King Edward IV trembles as he decides the fate of his sibling. And Richard, Duke of Gloucester, plots, trying to find a way to save George from being put to death by their eldest -- and powerful -- brother, the King. So when the Duke sees his old and loyal servant, monk-turned-travelling salesman Roger the Chapman, among the crowd at the trial he recognises that he has a chance.If only the chapman-sleuth could prove that the kinswoman of the King's favorite leman hadn't poisoned her taciturn husband. If Isolda Bonifant, the daughter of a well-established London goldsmith, were innocent and her name cleared, then Edward's chief mistress -- cousin of the accused Isolda -- would be more than willing to do the wily Duke's bidding. But Roger the Chapman must act fast and, in a complex case like this one and with the pressure of Richard of Gloucester upon him, he can't simply rely on his intuition.|''Detailed descriptions of London streets, houses, food and goldsmithing techniques combine with convincing characters in a lively story sure to please existing fans and attract new ones''|''Smoothly honed plotting by Sedley; for all collections''
From Publishers Weekly
Amateur sleuth Roger the Chapman has very little to go on as once again Richard, Duke of Gloucester, calls on him to exercise his investigative skills in this 10th solid medieval mystery from British author Sedley (The Wicked Winter, etc.). Just after Christmas, 1477, Roger and his wife, Adela, journey from Bristol to London to see the festivities of the child marriage of King Edward IV's four-year-old son to the six-year-old Lady Anne Mowbray and for Roger to attend the trial of George, the Duke of Clarence, Edward and Richard's brother, who faces possible execution. Richard is hopeful that Roger can prove the innocence of Isolda Bonifant, a goldsmith's daughter and kinswoman of Jane Shore, Edward's favorite mistress who stands accused of poisoning her husband, so that Jane might return the favor and exert her influence on the king in George's behalf. In the process of carefully examining Isolda and all those who were in the house the night her husband was murdered, Roger unearths some dark family secrets. That the reader may be able to deduce what actually happened on the murder night before Roger does in no way detracts from Sedley's accurate and captivating recreation of the medieval world. Detailed descriptions of London streets, houses, food and goldsmithing techniques combine with convincing characters in a lively story sure to please existing fans and attract new ones. (Dec.)reviewed in Forecasts, Aug. 20.
Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
If Roger the Chapman, 15th-century peddler and series sleuth, can clear a London goldsmith's daughter of murdering her husband, he may also be able to save the life of the Duke of Gloucester's brother. Complicated but smoothly honed plotting by Sedley (The Weaver's Inheritance); for all collections.
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.