Fools' Gold (Order of Darkness Book 3)

This second book in 'The Order of Darkness' series is aimed at teens, but so well written that adults can get wrapped up in the adventures of the three young people and their older priestly companion and mentor. Read the first book to get a handle on the characters and how their adventures in the middle ages began. The author uses historical events as a setting for these very different characters who come to travel together out of necessity on the young ladies' part. She covers the very different life of women in the muddle pages and the difficulty of life in that time. At the same time by the end of the story we see how history does repeat itself right into the not so distant past here in this country.Gramster25@gmail.com

I loved this book! The whole trilogy is great! I've read all of Philippa Gregory's novels and I think she is not only a genius but is the best modern day Historical novelist. The "Order of Darkness" trilogy was written for teenagers but since I have read everything she's written, and I was hungry for more of her writing, I decided to read these and was very happy with them and recommend not only teenagers read them, but anyone who loves a mystery and history. Gregory's new book won't be out for a few more months, which I've preordered, but this kind of filled my need until her book does come out. I highly recommend anything Gregory writes and would advise anyone to preorder her new book.

You can't leave me here, where do the little group go next. ?What's the next book's name? Please advise!

Philippa Gregory is one of my favorite authors because of her excellent knowledge of history and her research into little known facts about the time of which she is writing. The plot in this latest of the Order of Darkness series I appreciated more than Stormbringers. The characters seemed to have more depth and the plot more twists.

Book was for a gift

I started book one when we got it in our school library. I am an avid reader of Phillippa Gregory. This is the continuation of the travels of Luca, brother Peter, Isolde, ans Ishraq. Luca is an inquierer who is sent on a mission to discover counterfeiters in Venice in the 1450's. They find many things they do not expect & because of the counterfeiting Luca is unable to ransom his father from a slaving galley. Great historical read.

The book is easy reading and very entertaining.

I love historical fiction because you get to feel like you can explore a city in the past. I hope she can write a story in Morocco one day.

I enjoy almost everything Philippa Gregory writes, and this is no exception. It is well written, the reader becomes involved with - cares about - the characters, and interest is sustained until the end. That - the end - is where I have a reservation. As the final volume of a trilogy, there are many threads to be drawn together, many knots to be undone (if this seems a mix of metaphors, then the French word "denouement" renders my gist.) The book fails to satisfy that need. A kind of conclusion is reached, but one is left with a hundred questions. Some of these, in general terms, are addressed by Dr Gregory in an afterword - but "general terms" are not enough. One demands a further volume, for this necessity to be met. So my problem is not with the novel, but with the novel as the last of three. Recommended as a "stand alone" (if you can pick up the identity of the characters without having read the book's two predecessors.)

I had not come across this particular cast of Phillipa Gregory characters before, but will definitely read the full series now. Luca, Isolde, Frieze and Ishtaq are an engaging foursome, on a mission for a clandestine organisation to the medieval Venetian Republic which is busily indulging itself in an orgy of speculation on gold coins, which may or may not be all that they seem. Let's just say that every bubble has to burst!There are a couple of interesting sub plots (the enslavement of Luca's parents for one), which keep the action rattling along: Venice, as always, does not disappoint as a location in which complex and dramatic situations evolve and I really enjoyed the whole book. It is character driven, and that extends beyond the key protagonists, so that the tale as it spins out is well rounded, and cohesive. It can be read as a stand alone, but the main characters are so engaging, that you do want to read more about them, the secretive Order of Darkness for whom they work, their back stories, and future adventures.Definitely a good read.

I have read all Philippa's historical novels and loved them. It awakened an interest in the Tudor period that I didn't know was there. Even when I knew the ending (Ann Boleyn's beheading) I still found myself getting anxious about the outcome.Not so with this book. I found Fool's Gold hard going, and not at all a page turner.I kept with it though in the hope it would get better or have a good twist to the story. I am afraid I couldn't get interested in the characters or even the storyline.Usually I hate getting to the end of a good book, but in this case I was glad to finish it.

I had read the first book of the series, called The Changeling, this was the continuation. It is the story of a gifted young man in the Middle ages, who is working for a monk who is trying to solve the mysteries of religion etc. The monk is a dark and malevolent character who plots.I enjoyed reading it, though it was just a fraction of the whole plot which has not been written yet.I am not thinking of recommending it to anyone. For children it would interfere with the religion which is taught at home and at school, for adults, it would have to be someone just like me.

This book is a work of art by Gregory- it has everything! Romance, excitement, mystery, magic, betrayal...My favourite character is Isolde, a heiress cruelly deceived by her own brother, and a close friend to Ishraq, but as you may find out, Ishraq may waver on being such a good friend to Isolde...My only complaint of this fantastic book is that the love triangle has been executed rather... strangely. I have yet to make sense of it and I am not usually one to be confused by these things. Nonetheless, I look forward to the next book... Bring it on !!