Gregory, Susanna 1958- [A pseudonym] (Simon Beaufort, a joint pseudonym, Elizabeth Cruwys, The Medieval Murderers, a joint pseudonym)

PERSONAL:

Born 1958; married; husband a historian. Education: Cambridge University, Ph.D. Hobbies and other interests: Singing, campanology, polar regions.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Wales. Agent—Sara Fisher, A.M. Heath & Co. Ltd., 6 Warwick Ct., London WC1R 5DJ, England.

CAREER:

Former police officer in Yorkshire, England; former coroner's offices; Cambridge University, Cambridge, England, research associate at the Scott Polar Research Institute.

WRITINGS:

"MATTHEW BARTHOLOMEW" SERIES;

A Plague on Both Your Houses (also see below), Warner (London, England), 1996, St. Martin's Press (New York, NY), 1998.

An Unholy Alliance (also see below), St. Martin's Press (New York, NY), 1996.

A Bone of Contention, St. Martin's Press (New York, NY), 1997.

A Deadly Brew, Little, Brown (London, England), 1998.

A Wicked Deed, 1999.

A Masterly Murder, 2000.

The First Matthew Bartholomew Omnibus, Little, Brown, 2001.

An Order for Death, 2001.

A Summer of Discontent, 2002.

A Killer in Winter, Little, Brown (London, England), 2003.

The Hand of Justice: The Tenth Chronicle of Matthew Bartholomew, Time Warner (London, England), 2004.

The Mark of a Murderer: The Eleventh Chronicle of Matthew Bartholomew, Little, Brown, 2005.

The Tarnished Chalice, Little, Brown, 2006.

To Kill or Cure, Sphere (London, England), 2007.

A Plague on Both Your Houses [and] Unholy Alliance, Little, Brown (London, England), 2007.

"SIR GEOFFREY DE MAPPESTONE" SERIES; WITH HUSBAND, UNDER JOINT PSEUDONYM SIMON BEAUFORT

Murder in the Holy City, St. Martin's Press (New York, NY), 1998.

A Head for Poisoning, St. Martin's Press (New York, NY), 1999.

The Bishop's Brood, Severn House (Sutton, England), 2003.

The King's Spies, Severn House (Sutton, England), 2003.

The Coiners' Quarrel, Severn House (Sutton, England), 2004.

"CHALONER" SERIES

A Conspiracy of Violence, Time Warner (London, England), 2006.

Blood on the Strand, Sphere (London, England), 2007.

WITH PHILIP GOODEN, MICHAEL JECKS, BERNARD KNIGHT, AND IAN MORSON; UNDER JOINT PSEUDONYM THE MEDIEVAL MURDERERS

The Tainted Relic: An Historical Mystery, Simon & Schuster (New York, NY), 2006.

House of Shadows, Simon & Schuster UK (London, England), 2007.

SIDELIGHTS:

Writing as Susanna Gregoy, Elizabeth Cruwys has built an interesting resume over the years. During her early career, she was a police officer in Yorkshire and a coroner. Eventually earning her doctorate at Cambridge University, she was hired by that institution as a marine biologist, specializing in ocean pollution clean up. Also interested in history, she is the author of three different mystery series set in the twelfth, fourteenth, and seventeenth centuries. Gregory also writes with others under the joint pseudonym The Medieval Murderers and with her husband under the joint pseudonym Simon Beaufort.

Gregory wrote her first "Matthew Bartholomew" mystery under the name Gregory while her husband was in Canada on an archaeological dig. The book is set in fourteenth-century Cambridge, a dark time when England and Europe are still trying to recover from the decimation of the Black Plague of 1348. Bartholomew, who has learned medicine from an Arabic man while he was in the Holy Land, has returned to teach at Michaelhouse College, Cambridge. Here he tries to teach a new generation of superstitious students modern scientific concepts. Meanwhile, the author portrays how university life was very different from today, with fierce rivalries between colleges sometimes spurring murderous jealousies. Because of his medical knowledge, Bartholomew is called upon whenever a corpse turns up, whether the person died of the plague or at the hands of a killer. Thus, he becomes coroner and amateur sleuth, teaming up with Brother Michael, a Benedictine monk who is also the university's provost.

The "Matthew Bartholomew" books have been noted for their complex plotting, interesting historical setting, and strong characterization. J. Kingston Pierce asserted in a January Magazine review that while A Plague on Both Your Houses makes for "challenging reading," the author "is expert at creating rich, realistic characters" and she "is equally adroit at capturing the atmosphere of England's bubonic plague era." A Tangled Web critic was convinced that "her books reflect her great depth of knowledge." Commenting that Gregory adds a great deal of levity to her tales by creating quirky characters and amusing dialogue, a MyShelf writer felt that The Hand of Justice: The TenthChronicle of Matthew Bartholomew is a "tubby tome full of fun, farce and fantasy as well as a whole pile of bodies and a teasing whodunit."

