Lord Amerotke, Pharaoh's Chief Judge, is already in the middle of a murder case when it seems that there is another grave murder to investigate. One of Egypt's great heroes has been brutally killed and Pharaoh Hatusu herself has decided to intervene. She believes that General Balet's murder is only the beginning and she calls on Judge Amerotke for help. There is more to link the deaths than originally meets the eye - but can Amerotke track down the killer before he strikes again?
Paul Doherty's brilliant new Amerotke novel will take you on a compelling journey into the glory, splendour and corruption of Ancient Egypt. 1477 BC and once again treacherous forces are on the rise in Egypt. Fresh from her victories in the north, Pharaoh Queen Hatusu has returned to Thebes to find sinister threats emerging from neighbouring province Nubia. The Arites, a secret murderous sect, are waging bloody war against the Pharaoh. Imperial messengers and members of the Medjay, Egypt's elite army, are disappearing around the Oasis of Sinjar and now Imothep, formerly chief scout for the Spies of Sobeck, has been found strangled in a fortified room at his mansion. The Arites are on the hunt. Will Amerotke, Chief Judge of the Hall of Two Truths, be able to confront this boiling mist of murder and treason, and save Hatusu, before Egypt is overrun by its menacing and dangerous underworld?
A medieval mystery featuring sleuthing monk Brother Athelstan" May, 1381. The Great Revolt draws ever nearer. The Upright Men openly roam the streets of London, waiting for the violence to begin. Their mysterious envoy, the Herald of Hell, appears at night all over the city, striking terror into the hearts of those who oppose them. But who is he? When his chancery clerk is found hanged in a notorious Southwark brothel, the ruthless Thibault, John of Gaunt s Master of Secrets, summons Brother Athelstan to investigate. Did Amaury Whitfield really kill himself following a visit from the terrifying Herald of Hell? Athelstan is unconvinced. In the dead man s possession was a manuscript containing a great secret which he had been striving to decipher. If he could only unlock the cipher and interpret the messages being carried to the so-called Herald of Hell, Athelstan would be one step closer to catching the killer. But can he crack the code before the Great Revolt begins?
After the death of her husband Pharoh Tuthmosis II, Hatusu has confounded her critics by winning a great battle against the Mitanni. Aided by her lover, Senenmut, she is determined that all sections of Egyptian society should accept her as the first Pharaoh-Queen of Egypt - an acceptance that needs the favour and support of the priests. When a spate of killings takes place in the Divine Temple of Horus, the naturally superstitious priests interpret this as a sign of the Gods' disapproval of Hatusu's rule of Egypt. The royal city turns once again to respected judge Amerotke to find the truth.
Known as the Veiled One, the ugly and deformed Akenhaten is a shadowy figure. As a child he was overlooked and despised by his own father, but as an adult he is thrust into the political limelight when his elder brother dies. Mahu, ambitious and ruthless, watches the young prince carve his path to power. He becomes Akenhaten’s protector and confidant and stands by as Akenhaten proclaims that there is only one God and that he is that God’s only son. Revolution and chaos ensure in a dramatic reign filled with fraud, abduction, assassination, betrayal, and treachery. When Mahu becomes suspicious of Akenhaten’s majestic and glorious wife Nefertiti and the political skill of her brother Ay, he suspects that a hidden and malign influence may have placed Akenhaten’s life in grave peril.
Brother Athelstan's Canterbury pilgrimage is disrupted by brutal murder in the latest absorbing medieval mystery. Summer, 1381. The Great Revolt has been crushed; the king's peace ruthlessly enforced. Brother Athelstan meanwhile is preparing for a pilgrimage to St Thomas a Becket's shrine in Canterbury to give thanks for the wellbeing of his congregation after the violent rebellion. But preparations are disrupted when Athelstan is summoned to a modest house in Cheapside, scene of a brutal triple murder. One of the victims was the chief clerk of the Secret Chancery of John of Gaunt. Could this be an act of revenge by the Upright Men, those rebels who survived the Great Revolt? At the same time Athelstan is receiving menacing messages from an assassin who calls himself Azrael, the Angel of Death? Who is he - and why is he targeting a harmless friar? Could Athelstan's pilgrimage be leading him into a deadly trap?
"December, 1380. When the corpse of Sir Robert Kilverby, a wealthy Cheapside merchant is discovered in a locked room, Brother Athelstan accompanies the King's coroner to investigate. For the late Sir Robert had in his possession a priceless relic, a sacred bloodstone which he was planning to donate to the Abbey of St Fulcher-on-Thames. The bloodstone has disappeared and the Regent, John of Gaunt, who covets the relic for himself, is taking an uncomfortably close interest in the case."--Jacket.
