Search results for ""Author Alys Clare""

Private investigators Lily Raynor and Felix Wilbraham have to hunt down an escapee from a French asylum, in this new, gripping World''s End Bureau Victorian mystery from critically-acclaimed author Alys Clare.London, April 1882. When cool-headed Phyllida visits the World''s End Investigation Bureau to offer a curious case concerning her fiancé, proprietor Lily Raynor is intrigued - and privately excited. For accepting the case means taking an unexpected trip abroad, to France.Phyllida''s fiancé, Wilberforce, is currently in an asylum in Brittany, after a tragic incident which resulted in the death of his father. Did he kill him on purpose - or was it an accident?Wilberforce''s innocence looks increasingly in doubt when another murder happens at the asylum - and the evidence points to Wilberforce being the culprit. Phyllida fears for Wilberforce''s wellbeing, but she can''t marry a murderer! With the engagement hanging in the balance, Phyl

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'Gripping . . . Vividly evokes 17th-century Devon' Publishers Weekly'An engaging cast and plenty of genuine suspense' Booklist Starred ReviewDevon, 1607. Gabriel Taverner, former ship's surgeon turned country physician, is called to examine a rotting body found impaled on a blade. Identifying the corpse seems a hopeless task and the death is declared a suicide.But Gabriel is not satisfied and re-examines the body - making the first of a series of shocking discoveries that will lead him deep into the dark underbelly of the lucrative silk trade. As he investigates, Gabriel realises that not only was the death a murder - but even worse, he had a personal connection with the corpse.

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What do a desperate woman with a secret, a dead man in a drainage ditch and a dark figure in the night have in common? Physician-sleuth Dr Gabriel Taverner has to connect the dots before time runs out in this thrilling historical mystery.February, 1605. A series of killings shake the quiet life of Devon''s Tavy valley. Country doctor Gabriel Taverner, summoned by the coroner to examine the bodies, believes that the murders are somehow connected to a mysterious woman recently discovered in shocking circumstances.Gabriel is determined to solve the mystery, and soon uncovers clues that link his unexpected patient to the brutal killings. Prominent among them is the strange and recurring theme of nutmegs. A precious spice from far-flung islands in a distant sea and already in demand, its high cost is increasing daily since the rumour has spread that it is a cure for the plague . . .Gabriel finds himself caught in a deadly rivalry involving a g

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Shortly before his unexpected coronation, King Richard passed a law letting all of England's prisoners go free. Shortly afterwards a young nun is found, gruesomely murdered. Richard swiftly employs an old military colleague of his, Josse d'Acquin, to unravel this hideous mystery. Who could have wanted to kill this innocent young novice, and, more worryingly, why?Josse goes to Hawkenlye Abbey to find out the answers to these questions. He is having little success until meets the Abbess Helewise, a woman who quickly proves herself to be his equal, both as an amateur sleuth, and as a figure the community can rely on during this turbulent time for England.This duo have to find the murderer, and find him quickly, or they'll have the King of England to answer to...

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It is February 1194. A desperately ill man is making for Hawkenlye Abbey in the hope of a miracle cure. In his delirium he sees the Virgin Mary and, sinking to his knees, he begins to pray. She is the last person he will ever see. The winter cold intensifies and the Vale lake freezes over. It is only when the thaw sets in that a corpse is discovered in the icy waters, its skull crushed by a lethal blow. With no clues on the body but an apothecary's remedy, Abbess Helewise asks her trusted friend Sir Josse d'Acquin to find out the man's identity. As Josse sets out on his mission, a party of sick people arrive seeking help, and their sickness looks terrifyingly like plague . . .

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A grove of huge oak trees in the Wealden forest is felled. And, as if some ancient curse is being brought alive, the man who wielded the axes meets with a violent end.The Sheriff claims the Forest People did it, but Abbess Helewise believes a supernatural solution is too easy an answer. She consults Josse d'Acquin, whose manor house in the Weald is now being renovated, and he, concerned about the safety of two girls from the abbey, enters the forest himself - to find something in this ancient part of Britain that terrifies even him.

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