Description
Book SynopsisA chilling medieval ghost story, retold by bestselling historian Dan Jones. Published in a beautiful small-format hardback, perfect as a Halloween read or a Christmas gift. One winter, in the dark days of King Richard II, a tailor was riding home on the road from Gilling to Ampleforth. It was dank, wet and gloomy; he couldn't wait to get home and sit in front of a blazing fire. Then, out of nowhere, the tailor is knocked off his horse by a raven, who then transforms into a hideous dog, his mouth writhing with its own innards. The dog issues the tailor with a warning: he must go to a priest and ask for absolution and return to the road, or else there will be consequences... First recorded in the early fifteenth century by an unknown monk,
The Tale of the Tailor and the Three Dead Kings was transcribed from the Latin by the great medievalist M.R. James in 1922. Building on that tradition, now bestselling historian Dan Jones retells this medieval ghost story in crisp and creepy prose.
Trade ReviewDan Jones is best known for his epic histories, which makes his first foray into fiction a surprising but effective change of direction. He has adapted a medieval tale of the supernatural (which was transcribed from the Latin by MR James in 1922); his tight, chilling account of an unsuspecting tailor and the terrifying shenanigans in which he is embroiled compares favourably with James's own ghost stories, the author's grasp of historical detail giving it welcome verisimilitude * Observer *
An interesting glimpse into a world that almost reads as Fantasy today. I found that the origins and background to the story were as intriguing as the story itself, which creates a nice little shiver and then allows the reader to move on. One for readers looking for a brief, classic read at Halloween * SFF World *
Atmospheric chamber piece * BBC History Magazine *
Put another log on the hearth (or its nearest 21st-century equivalent) and settle in for Dan Jones's eerie, evocative retelling of a medieval ghost story * History Revealed *
A chilling yarn * The Tablet *
This is a great story and has grown in the telling * The Ampleforth Journal *
