The Godless

The Godless is the nineteenth novel in the superbly gripping Brother Athelstan series, and this is one of the best so far. Mr Doherty knows exactly how to grab your attention and keep you enthralled for the duration and the plot, as always, is twisty and well thought out. The characters are all developed beautifully but Brother Athelstan, in particular, is a genius creation and it's a pleasure to follow him on his investigating adventures. Set in 1381 London the author has extensively researched the time period to ensure authenticity, which heightened my enjoyment of the story.

It's a well written, complex and expertly paced murder mystery that joins the previous eighteen in this cracking historical crime series. Each book can be read as a standalone, but once you read one you're going to crave the rest.

Many thanks to Crème de la Crime for an ARC.

Let loose "Canes Belli: the Dogs of War!"

Once again the medieval site of of 1381 London becomes the backdrop for another horrific Brother Athelstan and Sir John Cranston murder investigation.
Truly, with this particular spate of grotesque killings it seems like the minions of hell have escaped the netherworld to inhabit the darkness of the city. Prostitutes have been found dispatched, stripped and crowned with red wigs and floating on the Thames in sciffs.
Meanwhile, a king's war cog making for Calais has blown up and there are rumors of a figure adorned with a red wig having been seen. These happenings seem linked. But how?
As Athelston and Cranston move through the dank streets seeking answers I felt like I'd descended into a Dantesque Inferno and as the plot proceeds I'm not far off. The red bewigged figures harken some twenty years back to the rape and pillage of Normandy in 1363 by "mercenary free companies, one in particular, ‘The Godless’, who took their name from the war barge" they’d served on. It's seems they were led by a fearful secretive figure referred to as Oriflamme. And now that likeness has arisen in London. This becomes even more worrying for Athelstan as he learns that some of his flock appeared to have had connections to those terrible times.
Doherty's descriptive narrative is both wonderful and harrowing as Athelstan and Cranston conduct their business through "tangles of filthy, reeking alleyways" and "narrow streets" and places where they rubbed shoulders with, "the screams of half-naked children dancing around the midden heaps ... funeral processions ... [and] wedding parties thronged in alehouses. A gang of mummers tried to attract an audience with their grisly depiction of the martyrdom of St Agnes. Smells billowed backwards and forwards, the delicate sweetness of the pastry shops mingling with the rank odour of cheap fat sizzling in pans and skillets set over moveable stoves."
Hieronymus Bosch illustrations come alive!
As always Athelstan worries about his beloved flock at St Erconwald's in Southwark who hide their own secrets and fears. Some that impinge on this latest visitation from death's dark door.
So we have war criminals, a series of bizarre murders, the destruction of a royal cog, threatened parishioners, strangers in Athelstan's parish and a selection of mysterious denizens who ply their trade on the Thames. Oh, and did I mention the vengeful French?
Alrogether, another gratifying and gripping trip through the dark side of medieval London.

A Severn ARC via NetGalley

I enjoy reading historical mysteries and the Brother Athelstan and Sir John Cranston series is solidly in first place on my favorite series list. Here is #19 and it was a wonderful read. The time is 1381 and the partnership of Brother Athelstan and Cranston is faced with another murderous puzzle to solve. Prostitutes are being murdered and left wearing red wigs. The message sent takes them back to 1363 and an event in Normandy - of rape and pillage. Now that horrible event has brought its ugliness to London. Brother Athelstan discovers it has arrived at his doorstep - some of his parishioners have ties to the event.
The historical background of this series is solid and not sugar coated. London of the time is painted in all of its not so pretty glory. The writing is vivid, giving the reader an immersive read complete with all of the nasty, depressing sights and smells as well as seeing how the other half lives. The City is a living, breathing character in this series. Add to that the well developed main characters of Brother Athelstan and Sir John and a superb puzzle to solve - full of twists, turns and the occasional red herring - if you like historical mysteries, this series should be on your TBR list. Each entry can be read as a stand alone.