Death in Delft by Graham Brack

November 19, 2021

Death in Delft by Graham Brack

When three girls from vastly different backgrounds go missing in the normally quiet city of Delft, only one body is found buried in a shallow grave. The archbishop sends Master Mercurius, a cleric from the university, to investigate. With the help of the artist Vermeer, Mercurius works to track down the killer before another child goes missing.

This is the first book in a new series, with a likeable protagonist, although even the negative characters are sympathetic. Mercurius has a secret of his own that he very much wants to keep hidden. He is a kindly, intelligent man. There is a good mixture of historical and fictitious characters. The artist Vermeer is a particularly good character, with his large family. I hope he appears in future books.

Vermeer's painting of Delft in the 17th century