From Publishers Weekly
A medievalist breathes life and vigor into the scholastic debates and religious controversies of 12th-century France in this entrancing mystery debut. Catherine LeVendeur, a young novice and scholar at the Convent of the Paraclete, is sent by the Abbess Heloise on a perilous mission to find out who is trying to destroy the reputation of the convent and, through it, that of the abbess's onetime lover and patron, theologian Peter Abelard. A psalter created at the convent and given as a gift to the powerful abbot Suger of Saint-Denis is later rumored to contain heretical statements in its accompanying commentaries. Catherine, in the role of a disgraced novice, must find the book and copy the disputed passages to determine if they are forgeries. Further complicating her search, Saint-Denis's master stonemason, Garnulf, is murdered, a crime which may be tied to the sinister hermit Aleran and the rebuilding of the splendid Abbey of Saint-Denis. Re-entering worldly life, the young novice must face both her sometimes disapproving family and her attraction to Garnulf's mysterious apprentice, Edgar. Newman skillfully depicts historical figures and issues in a very different age, one in which piety and great beauty coexist with cruelty. Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From School Library Journal
YA-Although knowledge of the Middle Ages is helpful while reading this novel, the dialogue and fast action will appeal to YAs wanting a mystery set in an interesting place and time. Catherine, a young scholar who plans to become a nun, is sent by Heloise, the abbess at the convent where she is studying, to help her old friend, Abelard, when someone fraudulently copies his texts. Little does she realize that Catherine's own life will be in danger as she becomes involved in a murder mystery before the forger is discovered. The reading level is easier than Ellis Peters's "Brother Caedfel" series (Mysterious). Characters are believable, though somewhat predictable. The creative plot, however, has a special twist as unusual family ties become known. The voice of Catherine's conscience is realistically portrayed through the use of italics. Glimpses of many aspects of the time period are woven into the plot.Claudia Moore, W.T. Woodson High School, Fairfax, VACopyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Kirkus Reviews
Medieval mystery and murder, travel and travail, in 1139 France--as a spunky, sensible, determined novice nun joins forces with a sculptor's apprentice to uncover some evil doings. It is the famous H‚lo‹se, abbess of the Convent of the Paraclete, the unrepentant if separated lover of Pierre Ab‚lard, who enlists 18-year-old Catherine LeVendeur, daughter of wealthy merchant Hubert, to search out, in the library of the Abbey of Saint-Denis, a psalter prepared at the convent--a psalter that has been disgracefully altered to implicate fiery theologian Ab‚lard (and H‚lo‹se) in heresy. Handsome, brawling Uncle Roger escorts the ``disgraced'' Catherine from the convent, but she does at last enter the unfinished church of the Abbey of Saint-Denis. But there, suddenly to her horror, ``a hugh black form came swooping down from the transept tower.'' The form is a very dead old sculptor, known and loved by Catherine and his apprentice Edgar, the mysterious Saxon. On the way to the killer(s) Catherine will confront: a miracle-working hermit, whose attributes send a parade of women to his hut; baffling sketches by the dead sculptor; a psalter decorated with fiendish devices; a pile of jewel boxes, and contracts with the devil. Two more murders will occur--as well as the discovery of some hidden relatives, consultations with Ab‚lard, narrow escapes for both Catherine and Edgar, and a plod through the snows of Paris. It all ends with another swoop from a high place- -and second thoughts about the cloistered life. Gentle humor and a popping plot, with chapters graced by introductory commentary from long-ago saints and sojourners. Like the author's Guinevere trilogy (Guinevere Evermore, 1985, etc.), this offers a most likable heroine who wears well in the stretch. -- Copyright ©1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.


Review
"A sweeping historical novel--meticulously researched with humor, richness, and detail."--Anne Perry

"Breathtakingly exciting and full of mystery and adventure." --Los Angeles Times

"Be forewarned--Sharan Newman will change the way you think about the Middle Ages. Her Catherine LeVendeur series brings the twelfth century to life with compassion, intelligence, and wit, in tales rich with detail and unforgettable characters. Newman delivers an outstanding mystery in each and every book. This series is not to be missed!"--Jan Burke



Review
"A sweeping historical novel--meticulously researched with humor, richness, and detail."--Anne Perry