Sleuthing monk Brother Athelstan discovers that past crimes can cause new murder in the latest intriguing medieval mystery June, 1381. The rebel armies are massed outside London, determined to overturn both Crown and Church. The Regent, John of Gaunt, has headed north, leaving his nephew, the boy-king Richard II, unprotected. Brother Athelstan meanwhile has been summoned to the monastery at Blackfriars, tasked with solving the murder of his fellow priest, Brother Alberic, found stabbed to death in his locked chamber. Athelstan would rather be protecting his parishioners at St Erconwald's. Instead, he finds himself investigating a royal murder that took place fifty-four years earlier whilst the rebel leaders plot the present king's destruction. What does the fate of the king's great-grandfather, Edward II, have to do with the murder of Brother Alberic more than fifty years later? When he finds his own life under threat, Athelstan discovers that exposing past secrets can lead to present danger.
January, 1381. As guests of the Regent, John of Gaunt, Brother Athelstan and Sir John Cranston have been attending a mystery play performed by the Straw Men, Gaunt's personal acting troupe, in St John's Chapel in the Tower of London when the evening's entertainment is rudely interrupted by sudden, violent death.
The Extraordinary Story of the First Big Bank Raid in History
288 pages
11 hours of reading
During the reign of King Charles II, Colonel Blood famously attempted to steal the crown jewels, but this was not the first plot of its kind. Three centuries earlier, in 1303, Edward I of England was focused on subduing William Wallace while his royal treasures were secured behind iron doors in Westminster Abbey, a revered site inhabited by Benedictine monks. Enter Richard Puddlicott, a charming rogue and former merchant with a vendetta against the king. He cleverly infiltrated the Abbey's inner circle, entertaining the monks with their own silver, and managed to pilfer a significant portion of the treasure. The King's outrage was immense, yet Puddlicott evaded capture for a time, leading the King's men on a wild chase before ultimately being caught and sentenced to death alongside forty monks in Westminster. This thrilling narrative, filled with cunning, deceit, and the colorful lives of monks, pimps, and prostitutes, recounts the first great bank raid in history. Until now, little has been documented about this event, much of the evidence remaining in manuscripts written in Latin or Norman French. Paul Doherty masterfully blends vivid storytelling with historical analysis, revealing the medieval underworld and the complexities of the monastic community, resulting in an enlightening and captivating read.
Friar-sleuth Brother Athelstan is summoned to investigate the suspicious deaths of two clerks who work for John of Gaunt's sinister Master of Secrets. If it was murder, how did the killer breach a maze of locked doors without a trace? Athelstan must uncover the truth in this gripping historical mystery set in medieval London.
In the fourth novel of Paul Doherty's Ancient Roman series, Claudia, the secret agent of Empress Helena, faces a killer who is stalking the streets of Rome.
In autumn 1379, the power of the British crown is invested in John of Gaunt, and the kingdom is seething with discontent. The French are attacking the southern ports and peasants are planning a revolt organized by a mysterious leader who proclaims himself “IRA DEI,” the anger of God. Meanwhile Gaunt's tenuous plans are plunged into chaos by a series of bloody murders in London. In desperation, Gaunt turns to Sir John Cranston to catch the killer and recover a vanished king’s ransom in gold. Together with his ally Brother Athelstan, Cranston must face threats from the most powerful classes as well as attacks from the seedy underworld—along with a chilling exorcism—in order to bring a subtle murderer to justice.
It is 1312 and, with Westminster in turmoil and the Kingdom edging towards
civil war, Sir Hugh Corbett is drawn into a web of murder. Paul Doherty's
twenty-second enthralling medieval mystery is sure to appeal to fans of C. J.
Sansom, E. M. Powell and Bernard Cornwell.
Summer, 1379. Sir John Cranston, coroner of the city of London, is trapped into a wager with Signor Gian Galeazzo, Lord of Cremona, when challenged to resolve a certain murder mystery within two weeks. Men have been found dead in the scarlet chamber of one of Cremona's manors. They have no mark upon them; they have neither drunk nor eaten poison; there are no secret passageways or entrances to the room. And they all have an awful expression of terror upon their faces. Realising his reputation and future wealth rest upon the solving of this mystery, Cranston seeks the help of his faithful secretarius, Brother Athelstan.
