits on the throne of England and has ignored the papal refusal to annul his marriage. He gets a divorce to marry Anne Boleyn and is in the process of setting up a church independent of Rome. His first step is to inventory the monasteries so that he could add anything of value to his treasury before he disbands them and sells the buildings.

One of his advisors, Nicholas Peverell is sick about the regal decision since the one nearest his manor home in Sussex was built by his ancestors and supported by him. The king is planning on visiting Nicholas on his way to Portsmouth but there is a conspiracy to assassinate His Highness. Nicholas doesn’t know if the threat comes from, the defeated York supporters or a rebellious churchman but he knows he must keep his king safe if he wants to live.

Iris Collier brings the pageantry and culture of the era when Henry VIII ruled England to vivid life in her meticulously researched historical mystery DAY OF WRATH. The mystery itself is cleverly constructed and there are enough suspects to keep the reader guessing until the author is ready to reveal the killer’s identity. The hero is a warm caring man who makes this work a touch above the well written sub-genre novel as the age comes alive as much as the who-will-do-it plot.

Harriet Klausner

Reprinted with permission. Do Not repost without permission from the author, Harriet Klausner