Michael Jecks

It is 1319. Tavistock's fair has drawn merchants to Devon from all over England and beyond. Although the influx of visitors and their money puts temptation in the way of cut-purses and other villains, no one expects a murder. So butcher Will Ruby is shocked to discover a headless corpse. Former Knight Templar Sir Baldwin Furnshill, Keeper of the King's Peace, and Simon Puttock, Bailiff of Lydford, have just arrived in Tavistock as guests of Abbot Robert Champeaux when the body is found. When the Abbot asks Simon and Baldwin to investigate, they can hardly refuse. But with an unidentifiable victim, they're badly hampered in their inquiries.
Can Simon and Baldwin unravel the complex web of intrigue that has brought death to Tavistock, as the undercurrent of anger and violence that lies beneath the bustling activity of the fair grows ever fiercer?

It’s 1321 and Lady Elizabeth of Topsham, prioress of St Mary’s, is fighting to retain her position in the face of an accusation from Sister Margherita, the treasurer, that she has given much-needed funds to the new vicar, a man she often sees alone - at night. Many of the nuns are convinced that Margherita would make a better prioress - especially now a young nun has been found murdered on her sickbed. Sir Baldwin Furnshill, Keeper of the King’s Peace and his old friend Bailiff Simon Puttock are summoned to investigate and when a second nun is murdered, they find themselves facing their most difficult case yet.

For Sir Baldwin Furnshill, Keeper of the King’s Peace, and Bailiff Simon Puttock, the Christmas of 1321 looks set to be one of great festivity. They are to receive the prestigious gloves of honour in a ceremony led by the specially elected Boy-Bishop. But they soon learn that Ralph - the glovemaker - has been stabbed to death. Then Peter, a Secondary at the cathedral, collapses from poisoning. Simon and Baldwin must solve the riddles surrounding the deaths, but as they dig for the truth they find that many of Exeter’s leading citizens are not what - or who - they seem to be...

When a merchant in Exeter hears an intruder in his home one night, his first thought is to conceal his adulterous lover. But then he witnesses a sinister figure stooping over the bed of his only child, a figure who seems to vanish into thin air. Two years on and the identity of the intruder has become common knowledge: the idiot of the city who lost his own children many years ago, and who seems doomed to wander the town searching for them. But when a boy then disappears, suspicion immediately falls on him. The local constable is determined to solve the mystery, as his own son disappeared some years ago and he always suspected the fool. Sir Baldwin is asked to follow a lead to the manor of Bishop’s Clyst to try and find out what has happened. While he is there a body is found under the stone bridge - the body of a boy, but not the one who recently went missing...

Forty years ago, Exeter Cathedral close was the scene of a vicious ambush. Afterwards, the bodies left lying in their blood bore witness to the conflicts tearing at heart of the Cathedral itself. Today, in 1323, more deaths have occurred. Is the first an accident? The second is surely not. Murder is again polluting the Cathedral close, but this killer will not be easily caught. The victim, Henry Potell, was feared by many, and held secrets that some wished to keep hidden...For Sir Baldwin Furnshill, Keeper of the King’s Peace, and his friend Bailiff Simon Puttock, events become increasingly mysterious. Who among Henry Potell’s companions knows the truth about his death? What first appears to be a matter of lust or greed soon grows more troubling as Baldwin becomes aware of the ominous Chapel of Bones, built long ago in reparation for a terrible murder…

1325: England is a hotbed of paranoia under the reign of the increasingly unpredictable Edward II and his lover, Sir Hugh le Despenser. When the Queen’s lady-in-waiting is slaughtered and a man’s body, hideously mutilated, is discovered behind the throne, the King demands to be avenged. Sir Baldwin de Furnshill, an experienced investigator of murders, is appointed to track down the killer, aided by his friend, Simon Puttock. In an age of corruption, when the king’s friends can use torture, blackmail and murder to promote their ends, a rural knight and bailiff must fight to stay alive.