"A series of grisly deaths are linked to the sacred Stone of Scone in this compelling medieval mystery featuring friar-sleuth Brother Athelstan. This abbey is a strange place, Brother Athelstan. A hall of ghosts, a place of flitting shadows. The dead throng here. I can hear them whispering as they ride the air. During the harsh winter of 1381 murder stalks the streets of London in all its grisly forms. The city's prostitutes are falling prey to a silent, deadly assassin known as The Flayer who carefully peels his victims' skins for his collection. At the same time, Westminster Abbey, which houses the sacred Stone of Scone, is plagued by a series of hideous poisonings. Could there be a connection between these brutally violent deaths and the stone, which the English crown cherishes as a symbol of its rule over Scotland? Then there are the two former Upright Men, leaders of the Great Revolt, who are found mysteriously hanged in the Piebald Tavern, close to Brother Athelstan's parish church of St Erconwald - and Athelstan is faced with his most baffling investigation to date. Can he navigate this deadly maze of murder and intrigue and pull the various threads together?"--Provided by publisher.
February, 1381. Splendid Southwark tavern, The Candle-Flame, is the site of a brutal massacre in which nine people, including John of Gaunt's tax collectors, their military escort and the prostitutes entertaining them, are murdered. The furious Regent orders Brother Athelstan to track down the culprits.
Brother Athelstan is summoned to Queenhithe to investigate the murder of a priest who has been found stabbed to death inside his own locked church. Other disturbing discoveries include an empty coffin and a ransacked money chest. Who would commit murder inside a holy church - and steal treasure belonging to the most feared gangleader in London?
January 1304 and Hugh Corbett, devoted emissary of King Edward I, has been charged with yet another dangerous mission. Scrope, an unscrupulous manor lord, has reneged on his promise to hand over a priceless ornate cross he stole from the Templars during the Crusades. Furthermore, he has massacred as heretics fourteen members of a religious order, whose corpses now hang in the woods near Mistleham in Essex. The King, determined to restore order sends Corbett to Mistleham in his stead.But as Corbett reaches the troubled village, it becomes obvious that the situation has worsened. A mysterious bowman has appeared, killing townspeople at random. Is one of the Brethren responsible, or have the Templars arrived to wreak revenge? Can Corbett restore Mistleham to peace, and return the treasure to the King, before further blood is shed?
England, 1311. In the dark of the North the devil lies in wait... The gripping
nineteenth novel in the ever-popular Hugh Corbett series by Paul Doherty. A
dramatic medieval mystery not to be missed by readers of C. J. Sansom, E. M.
Powell and Bernard Cornwell.
London, 1382. The Crown's treasury, the most secure chamber in the kingdom,
has been robbed, and the five guards brutally killed. Brother Athelstan is set
to investigate, but he has problems of his own. A body is found in the nave of
his parish church, identified as a craftsman who fashioned the complex locks
to the royal treasure chamber . . .
It is 1301 and a fragile peace exists between Edward of England and Philip IV of France. In the fetid alleys and slums of London and Paris it is a different matter. Here the secret agents of both countries still fight their own, silent, deadly battles. The Prince of Wales wallows in luxury under the sinister influence of his favourite, Gaveston, who has secret political ambitions to dominate the young prince and the English crown. These scandals are threatened with exposure when Lady Belmont, the prince's former mistress, is found dead, her neck broken, at the foot of a nunnery's steps. Was it suicide? An accident? Or malicious murder? Edward turns to his master spy, Hugh Corbett, to solve the mystery. In doing so, Corbett must face the deadly rivalry of his French counterpart, the murderous rage of Gaveston and the silent threats of assassins. He must also contend with the lies and silken deceits of his own master.
In December 1377 a great frost has the city in its icy grip; even the Thames is frozen from bank to bank. Murder, revenge and treachery also make their presence felt. The Constable of the Tower of London, Sir Ralph Whitton, is found murdered in a cold bleak chamber in the North Bastion. The door is still locked from the inside and guarded by trusted retainers - so how did the assassins slip across a frozen moat and climb the sheer wall to commit such a dreadful crime? Athelstan and Sir John Cranston, the wine-loving coroner of the city of London, are appointed to investigate these mysteries. They soon discover Sir Ralph's murder is only the first in a series of macabre killings which have their roots in a terrible act of betrayal committed many years previously.
The shadows around the English Crown grow ever darker in the twenty-first
instalment of the much-loved Hugh Corbett series by Paul Doherty. An
enthralling medieval mystery not to be missed by fans of C. J. Sansom, E. M.
Powell and Bernard Cornwell.
