A Poultice for a Healer

A Poultice for a Healer by Roe, Caroline. hardcover edition. ISBN: 9780425191927.

It was to be a joyous occasion. Raquel, daughter of blind Jewish physician Isaac of Girona, was preparing to marry - but now her father has been summoned to aid the Bishop of Girona, felled by illness at his diocesan summer palace. So Raquel has reluctantly agreed to postpone the wedding - and her betrothed, Daniel, seems even more disappointed. To keep Daniel busy while he waits, his uncle the glovemaker, sends him to the seaport of Sant Feliu de Guixols to negotiate for rare dyes, beads, and exotic fur trimmings. He is not the only one there with an interest in the shipment. A wealthy Girona bootmaker has sent the newest member of his household, Jacob, as well. But after their arrival, a predatory fleet descends on the harbor. And after the pirates plunder the docks, Jacob disappears, and a worsening storm makes any search for him futile. Soon afterward, Isaac is confronted with a wounded man who arrives at the palace, claiming to have an urgent message for the bishop - a message that remains undelivered as he succumbs to his injuries and dies in spite of Isaacs best efforts to revive him. And before these puzzles can be unraveled, the residents of Girona will face a shocking surprise - and truths that some would prefer had remained hidden.