"Leroux was a wanted man and he had seen to that himself. He worked by fear, he spread horror about his name, and all his victims, once dead, were inscribed with his name. He would leave a patch of skin untouched and on the patch would incise two words. Leroux fecit. Just as if he were a sculptor boasting a fine piece of work, he would leave his mark. 'Leroux made this.'"
Prologue, pp. 14-15

"The New Cathedral, three centuries old with its two domed towers, was huge and serene in the in the sunlight. This city was not a place of trade, like Badajoz, but a place of learning, of prayer, of grace, of beauty that had little purpose but to please. It was a city of gold above a river of silver, and Sharpe was happy to be back."
Chap. 1, p. 24

"Harper watched for an...