Matthias Fitzosbert is the illegitimate son of the parish priest of the village of Sutton Courteny. Despite the recent spate of murders, each day he braves the dark woods to visit his friend, a mysterious hermit who shows him many strange and beautiful things. Though enthralled, the boy is always puzzled by his lessons with the hermit - never more so than the night the villagers hunt the hermit down, and burn him, believing him to be responsible for the many deaths. THE ROSE DEMON explores Matthias's unique relationship with a spirit he strives to placate but ultimately flees from. His story is played out against the vivid panorama of medieval life: the fall and sack of Constantinople; the turbulent Wars of the Roses; the terror of witchcraft; the battlefields of Spain and finally the lush jungles of the Caribbean where the Rose Demon and Matthias have one final, dramatic confrontation.
Hatusu, the remarkable young widow of Pharaoh Tuthmosis II, has forced Egyptian society to acknowledge her as Pharaoh, and her success in battle is spreading Egypt's glory well beyond its frontiers. In the Temple of Anubis, Hatusu and the defeated King Tushratta of Mitanni are negotiating a peace treaty that will seal her greatest victory. But then two hideous murders in the temple and the theft of the Glory of Anubis threaten the tentative truce, and the respected judge Amerotke must find the perpetrators.
February, 1381. A ruthless killer is known as the Ignifer - Fire Bringer - is rampaging through London, bringing agonizing death and destruction in his wake. He appears to be targeting all those involved in the recent trial and conviction of the beautiful Lady Isolda Beaumont, burned at the stake for the murder of her husband. As the late Sir Walter Beaumont was a close friend of the Regent, John of Gaunt orders Sir John Cranston and Brother Athelstan to investigate.
A new novel of murder in the reign of Pharoah Hatusu featuring Judge Amerotke as the crime-solver. At a peace treaty signing between Egypt and Libya in Thebes, three of Egypt's leading scribes die violently on the Temple forecourt, the victims of a vile poisoning. To add to the mounting unease, a prosperous merchant and his young wife are found drowned. Rumours soon sweep the imperial city. The Poisoner of Ptah has returned. It falls to Amerotke, Chief Judge of the Halls of Two Truths, to investigate these hideous crimes - his hunt for the Poisoner leads him to discover yet more suspicion and potential danger. This story sees the Judge pit his wits against a cunning opponent who seems intent on spreading his death-dealing powders. Amerotke enters the twilight world of glorious Thebes where life can be so rich and yet death so swift and brutal.
When Margaret Beaufort is invited to George Neville's beautiful home 'The Moor' to investigate some gruesome murders she knows dark forces are at play. She suspects there is a link to the fateful battle of Barnet and the murderer who seems relentless in his thirst for blood. She must tread carefully in this dangerous game of kings!
1286 and on a storm-ridden night King Alexander III of Scotland is riding across the Firth of Forth to meet his beautiful French bride Yolande. He never reaches his final destination as his horse mysteriously slips, sending them both crashing to their death on cruel rocks. The Scottish throne is left vacant of any real heir and immediately the great European princes and the powerful nobles of Alexander's kingdom start fighting for the glittering prize. The Chancellor of England, Burnell, ever mindful of the interest his king, Edward I, has in Scotland, sends his faithful clerk, Hugh Corbett, to report on the chaotic situation at the Scottish court. Concerned that a connection exists between the king's death and those now desirous of taking the Scottish throne, Corbett is drawn into a maelstrom of intrigue, conspiracy and danger.
In 1517 the English armies have defeated and killed James IV of Scotland at Flodden and James's widow-queen, Margaret, sister to Henry VIII, has fled to England, leaving her crown under a Council of Regency.Roger Shallot is drawn into a web of mystery and murder by his close friendship with Benjamin Daunbey, the nephew of Cardinal Wolsey, first minister of Henry VIII. Benjamin and Roger are ordered into Margaret's household to resolve certain mysteries as well as to bring about her restoration to Scotland.They begin by questioning Selkirk, a half-mad physician imprisoned in the Tower. He is subsequently found poisoned in a locked chamber guarded by soldiers. The only clue is a poem of riddles. However, the poem contains the seeds for other gruesome murders. The faceless assassin always leaves a white rose, the mark of Les Blancs Sangliers, a secret society plotting the overthrow of the Tudor monarchy...This novel was previously published under the pseudonym Michael Clynes.
November, 1471. The newly-widowed Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Richmond, is
alone, without protectors. The discovery of the body of an unexpected visitor,
found murdered in a locked room in her London townhouse, heralds the start of
a series of increasingly menacing incidents which threaten Margaret and her
household. Is there an enemy within?
In the summer of 314, dark figures who lurk in the twilight of Roman society
are on the prowl, and Rome is shocked by a series of gruesome murders in the
third novel featuring imperial secret agent Claudia
After Pharaoh Tuthmosis II's victorious return to Thebes, he dies at the statue of Amun-Ra. His death triggers a witch's curse on his unfinished tomb, leading to a chain of events that uncovers Egypt's great secrets.