The "Chaloner" series is set during the English Restoration just after the fall of Oliver Cromwell and Charles II's ascension to the throne in 1660. The series is "far more restrained, with far fewer things to cause mirth, a darker tone and a fair bit of real history" compared to the "Bartholomew" books, according to a MyShelf contributor who reviewed A Conspiracy of Violence. Calling the work "probably Gregory's most thrilling book to date," the critic observed that the author still includes her usual "colourful characters" and complex plotting. The hero of the series is Thomas Chaloner. He was a spy for Cromwell and now finds himself unemployed. His former superior and fellow spy, John Thurloe, helps Chaloner find work with the Earl of Clarendon. Although a Publishers Weekly reviewer considered the first installment of the series "overly complicated" with a "less than satisfying" conclusion, other critics still found much to enjoy in the series. Luke Croll, writing about Blood on the Strand in Books 'n' Bytes, complimented the author's characterizations, dialogue, and use of witty humor, adding: "Susanna Gregory gives a master class in period writing. She successfully creates a wonderful atmosphere and London appears both vibrant and menacing thanks to her powerful descriptions."

Gregory teamed up with her husband on yet another series. The "Sir Geoffrey de Mappestone" books are written under the name Simon Beaufort and concern the adventures of a knight who has fought in the Crusades. The first book, Murder in the Holy City, involves murder in Jerusalem, while A Head for Poisoning is about Sir Geoffrey's return home to find that his father and sister have been poisoned. Other books in the series similarly involve murder and political intrigue during dangerous times in England when the rule of King Henry I is far from assured. As with her solo works, this collaborative series is imbued with the author's typically solid characterizations, humor, and eye for history, as a number of reviewers observed. For instance, Booklist writer Emily Melton commented that The King's Spies has a "fine plot, unexpected twists, engaging characters, [and] a liberal sprinkling of humor." In another Booklist review, Margaret Flanagan felt that Murder in the Holy City offers "an intriguing and authentically detailed historical setting for a tautly woven mystery."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, December 1, 1998, Margaret Flanagan, review of Murder in the Holy City, p. 652; June 1, 1999, Kathleen Hughes, review of A Head for Poisoning, p. 1799; August 1, 2003, Emily Melton, review of The Bishop's Brood, p. 1960; February 15, 2004, Emily Melton, review of The King's Spies, p. 1040.

Kirkus Reviews, September 1, 2004, review of The Hand of Justice: The Tenth Chronicle of Matthew Bartholomew, p. 839; October 15, 2005, review of The Mark of a Murderer: The Eleventh Chronicle of Matthew Bartholomew, p. 1109; September 1, 2006, review of The Tarnished Chalice, p. 878.

Library Journal, December 1, 1997, Rex E. Klett, review of A Bone of Contention, p. 158; October 1, 1998, Rex E. Klett, review of A Plague on Both Your Houses, p. 139; June 1, 1999, Rex E. Klett, review of A Head for Poisoning, p. 186; July 1, 2000, April 1, 2004, Rex Klett, review of A Killer in Winter, p. 128; December 1, 2004, Rex E. Klett, review of The Coiners' Quarrel, p. 94.

Publishers Weekly, November 25, 1996, review of An Unholy Alliance, p. 60; September 29, 1997, review of A Bone of Contention, p. 70; November 9, 1998, review of Murder in the Holy City, p. 60; May 10, 1999, review of A Head for Poisoning, p. 61; October 31, 2005, review of The Tainted Relic, p. 35; May 1, 2006, review of A Conspiracy of Violence, p. 41.

ONLINE

Book Bag,http://www.thebookbag.co.uk/ (July 18, 2007), Sue Magee, review of An Unholy Alliance.

Books 'n' Bytes,http://www.booksnbytes.com/ (July 18, 2007), Luke Croll, Blood on the Strand; Harriet Klausner, review of Murder in the Holy City.

January Magazine,http://januarymagazine.com/ (July 18, 2007), J. Kingston Pierce, "Sick and Twisted," review of A Plague on Both Your Houses.

MyShelf.com,http://www.myshelf.com/ (July 18, 2007), reviews of A Conspiracy of Violence, The Hand of Justice, A Killer in Winter, A Summer of Discontent, The Tarnished Chalice, The Mark of a Murderer, and Blood on the Strand; Rachel A. Hyde, reviews of An Order for Death and A Masterly Murder.

Mystery Women,http://www.mysterywomen.co.uk/ Ayo Onatade, "Interview with Susanna Gregory."

Susanna Gregory Home Page,http://www.matthewbartholomew.co.uk (July 18, 2007).

Tangled Web,http://www.twbooks.co.uk/ (October 1, 2005), review of The Mark of a Murderer.

Writers Write,http://www.writerswrite.com/ (October 1, 1998), Sarah Reaves White, review of A Bone of Contention.