Bailiff Simon Puttock's servant, Hugh, has been granted leave to look after his wife Constance and help raise her child. One day she is attacked and raped by a gang of men at her home. She sees her son being murdered and her man Hugh struck down before she is killed and the house set on fire. When Simon and Sir Baldwin Furnshill, Keeper of the King's Peace, arrive on the scene, the cottage has burned to the ground and the body of the child lies outside. Inside there is a woman's torso, badly burned, but no remains of Hugh. The fire raged so fiercely, all believe Hugh died inside. However, things are not so simple, and not only does Simon vow revenge, there are dark forces lurking which will cause no end of mischief and bloodshed.

Baldwin and Simon uncover a deadly assassination plot in Michael Jecks's latest novel in his hugely popular medieval crime series.
It's 1325, and Sir Baldwin de Furnshill, Keeper of the King's Peace and his friend Bailiff Simon Puttock are in France to join Prince Edward and Bishop Walter's entourage as they make their journey to the palace of the French king, Charles IV. The Prince must make a demeaning submission in order for the English to keep hold of their French territories. Meanwhile, Queen Isabella has been causing a scandal in the French courts with English traitor Roger Mortimer. The Prince's entourage are delivered into the Queen's custody, but it becomes clear that they have enemies within the palace walls. Simon and Baldwin soon discover a murderous plot that threatens England's future...

ISBN: 9780755349036

1314, Paris: Pope Clement has destroyed the Order of Knights Templar, wrongly persuaded of their corruption. Watching through a veil of tears as his friends die at the stake, a surviving knight swears vengeance on their accusers.
1316, Devon: The newly appointed bailiff of Lydford Castle, Simon Puttock, is called to a village where a charred body has been found in a burned-out cottage. Unaccustomed to violence in this peaceful area, Simon assumes it's accidental death - but Sir Baldwin Furnshill, recently returned from abroad, quickly convinces him that the victim had been killed before the fire began. As Simon and the astute knight piece together the evidence, word comes of another murder, more horrible by far. Are the two incidents connected - and will the killers strike again?

It is 1320 and civil war is looming as Ralph of Houndeslow rides into Crediton. Ralph faces a daunting task as Master of St Lawrence's, the leper hospital. Not only are his charges grievously ill, they are also outcasts of society, shunned by all healthy folk. The citizens of Crediton have other concerns. The murder of Godfrey of London and the assault on his daughter Cecily, for instance, crimes all to easily attributed to the conman and womaniser John of Irlaunde. Sir Baldwin Furnshill, Keeper of the King's Peace, is not convinced that John is the culprit, and soon his is following other leads, assisted by Bailiff Simon Puttock. But only when they discover the identity of the man overheard talking to Cecily before the attack will the astounding truth begin to emerge.
Meanwhile, feeling against the lepers is growing, fed by rumours deliberately spread. Unless the burghers of Crediton can be made to see reason, Baldwin and Simon could have full-scale slaughter on their hands.

Alone in his isolated, windswept chapel on the edge of Dartmoor, who could blame the young priest, Mark, for seeking affection from the local miller's daughter, Mary? But when Mary's body is found brutally stabbed, Mark is the obvious suspect, and the discovery that she was pregnant seems to confirm his guilt. Called in to investigate, Baldwin Furnshill and Bailiff Simon Puttock soon begin to have their doubts. Could it not have been one of Mary's many admirers who murdered her in a fit of jealousy? Or her father, the miller, who is acting in an increasingly disturbed manner? And what exactly is the local Baron trying to hide? Will they be able to find the murderer before he strikes again?

1324: The English kingdom is in uproar. Roger Mortimer, once the King’s most able commander, but now his most hated enemy, is plotting to assassinate the King. But he’s not the only one with murder on his mind… When the bodies of a local craftsman and the King’s messenger are found in the city of Exeter’s streets, Sir Baldwin de Furnshill, the Keeper of the King’s Peace and his friend Bailiff Simon Puttock, are implored by the Bishop to find out who was responsible. The dead messenger was carrying a dangerous secret that may prove fatal, should it fall into the wrong hands. Baldwin and Simon must find the murderer before he can strike again. But when murderers can use magic, no one is safe...