By 1322, Mathilde of Westminster was considered the finest physician in London. But in her years as lady-in-waiting to Princess Isabella, she was drawn into the murky politics of the English court, where sudden, mysterious death was part of the tapestry of life. Many years later, Mathilde looks back and chronicles her turbulent life. With her sharp, suspicious intellect ready to distinguish between a fatality and an unnatural death, Mathilde is confronted by a host of chilling murders. The source of these horrors is the fierce political rivalry between Philip of France and Edward of England. This manifests itself in a series of gruesome killings, one of which actually took place during Edward II's Coronation, when a knight of the Royal Household, Sir John Baquelle was crushed to death.
Agrippina, wife of Claudius, mother of Nero, was a beautiful and talented woman who saw her father murdered, was banished by her brother, and was killed on the orders of her son. Her freed man, a one-eyed former gladiator named Parmenon, tells of Agrippina's battle to survive in and control the depraved and violent Imperial Roman court, and the crumbling relationship between mother and son.
What-or who-really killed Egypt's glorious young king?Since the discovery of the magnificent tomb of Tutankhamun at Thebes by Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon in 1922, the name of the young Pharaoh has become famous throughout the world.The boy-king came to the throne aged twelve during one of Egypt's most turbulent periods, when religious dissent threatened to destroy a mighty empire. He should have lived out a long and prosperous reign but died mysteriously just six years after his accession, aged just eighteen.Was he secretly assassinated by the powerful cartel that ran the court and the country? What part did Ay, Tutankhamun's ambitious first minister, play in his master's death? Did Ay murder the Pharaoh to claim the imperial crown for himself?Using modern research, coupled with Carter's original testimony, Paul Doherty presents a thought-provoking account, resolving many contentious issues, offering important new theories and explaining the dark intrigue that surrounded the untimely death of Tutankhamun.
October, 1471. Margaret Beaufort secretly plots for the day her young son, Henry Tudor, can be crowned the rightful king. When one of her most loyal henchmen is murdered, Margaret orders her sharp-witted clerk, Christopher Urswicke, to find out who has betrayed her - and solve a baffling mystery where nothing is as it first appears.
Winner of the Irish Book Awards' National Book Tokens' Non-Fiction Book of the Year and The John Murray Show Listeners' Choice Award, a candid memoir of a middle-aged man on the verge of disaster—and how love brings him back from the brink Michael Harding gives a brutally honest and beautifully written account of his journey through life, and his failed attempts to find meaning which brought about a long period of depression. But this is a love story and Michael comes to realize that all things are sustained by love and this is where real meaning resides.
1471. The Wars of the Roses. Edward of York has claimed the throne, and Margaret Beaufort, mother to Henry Tudor, the last hope of the House of Lancaster, is in grave danger. When four bodies are discovered in a London tavern, and suspicion falls on Margaret herself, it's up to her sharp-witted clerk, Ulswicke, to prove her innocence.
In 13th century China, Kublai Khan faces a terrifying threat from a demonic sect committing brutal murders that endanger his empire. He seeks the wisdom of the Venetian traveler Marco Polo to help confront this menace.
It's 1095 and crusading fervor has swept Europe. Hugh de Payens and Godefroi of St. Omer, the soon-to-be founders of the Templar Order, and Hugh's younger sister, Eleanor, leave the security of their homes in Burgundy, France, with a plan to join Count Raymond of Toulouse's army, and march across the known world to Jerusalem.
An Ellis Peters Memorial Anthology of Historical Crime
356 pages
13 hours of reading
Edith Pargeter, who also writes under the name Ellis Peters, previously combined her passion for history and storytelling in her creation of the much-loved monk, Brother Cadfael. It was she who paved the way for many others to explore the past through the thriving field of historical mysteries, and for this she was loved by readers and other writers alike. Past Poisons is a bumper crop of outstanding new short stories by the leading American and British historical crime writers, all wishing to pay tribute to the work of Ellis Peters. Maxim Jakubowski is a former publisher and owner of the world-famous Murder One bookshop in London's Charing Cross Road. As well as being a writer and editor of various past cult publishing imprints, he is acknowledged as a disturbing and controversial voice in contemporary fiction. His collections have sold massively. He is a regular on television and radio where he is an expert on crime, erotica, and film. As a columnist for the Guardian he also writes on the arts for The Times. Maxim is literary director of the prestigious Crime Scene festival held at London's National Film Theatre. He is the author of many titles including Skin In Darkness, but also the editor for Past Poisons (An Ellis Peters Memorial Anthology of Historical Crime) and Murder Through the Ages.
