#9 Crowner John historical mystery set in 1190's Devon. Lots of upheavals in the Crowner's life as the new Sheriff, who displaced his treacherous brother-in-law, begins dispensing the law. While honest, he's rather plodding and lazy and tends to let John handle most things. John's wife Matilda, a...
In May 1195, Sir John de Wolfe is summoned to inspect a corpse in Exeter’s cathedral precinct. Aaron of Salisbury, a Jewish money-lender, has been found dead, his head enveloped in a brown leather money bag, a scrap of folded parchment clutched in his hand. On it is written “And Jesus went into t...
Gilbert de Rideford is a Knight of the Temple of Solomon, and an old acquaintance from Crowner John's crusading days. He claims to have come into possession of a secret that could shake Christendom to its foundations—and he desperately needs John's help to escape from the secretive order of warri...
In December of 1194, the well-born ladies of Exeter are not having a good week. First, Christina Rifford, the daughter of a rich merchant, is raped. Then, just months before her marriage, Lady Adele de Courcy is found dead in one of the poorest areas of the city.The common factor is Godfrey Fitzo...
On Christmas Eve in 1194, Sir John de Wolfe gratefully escapes a party being given by his wife to examine the body of a canon who has been found hanged. Suicide is suspected, but it is soon apparent that there is far more to this case than meets the eye. As always, his investigations are hampered...
This is the second Crowner John mystery that I have listened to. Now that I had become familiar with the characters and the background, I found that I was truly drawn into this story, more easily drawn into the plot and for more engaged in the story. I actually became more engaged and intrigue...
It is 1194, and appointed by Richard the Lionheart as the first coroner for the county of Devon, Sir John de Wolfe, an ex-Crusader, rides out to the lonely moorland village of Widecombe to hold an inquest on an unidentified body. On his return to Exeter, the coroner is incensed to find that his o...
#7 Crowner John medieval mystery set in and around Exeter. Devon’s coroner is investigating doings in the King’s forest in the nearby countryside, spurred by a verderer found with an arrow in his back. There has long been conflict between forest officials and the people who live there, but this i...
Though a small room, its one window had a striking view across the beach and Cardigan Bay, from which sometimes Gwyn imagined he could see the Wicklow Mountains across the Irish Sea. He was waiting for Meirion Thomas to finish his phone call, which he had made after the sergeant had told him what...
‘The colonel’s back from his leave in the Cameron Highlands, so it’s business as usual. Get to his office at eight sharp, OK?’ It was seven fifteen on Friday morning, the new boy’s first full day at BMH. Six other officers were at the table and nodded a greeting, though this early in the day, no ...
It was normally hidden in the garage, so as not to attract too much attention from nosy neighbours so soon after his wife’s death, so he wondered where his mistress had been. Inside the front door, he found the answer in the shape of two large suitcases left in the hall – Daphne had not been anyw...
He lived in the largest dwelling in the town, second only in size to the manor house just outside, where Hugh of Chagford, one of the Wibbery family, was the local lord. Knapman’s residence was quite new, built of red sandstone brought from further south, rather than the grey moorstone used for m...
The coroner and his officer had examined it closely in Rougemont before leaving, the grisly object having spent most of the night in a corner of the garrison chapel of St Mary in the inner ward. The chaplain of the castle, a jovial Benedictine called Brother Rufus, had studied it with them, havin...
His efforts to contact Pabst had at least given him the feeling that he was doing something, and he felt the better for it. The fifth floor members of the Trans-Europa party gravitated to the same table. The two old ladies went across to join some even more senile friends, so the group came to co...
John had decided not to ride the older and heavier Bran and had rented another horse from Andrew’s stables, though Gwyn was happy to use his own brown mare. They stayed in inns on the way, a luxury after their rough living on the continent, but John was taking advantage of his recently increased ...
As before, the citizens were divided into two camps, those who thought it was a scandalous crime and those who felt that justice was being done in the most effective manner. In the last group was, of course, the apothecary Walter Winstone. He was surprised by the turn of events, as his intention ...
Something intangible triggered off his outsize sense of caution. He crossed the road and walked past his hideout without so much as giving the building a second glance. It was three days after Snigger’s visit and the square was in its mid-afternoon peaceful period. The slight young man with long ...
This was not, of course, a regular chapter meeting, which always took place between Prime and Terce, two of the services held earlier in the morning. However, many of the canons, vicars-choral, secondaries and choristers attended again, mainly out of curiosity about this novel event. Robert de Ba...
‘Sorry about this, sir, but we’ve been looking high and low for you all day. I’ve notified DI Grey; he’s coming back right away.’ ‘Can you tell me what’s going on, for Pete’s sake?’ asked an exasperated Colin. He had a headache and his mouth felt like the proverbial country closet. Masters was he...
The storm of a few nights ago had cleared the air and though it was warm, there was a breeze with white clouds scudding through a blue sky, instead of the hazy oppression that had hung over the Thames valley. De Wolfe trotted along contentedly on Odin’s back, the heavy destrier’s hairy feet thump...
His sergeant waited, too. Jimmy was sprawled in his favourite position near the window, where he could look across at the office girls in the Civic Centre opposite. There was silence as Jimmy watched the girls and Alec studied that morning’s newspaper. ‘The Journal’s done a good spread on the Big...
Moira, as their nominal secretary, felt obliged to be the one who answered it. A moment later she came back in again, an excited expression on her face. ‘I think you’d better talk to them, doctor,’ she said in a stage whisper, though the phone was outside. ‘Who is it, Moira?’ asked Angela, gettin...
When he reached the alehouse, he found - wonder of wonders - Gwyn standing outside, staring at the small estuary where the stream poured out across the beach into the sea. The tide was now right out and the vessels were high and dry, tilted over slightly on their flat keels. He realised from the ...
It’s near enough to being soap as makes little difference.’ The speaker prodded the pallid fat of a disintegrating leg which was lying before him on an enamel tray. Professor Powell seemed to be enjoying himself. Apart from the rubber gloves on his hands, he looked more li...