This Matthew Bartholomew mystery takes him and other Michaelhouse men out of Cambridge and off to a village to sort out the paperwork for a significant gift to the college. But an abandoned plague village on the way starts a series of unsettling deaths, tied to local legends about how seeing a white feral dog means death, including the student intended to become the parish priest. I felt this book spent a long time building up to its climax, and managed to surprise me in the end. ( )

Like the other of Gregory's books in this series so far, it is repetitious in the extreme. But, if you can deal with the same argument between Bartholomew and Michael, it has an interesting plot. As always, the author gives us a peek into life in those times and good reasons for offering up prayers we live when we do--which is no doubt what each generation says.

The reader cannot guess many of the mysteries since we are never actually give THE clues--only clues to the clues. That's okay. Why read to the end if the mystery is already solved. ( )

‘A Wicked Deed’ continues the adventures of the 14th century physician, Matthew Bartholomew. The mystery is well paced and suspense builds and lasts through to the end of the book.

A group from Michaelhouse college in Cambridge sets out to visit a village just outside Ipswich which has promised to pay its church's living to the college. The group includes Bartholomew; his friend Michael, the obese monk who is Senior Proctor for the university colleges; Cynric, the wily Welsh archer; and the odious Alcote, Michael’s Junior Proctor.

Once again, we are treated to the various hilarious and gruesome goings on that are synonymous with Matthew Bartholomew chronicles. The description of a village debate on the subject “Does the Earth Rotate?” is laugh-out-loud funny. The group passes through the village of Grundisburgh, where they find a hanged man who later disappears, and the eerie deserted medieval village of Barchester. Along the way, they cross paths with the spectral hound, Padfoot. Local legends say anyone catching sight of Padfoot is sure to pass away within days. Cynric is convinced that he is next after he prevents Padfoot from attacking Bartholomew and spirals into an uncharacteristic depression. Michael is wheeling and dealing to ensure the deed committing the church funds is signed by the local lord. Meanwhile, the bodies pile up.

Gregory's research is impeccable and she paints a fascinating portrait of England in the years following the Black Death. However, her greatest achievement is the robust and three dimensional characters she draws. Matthew's idealism and honesty contrasts well with the more complex natures of his friends and colleagues, as well as with a satisfyingly unpleasant and diversely motivated bunch of evildoers. ( )

This was not my favourite of the Matthew Bartholomew Chronicles, but it was still a good story. It was full of superstition and mystery and the ending was not what I thought it would be. It is set in the 14th Century and not in Cambridge like the other novels, but in rural Suffolk. I liked the intrigue and fighting between the Manor lords and also the way the people believed in the folklore even though at the time this was considered heresy. It was also interesting to read about the devastation of the plague to the rural villages and the problems it left behind for many years. A good crime novel, but not the best. ( )