In England war 1558 ein Jahr finsterer und blutiger Verschwörung. Königin Mary, von ihrem Ehemann Philipp von Spanien verlassen, sieht sich einem immer enger werdenden Kreis von Verschwörung und Betrug gegenüber. Gerüchte und Flüstern deuten darauf hin, dass sie, wie ihr erster Minister Reginald Kardinal Pole, langsam durch ein subtiles Gift ermordet wird. Viele würden von Marys Tod profitieren: Catherine de' Medici, Königin von Frankreich und "Herrin der Gifte", beobachtet und wartet; die schöne Mary, Königin von Schottland, die in den Augen der englischen Katholiken als Thronfolgerin gilt, wäre mehr als glücklich, den glitzernden Preis zu ergreifen; Papst Paul IV. überwacht die seidenen Fäden des Verrats von seinem Platz in Rom; nicht zuletzt berät sich die Halbschwester der Königin, Elizabeth, mit ihrem "kleinen Zauberer", William Cecil. Wer steckt hinter den Briefen, die von den "Vier Evangelisten" unterzeichnet sind? Was verbirgt sich hinter dem Satz "Markus 15,34"? Was sagt ein Vers aus den Evangelien über die zukünftige Nachfolge Englands voraus? Nicholas Segalla, ein geheimnisvoller Gelehrter und Diplomat, der dazu verflucht ist, ewig über die Erde zu wandern, muss sich durch dieses Netz von byzantinischer Intrige bewegen, nicht nur am Hof, sondern auch in den schäbigen Gassen und düsteren Festungen des Tower of London.
Nejmilejší synovec kardinála Wolseyho, Benjamin Daunbey, und sein treuer Diener und Begleiter Roger Shallot werden im Frühjahr 1523 nach London gerufen. In Cheapside wurde der florentinische Gesandte Francesco Abrizzi brutal ermordet. Jemand hat ihm mit einer neu entwickelten Pistole in den Kopf geschossen, und König Heinrich VIII. beschließt, den Täter dieses Verbrechens zu finden. Auf dem Weg zum Hof wollen sie den alten Hofarzt Sir Edward Throcklea aufsuchen, finden jedoch ein verlassenes Haus und den Arzt blutend auf dem Boden. Es sieht so aus, als hätte der Unglückliche Selbstmord begangen. In London wird Shallot mit dem königlichen Zorn, Beleidigungen von Abrizzis Verwandten und einem Mordanschlag konfrontiert. Shallot, der beharrlich betont, kein Held zu sein, sehnt sich nur danach, zu fliehen und sich zu verstecken. Doch König und Kardinal Wolsey sind anderer Meinung - Benjamin und Shallot müssen den Spuren des Verbrechens nach Florenz folgen. Ihre Aufgabe ist es, den Mörder zu finden, eine geheime Botschaft an den florentinischen Herrscher aus dem Hause Medici zu überbringen und einen bestimmten Maler zu überzeugen, nach England zu reisen. Doch die Realität ist grausam anders, und eine überraschende Abfolge von Ereignissen wird England und ganz Europa für immer beeinflussen.
Maria Stuart war schon zu Lebzeiten eine Legende. Der Name der geheimnisumwitterten Königin ist verbunden mit Intrigen, Verschwörungen, Liebesaffären - und Mord. Nicht wenige Zeitgenossen hielten sie am myteriösen Tod ihres zweiten Gemahls, Lord Darnley, für schuldig. Sicher ist nur die Todesursache: eine gewaltige Explosion in der Probstei, in der Darnley sich kurzfristig aufhielt. Ann Dukthas rollt das historische Verbrechen wieder auf und löst es auf geniale Weise durch einen einzigartigen Zeitzeugen.
Kardinal Wolsey, der Minister Heinrichs VIII., hat erneut einen heiklen Auftrag für seinen Neffen Benjamin Daunby und dessen treuen, aber leichtfertigen Gefährten Roger Shallot. Der Erste Sekretär des englischen Botschafters in Paris wurde ermordet - im Land der traditionellen Feinde und Unruhestifter. Und das gerade jetzt, wo offensichtlich ein Spion an empfindlicher Stelle sitzt, der höchst brisante Informationen an die Franzosen liefert und damit das Reich in seinen Grundfesten erschüttert. Hier sind Daunbys Kombinationsgabe und Takt gefragt - und Shallots Talent, noch in der aussichtslosesten Situation ein Hintertürchen zu entdecken...