"Breathtakingly exciting and full of mystery and adventure." --Los Angeles Times

"Be forewarned--Sharan Newman will change the way you think about the Middle Ages. Her Catherine LeVendeur series brings the twelfth century to life with compassion, intelligence, and wit, in tales rich with detail and unforgettable characters. Newman delivers an outstanding mystery in each and every book. This series is not to be missed!"--Jan Burke



Review
"A sweeping historical novel--meticulously researched with humor, richness, and detail."--Anne Perry

"Breathtakingly exciting and full of mystery and adventure." --Los Angeles Times

"Be forewarned--Sharan Newman will change the way you think about the Middle Ages. Her Catherine LeVendeur series brings the twelfth century to life with compassion, intelligence, and wit, in tales rich with detail and unforgettable characters. Newman delivers an outstanding mystery in each and every book. This series is not to be missed!"--Jan Burke



Book Description
Catherine LeVendeur is a young scholar come to conquer her sin of pride at the Convent of the Paraclete, famous for learning, prayer, and its abbess, the fabled Heloise.

When a manuscript the convent produced for the great Abbe Suger disappears, rumors surface saying the book contains sacrilegious passages and will be used to condemn Heloise's famous lover, Peter Abelard.

To save her Order, and protect all she holds dear, Catherine must find the manuscript and discover who altered the text. She will risk disgrace, the wrath of her family and the Church, and confront an evil older than Time itself--and, if she isn't careful, lose her immortal soul.

With Death Comes As Epiphany, the first in the Catherine LeVendeur mystery series, medievalist Sharan Newman has woven dark mystery and sparkling romance into a fascinating and richly detailed tapestry of everyday life in twelfth-century France, and one of the most moving love stories of all time: Abelard and Heloise.



About the Author
Sharan Newman won Romantic Times magazine's Career Achievement Award for Historical Mystery in 1999. She lives in Oregon.

ANNOTATION

A medievalist specialist weaves mystery and romance into a fascinating tapestry of everyday life in 12th-century France. Catherine, a novice-scholar turned detective, is asked to track down evil priests, a fortune in stolen jewels, an heretical manuscript, and solve the mystery of those ill-fated lovers, Abelard and Heloise.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Catherine LeVendeur is a young novice-scholar at the Convent of the Paraclete. Beautiful, learned, willful, and stubborn, Catherine's natural curiosity and individualism have always set her apart. She has come to the convent to conquer her sin of pride, to pray, and to serve God. But service can come in many forms, and to save her Order, Catherine will risk much: disgrace and the wrath of family and Church. She will travel to the great abbey of St. Denis to uncover plots most foul. Amid stolen gems, mad monks and dead bodies Catherine will strive to unlock the puzzle that threatens all she holds dear.

FROM THE CRITICS

Deadly Pleasures

Fans of Brother Cadfael should rejoice at this new find.

Rue Morgue

Death Comes as Epiphany will captivate readers, especially women whose only complaint with Brother Cadfael is his gender.

Mystery News

Sharan Newman weaves dark mystery and sparkling romance into a fascinating tapestry of everyday life in twelfth-century France.

Santa Barbara News-Press

The proverbial page-turner...as suspenseful as any hard-boiled mystery.

KLIATT

This first Catherine LeVendeur mystery establishes the author as impressive in medieval scholarship and as entertaining as the l8-year-old who dominates these pages. Catherine, still a novice, is asked by her abbess, the famed Heloise, to leave the Convent of the Paraclete, return home in seeming disgrace, and locate a book the nuns had copied and bound. The Psalter is said to have been altered by unknown enemies intent on ruining the convent and its noted founder, Master Abelard. Trips to the library at Saint-Denis prove dangerous yet ultimately productive. Heloise reminds Catherine in a letter "for some, closeness to death brings an epiphany which alters their lives forever. But I believe that you are one such as I, for whom God may only be reached through the pathways of the intellect." The reader is brought into the colorful yet dangerous life of 12th-century France as evils of all kinds assail the logical Catherine and those closest to her. Discovery of a secret family and the possibilities of romance challenge Catherine to acknowledge her more vulnerable side. Each chapter is introduced by a notice of site and date and a pertinent quotation. (A Catherine LeVendeur Mystery). KLIATT Codes: A￯﾿ﾽRecommended for advanced students and adults. 1993, Tor, Forge, 319p., Griffin

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING

A sweeping historical novel -- meticulously researched, with humor, richness and detail. — Anne Perry

Sharan Newman has written a spellbinding book! — Charlotte MacLeod

Spectacular...exotic...rich historical setting. — Faye Kellerman