Summer in late 14th Century England. The weather may be good but life is still cheap, nasty and short.

In the cathedral city of Draychester young William Blackburne, a thief, coin clipper and blasphemer is bound for the gallows. That’s if he can’t convince the jury and more importantly the presiding bishop otherwise. He has little to offer in mitigation except his youth, his wit and his charm. Will it be enough?

Across the English channel Sir Roger Mudstone, sometimes mercenary, sometimes vicious murderer awaits a ship to bring him home from twenty years of self-imposed exile. His hated older brother Hugh is finally dead and a substantial inheritance awaits his grasping fingers. Hugh's last will and testament is to be read at the bishop's palace at Draychester.

Jocelyn Gifford, Bishop of Draychester already knows there is something explosive in Hugh’s will. He's already taken advantage of it. Something that bodes ill for whoever is caught up in the chaos sure to result from its disclosure. He will need somebody smart, capable and charming to handle the murderous fallout. Someone ultimately expendable...

The first in the Draychester Chronicles series plunges the reader head on into an immersive tale of humour, murder and intrigue set in a gritty depiction of medieval England that’s not for the fainthearted.

Late 14th Century Wales. Trouble is brewing, but isn't it always?

The Bishop of Draychester is missing a very expensive barrel of Gascony wine. A gift for the new king, stolen from the port of Tenby in the English stronghold of South Pembrokeshire. The town is awash with ill feeling and intrigue, the result of a bitter feud between the merchants. It's a dangerous place to be asking the wrong sort of questions. Who better to send to investigate than Will Blackburne, newly appointed bishop's official.

In the north of Wales the Welsh are starting to rise up against their English overlords. For an old mercenary like the outlawed Sir Roger Mudstone its an opportunity too good to be missed. His murderous reputation has earned him the offer of a pardon. The king wants to extract his revenge on the Welsh and someone has to do the dirty work....

A mysterious killer is on the rampage. Make no mistake, the countryside can be a deadly place in late 14th century England, but who would dare target the village anchorite? After all, wouldn’t it be a deadly sin? Harm those devoutly religious women, walled up for life inside a cell in the village church, and face eternal damnation…only an angry, desperate man could be persuaded to carry out such evil…

The countryside is in an uproar, in the local cathedral city of Draychester, Bishop Gifford is angry and baffled. Events are spiralling out of control. Young Will Blackburne, bishop’s official, and his companions Bernard and Osbert are swiftly dispatched to investigate.

But perhaps all isn’t quite as it seems, a shadowy figure from within the city guides the killer’s actions, bringing events closer to home than anyone can predict …except perhaps the great cathedral’s own anchorite, Dame Dorothy, famous for her visions of the future, who dreams of death and destruction…. the killer must be stopped, his evil master thwarted and Dorothy saved…

Autumn mists shroud the northern town of Ditton in late 14th-century England, where local legend whispers of the Shuck—a monstrous black hound with eyes that burn like hellfire.

When the town’s Wakeman and a local woman are found savagely torn apart, fear spreads like wildfire, and fingers point to the beast of folklore.

But not everything is as it seems. Bernard, Will, and Osbert - Bishop Gifford’s loyal (if sometimes hapless) investigators are sent north to uncover the truth.

In a town where superstition and secrets collide, they face ruthless mercenaries, sinister schemes, and the echoes of ancient grudges.

Could the Shuck be real, or is a cunning murderer hiding behind the mask of legend?

This latest chapter in the Draychester Chronicles plunges you into the grit and grime of medieval England—a world of humour, horror, and intrigue where the line between good and evil is never clear-cut...