Autumn, 1282As Edward I wages a bloody conflict with Wales, Prioress Eleanor escorts her younger brother, Robert, and his wife, who is in labor, from their Marcher lands to greater safety at a Wynethorpe manor in a village just inside the English border. They are joined by Brother Thomas, the Prioress's trusted friend, and Sister Anne, who helps navigate the difficult birth and delivers a baby girl.Mother and child may be healthy, but Death never wanders fa...

With a Foreword by Sharon Kay Penman.It's summer 1270, and England is as weary as its aging king, Henry III. The Simon de Montfort rebellion is over, and in the small priory of Tyndall on the remote East Anglian coast, the monks and nuns of the Order of Fontevraud long to return to their tranquil routine. But then the young, inexperienced Eleanor of Wynethorpe is appointed their new prioress. It's a political move and not popular.The day after she takes up ...

"Imagine an Agatha Christie mystery set in the late thirteenth century, and you'll have a pretty good picture of this very well executed mystery."— BooklistIt is Spring 1282. England is at war again with Wales. As Baron Hugh of Wynethorpe, a veteran of fighting in Outremer, prepares to join his King's army, he begs his sister, Prioress Eleanor, a favor. On her journey home to Tyndal Prior in Norfolk, she is to carry a gift of rents from the Wynethorpe esta...

Late summer, 1270. Although the Simon de Montfort rebellion is over, the smell of death still hangs over the land. In the small priory of Tyndal, the monks and nuns of the Order of Fontevraud long for a return to routine. Their hopes are dashed, however, when the young and inexperienced Eleanor of Wynethorpe is appointed their new prioress. Only a day after her arrival, a brutally murdered monk is found in the cloister gardens, and Brother Thomas, a young priest with a troubled past, arriv...

2018 Lefty Award nominee for Best Historical Mystery NovelIn the winter of 1282, snow and ice ravage East Anglia while Prioress Eleanor awaits the decision of her young maid, Gracia, found starving on the streets some years ago, whether to take vows or to leave Tyndal Priory to make her way in the world.But a far greater problem arrives at the priory gate. Seven abbots are riding to meet a papal legate in Norfolk. This is not a pilgrimage—each abbot hopes t...

It is May 1272, and Prioress Eleanor of Tyndal, recovering from a near-fatal winter fever, journeys to Amesbury Priory to visit her aunt in time for the Feast of Saint Melor. Although Eleanor hopes to regain her strength in the midst of pleasant childhood memories, death reveals a most troublesome fondness for her company.A ghost now haunts Amesbury. Is it perhaps the spirit of a pregnant woman who drowned herself in the River Avon? But soon the specter turns murderous. A man is de...

It is the autumn of 1278. The harvest is in. The air is crisp. Dusty summer breathes a last sigh before the dark seasons arrive.For Prioress Eleanor, dark times arrive early in Norfolk. Abbess Isabeau, the head of her order, has sent Father Etienne Davoir from its headquarters in France to inspect all aspects of Tyndal Priory from its morals to its roofs. Surely the Abbess would not have chosen her own brother for this rare and thorough investigation unless the cause was serious an...

November 1283. Prioress Eleanor of Tyndal priory is visited by her cousin, the Earl of Ness, and his wife, Eda. When she is murdered in chapel with his knife, he becomes the prime suspect. Soon after, her priest is also killed in the same chapel. Are the crimes connected or not? Eda was a ruthless woman with many enemies. Her priest was a quiet and pious man, completely disinterested in worldly matters. Crowner Ralf claims jurisdiction under the king's law since no monastic is a suspect. P...

"Royal amplifies and deepens her series characters in the service of a clever plot that elevates her work to the top rank of historical mystery writers." —Publishers Weekly Starred Review for Satan's Lullaby, eleventh in a medieval mystery series recommended by Sharon Kay Penman and compared to Ellis Peters' Brother CadfaelsA royal birth, a nobleman's death, a scarlet woman's murder...In March 1279, Edward I takes a break from hammering the Welsh ...

A powerful courtier is murdered near a hermit's hut in this "authentically wrought" medieval mystery featuring a quick-witted prioress ( Booklist).In the late summer of 1274, King Edward has finally been anointed England's ruler, and his queen contemplates a pilgrimage in gratitude for their safe return from Outremer—a journey that will include a stay at Tyndal Priory. Envoys are sent to confirm that everything will be suitable for the king's wife, and Pri...

MEDIEVAL MYSTERY: On a remote East Anglian coast stands Tyndal Priory, home to a rare monastic order where men and women live and work together in close proximity. Twenty-year-old Eleanor of Wynethorpe has been appointed prioress by Henry III over the elected choice of the priory itself. Young and inexperienced, Eleanor will face a grave struggle – in a place dedicated to love and peace, she will find little of either.A KILLING SEASON: Winter, 1274. Baron Herbert 's return from cru...

AD 1270: The Priory of Tyndal, on a windswept East Anglian coast, is dedicated to love and peace. But Eleanor of Wynethorpe, the twenty-one-year-old new prioress, will find little of either. Instead, she will face lust, greed and murder.I. THE WINE OF VIOLENCE:Only a day after Eleanor's arrival at Tyndal priory, a brutally mutilated monk is found dead in the cloister gardens. Not only must Eleanor struggle to gain the respect of her terrified and resentful flock, but she mus...