Übel zugerichtete Leichen werden 1564 in England gefunden. Eine blutige Spur zieht sich durch das Land, gezeichnet von einem, der keine Gnade kennt: Frogmore, der Seelenräuber. Er, der einen Pakt mit dem Teufel schloss, steigert seine Kräfte mit jedem Herz, dass er einer menschlichen Brust entreißt. Vorbei sind jedoch die Zeiten, in denen er unbekannt sein Werk vollbringt. Längst haben die großen Herrscher von ihm gehört und Frogmore hat alle Hände voll zu tun diverse Söldner abzuschütteln. Ein Verfolger jedoch bleibt ihm auf den Fersen, der Jesuitenpriester Michael St. Clair. Er scheint der Einzige zu sein, der Frogmore wirklich gefährlich werden kann, doch braucht er dazu nicht nur Mut und kämpferisches Geschick. Ohne die Hilfe einer Jungfrau ist auch St. Clairs Kampf gegen das Böse aussichtslos.
Die neue „Heilerin von Canterbury“ - Ein grandioser Mittelalterkrimi England im Mittelalter. Die Ärztin und Heilerin Kathryn Swinbrooke wird vom Bischof von Canterbury bei einem rätselhaften Kriminalfall um Hilfe gebeten: Die heilige Reliquie „Lacrima Christi“, ein höchst wertvoller Rubin, wurde aus dem Kloster von Canterbury gestohlen. Kurz darauf geschieht ein brutaler Mord. Wenn es Kathryn nicht gelingt, den Täter zu finden, könnte sie selbst das nächste Opfer sein.
Nadat Alexander de Grote in 334 v. Chr. Efeze heeft veroverd, breken er hevige onlusten uit die culmineren in enkele moorden; Alexanders lijfarts gaat op onderzoek uit.
Paul Doherty est né à Middlesbrough, dans le Yorkshire. Il est l'auteur de plusieurs séries historico-policières, dont notamment : les enquêtes de frère Athelstan, un dominicain du XIIIe siècle ; les enquêtes de Hugh Corbett, espion du roi Édouard Ier ; et celles d'Amerotkê, juge dans l'Égypte du XVe siècle avant J.-C.. Il est aujourd'hui professeur d'histoire médiévale.
Inghilterra, 1522. Tra le pagine di un antico manoscritto, Nicholas Hopkins, monaco benedettino dell'abbazia di Glastonbury, rinviene un misterioso enigma. Secondo il monaco quelle parole indicano i luoghi dove si celano il Santo Graal e la leggendaria spada Excalibur. Ma le due reliquie, simboli di sacralità e di potere, fanno gola a molti. Primo fra tutti al sanguinario re Enrico VIII, ansioso di sancire la legittimità della dinastia Tudor. Ma anche alla setta dei Templari: un ordine sciolto da tempo, che segretamente continua a praticare i propri riti e sostiene la casata avversa, quella degli York. Tocca a Benjamin Daunbey, nipote del potente cardinale Wolsey, e al suo aiutante Roger Shallot trovare le reliquie per conto della Corona.
Als frisch gebackene Ehefrau ist Kathryn Swinbrooke mit ihrem Mann Zeuge eines wichtigen Treffens, das über das Schicksal des englischen Köngis entscheiden kann: Lord Henry Beauchamp empfängt die Emissäre des französischen Köngis. Doch bald zeigt sich, dass die Gesandten vom Kontinent Unheil und Verrat im Gepäck haben. Als die ersten Giftmorde geschehen, sieht sich Kathryn plötzlich gezwungen, die Täter zu finden, um ein schreckliches Blutbad zu vermeiden.
Gift und Galle für einen König
Alessandro Magno è penetrato in Asia e ha sbaragliato l'esercito persiano nella battaglia di Granico. Nella sua marcia verso sud ha conquistato tutte le città che ha incontrato, compresa la grande città di Efeso, ma sa, come d'altronde sanno i suoi nemici, che il vero obiettivo strategico è Alicarnasso, le cui fortificazioni intimoriscono chiunque voglia attaccarla. Alessandro fa accampare le truppe alle porte della città, difesa da un suo vecchio nemico, Memnone di Rodi. Quando manca poco all'attacco finale, una serie di omicidi insanguina il campo macedone. Il medico Telamone riuscirà a svelare complotti e intrighi anche se per farlo dovrà attraversare le "porte degli inferi".