On their return home from their pilgrimage, Baldwin and Simon’s ship is attacked off the coast of the Scilly Isles by pirates and storms and Simon looks on in horror as Baldwin is swept overboard. Washed ashore on the tiny island of Ennor, Simon is distraught to think that his closest friend is dead, but he has to put aside his grief when the master of the castle, Ranulph de Blancminster, orders him to investigate the murder of the island's tax gatherer. Ranulph is convinced that one of the the lawless inhabitants of the neighbouring island of St Nicholas is the culprit and prepares to attack. Meanwhile Baldwin himself has been washed up on St Nicholas and is nursed back to health by the beautiful Tedia. He uncovers a different picture of the island as he too begins to investigate the murder. Although there are plenty of suspects, Baldwin finds it impossible to penetrate the tight network of secrets and loyalties that bind the villagers in this isolated community. As Balwin and Simon’s parallel investigations bring them closer to the truth, they become embroiled in the bitter rivalry between the two island communities. Can they uncover the truth in time to prevent a massacre?

The new thrilling medieval mystery from the West Country's master of crime. 1325: There is turmoil in England. But could the Prophecy of St Thomas's Holy Oil save King Edward? It is believed that the king who is anointed with it will be a lion among men: he will conquer France, unite Christendom and throw the heathens from the Holy Land. King Edward II has rejected his wife, Queen Isabella, confiscated her income, exiled her servants and taken away her children. Yet even now she is in France to negotiate peace with her brother, King Charles IV. Meanwhile, Sir Baldwin de Furnshill, Keeper of the King's Peace, and his friend Bailiff Simon Puttock return from France with an urgent instruction for the King. Before long Baldwin and Simon find themselves at the centre of a deadly court intrigue involving the most powerful and ruthless men in the country, who will stop at nothing, not least murder, to achieve their ambitions...

It's late spring in 1321 and as Sir Baldwin Furnshill, Keeper of the King's Peace, prepares for his wedding, he receives news that one of his guests, Roger, Squire of Throwleigh has just died. The new master of Throwleigh is little Herbert, five years old and isolated in his grief, for his distraught mother Katherine unfairly blames him for her husband's death. At Lady Katherine's visible rejection of her son, Baldwin feels deeply disturbed about the new heir's apparent lack of protection. For having inherited a large estate and much wealth, the five-year-old will doubtless have made some dangerous enemies... When Herbert is fatally hit by a horse and cart just a few days later, seemingly by accident, Baldwin and his friend, Bailiff Simon Puttock, suspect foul play. As they begin to investigate the facts, they are increasingly convinced that Herbert was murdered; but little do Baldwin and Simon realise that their investigation will lead them to the most sinister and shocking murder they have encountered yet.

Two playmates have uncovered the body of a young girl up on the moors. The body is that of Aline, the ten-year-old daughter of Swetricus. Baldwin Furnshill, Keeper of the King's Peace, and his friend Bailiff Simon Puttock are summoned to investigate, and soon discover Aline is not the only young girl to have been found dead in recent years.

Isabella, Queen of England, has been dispatched to France in an attempt to bring about peace between the two countries, and Baldwin must accompany her. But the day after their arrival, a servant is found murdered, with Baldwin’s dagger lying next to the body. As Baldwin struggles to prove his innocence, the killer strikes again. With so many English enemies gathering in Paris, will Baldwin be able to expose the culprit in time to protect the English King?

Sir Baldwin Furnshill and Bailiff Simon Puttock have been granted leave to go on pilgrimage, both seeking solace after the recent, traumatic events in Gidleigh. Together they travel across Europe to Santiago de Compostela but, as usual, danger is never far away. A beautiful young girl is found raped and murdered on a hillside. Baldwin and Simon lend their investigative skills to the local enquiry, but the unexpected appearance of a face from Baldwin's past threatens both the investigation and Baldwin's very future.