Dispensation of Death (Last Templar Mysteries 23): Danger, intrigue

Baldwin and Simon must risk their own lives to protect the Queen of England, in this cleverly plotted medieval mystery.

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.

Michael Jecks gave up a career in the computer industry to concentrate on writing and the study of medieval history, especially that of Devon and Cornwall. He lives with his family in northern Dartmoor.