Het is het jaar 334 v. Chr, en de jonge Alexander is met zijn troepen gelegerd aan de Hellespont, klaar om het Perzische rijk binnen te vallen. Om de goedkeuring van de goden voor zijn onderneming te verkrijgen, brengt hij vele offers. Maar de rook stijgt niet omhoog en de onderofficieren blijken allemaal bezoedeld. Tot overmaat van ramp worden zijn gidsen genadeloos vermoord. Perzische spionnen infiltreren in zijn kamp. Zijn generaals smeden heimelijk hun eigen plannen.... In deze chaos verschijnt de arts Telamon, een jeugdvriend van Alexander. Wanneer alles zich samentrekt tot een climax, werpt de jonge veroveraar zijn nerveuze twijfels af en behaalt een bloedige maar briljante overwinning op de Perzen. Ook Telamon moet al zijn moed verzamelen om de moorddadige vijanden binnen het kamp te ontmaskeren.
"Entertaining - if harrowing." - New York Times Book Review What would happen if you took a swim outside a deep-sea submarine wearing only Speedos? How long could you last if you stood on the surface of the sun? How far could you actually get in digging a hole to China?And Then You're Dead offers serious answers to these horribly interesting questions. Paul Doherty and Cody Cassidy explore the real science behind these and other fantastical scenarios, offering insights into physics, astronomy, anatomy and more along the way. Illustrated with straightforward technical art and leavened by small doses of dry humour, And Then You're Dead is both scientifically informative and gruesomely entertaining.
Mit der Entscheidungsschlacht von 1471 enden die blutigen Rosenkriege in England, aus dem König Edward als Sieger hervorgeht. Einst hatte der Vater Edwards einem seiner Gefolgsmänner, dem Grafen Warwick, ein Amulett aus irischem Druidengold mit einem kostbaren Saphir geschenkt - das »Auge Gottes«, das in seinem Inneren ein hochbrisantes Geheimnis birgt. Warwick jedoch ist in der Schlacht gefallen, das Amulett seitdem verschwunden. Dass seine Majestät das kostbare Juwel wiederhaben möchte, versteht sich von selbst; und wer sonst als die Heiletin von Canterbury, die sich zuvor schon als Detektivin einen Namen gemacht hat, käme für den nicht ganz ungefährlichen Auftrag in Frage?
Im Sommer 1523 bieten das heiße Wetter und die Schwitzkrankheit einen fruchtbaren Nährboden für schreckliche Morde und die schlimmsten Verschwörungen. König Heinrich VIII. hat den Hof nach Windsor verlegt, wo er seinen Gelüsten frönt, während das Königreich von seinem ersten Minister, Kardinal Wolsey, regiert wird. Jemand sendet dem König Drohbriefe aus dem Tower, unter dem Namen und Siegel von Edward, einem der angeblich dort ermordeten Prinzen, und fordert, dass große Mengen Gold an verschiedenen Orten in London hinterlegt werden. Wenn die Anordnungen nicht ausgeführt werden, werden Proklamationen in der Hauptstadt veröffentlicht, die, zusammen mit dem Ausbruch der Pest, den Anschein erwecken könnten, als hätte die Hand Gottes sich gegen die Tudors gewandt, weil sie den Thron usurpiert haben. Wolsey kann sich nur an zwei Personen wenden: seinen geliebten Neffen Benjamin Daunbey und Daunbeys treuen Diener Roger Shallot. Benjamin und Roger geraten in die dunkle Unterwelt der Tudors, und der Druck, die Geheimnisse zu lösen, steigt, als König Heinrich droht, dass Rogers Leben davon abhängt.
Detektiv Segalla soll als Abgesandter des Papstes die Umstände der Tragödie von Mayerling klären. Obwohl er bei seiner Arbeit behindert wird, findet er nach mühsamen Recherchen heraus, dass die offizielle Version, nach der der morphiumsüchtige, ehebrecherische Kronprinz Rudolf am 30.1.1889 zuerst die Baroness Mary Vetsera und dann sich selbst erschoss, konstruiert ist.
Unter dem Pseudonym C.L. Grace lädt Paul C. Doherty ein, einen neuen Charakter kennenzulernen, der nach Master Hugh Corbett die Unruhen des englischen Mittelalters offenbart. Am Ende des 15. Jahrhunderts zerreißt der Krieg der Rosen das Land, eine Zeit des Gemetzels, die der Dichter Chaucer zuvor so beschrieb: "Eine geheimnisvolle Diebin namens Tod schritt würdevoll neben dem, der hier unten die Menschen sterben lässt." In diesem chaotischen und gefährlichen Umfeld wirkt Kathryn Swinbrooke, eine Apothekerin und Ärztin, nach einem ersten Abenteuer in Canterbury, das in "Meurtres dans le sanctuaire" nacherzählt wird.
