A LION'S RANSOM

Owen Archer, captain of the city of York, must go the extra mile to keep the peace.

The death of King Edward III in 1377 sparks a race for power among those who think Richard II is too young to be king. The combatants include Sir John Neville, a power in the north, and John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, whom Richard’s mother, Princess Joan, considers too unpopular and dangerous to serve as Regent. In York, the goldsmith’s guild has created a magnificent golden lion to curry favor with the new king. When it’s stolen, Owen faces a difficult task. His household currently includes his wife, Lucie, a healer, and their children, along with Martin Wirthir, an aging, sickly former diplomat, pirate, and spy. While foraging for plants for her potions, Lucie, her daughter Gwen, and Dame Magda Digby find the body of a naked man in the river. Although he’d recently stabled his horse nearby, the man’s not easy to identify. Archer seeks out Costen van Peelt, an artist widely suspected of being a spy, hoping he may have seen the dead man, but he proves uncooperative. A pack and clothes are finally found, identifying the dead man as Walter Bolton. Bolton worked for Sir John Neville, and items found hidden in his clothes reveal him as a spy. Archer must be very careful as he continues his hunt for thieves, spies, and killers, and more corpses pile up as people try to cover their tracks.

Wander through the streets of York, soaking in historical detail in this thorny maze of many mysteries.