"The excellently written and interesting book by E.M. Rose fills an important gap in a vast body of work on this subject that was, quite astonishingly, not filled before....Anti-Semitic allegations of ritual murder must be seen from the point of view of the history of the locality, but also in a wide perspective that includes political, economic and religious developments, never isolated from the context of historical event. That is precisely what E.M. Rose achieves."--Hanna Zaremska, Kwartalnik Historyczny [translated from Polish]

"Emily Rose provides us with an accessible, interesting, often challenging, and elegantly written book. This is the most comprehensive study of the first known accusation of 'ritual murder' in its specific historical context .Emily Rose's very challenging monograph is certainly worth reading as it is thought-provoking and original. Her exhaustive analysis of Thomas of Monmouth's The Life and Passion of William of Norwich as the source of the ritual murder accusation (a legend that has caused much Jewish suffering) deserves to have a wide audience of general and Jewish history readers alike."--Myriam Greilsammer, Antisemitism Studies

"The Murder of William of Norwich is a sweeping revision of an influential scholarly story. Anyone who works on twelfth-century England, Anglo-Jewish history, or medieval and later antisemitisms will have to contend with this book. It is a significant accomplishment."--Adrienne Williams Boyarin, American Historical Review

"Rose has carefully re-evaluated Thomas' story, contextualizing its events in light of East Anglia's contemporary social and economic perturbations...The Murder of William of Norwich is a well-written, carefully researched, provocative, and supremely important book, offering a new and necessary starting point for anyone interested in the origins of medieval Christian violence against Jews."--Journal of Interdisciplinary History

"A landmark of historical research into the grotesque 800-year history of blood-libel accusations."--Wall Street Journal

"Lucid and exhaustively researched..."--The Times Literary Supplement

"A tremendous book. This is forensic historical reasoning allied to hugely readable storytelling: part murder mystery, part masterly thesis exploring a deeply unpleasant and sinister aspect of medieval culture, which is still of immense significance today. The Murder of William of Norwich is one the most stimulating pieces of serious historical storytelling I have read all year."--The Sunday Times

"Our explanation for Jewish creativity is that Jews have learned from experience that the entire world can believe something that is demonstrably false, such as the blood libel. This fine book takes us back in time to what may have been the first false accusation that a Jew (or 'the Jews') killed a Christian to obtain his blood for ritual purposes. It explains, without justifying, how so many could be so wrong for so long."--Alan Dershowitz, author of Abraham: The World's First (But Certainly Not Last) Jewish Lawyer

"E.M. Rose's book on the murder of William of Norwich is a breathtaking work of revision that addresses one of the central questions in the history of Christian/Jewish relations in the Middle Ages, a topic of enormous relevance in the contemporary world and one around which there is considerable scholarly contestation. The book is a brilliant piece of historical investigation and a marvelous read as well."--Gabrielle Spiegel, Krieger-Eisenhower Professor of History, Johns Hopkins University

"The storytelling by this first-time author is quite voluble, with the pen of a master narrator. The text is never boring, picking up new lines just when the old ones had run their course. A brilliant entry by this author, leaving us wanting a next book soon."--Huffington Post

"The book is lively, well-written, and consistently interesting." -- Robert C. Stacey, Catholic Historical Review