The Straw Men

Starred review from January 21, 2013
Doherty’s gift for blending historical intrigue and brilliantly constructed, impossible crimes has never been better displayed than in his 12th whodunit featuring Brother Athelstan (after 2012’s Bloodstone). In 1381, England is controlled by its regent, John of Gaunt, uncle to the young Richard II. Gaunt’s authority is under assault from the shadowy Upright Men, who lead an organization known as the Great Community of the Realm. Amid this turmoil, the man of God and perceptive criminal investigator looks into a number of London murders, including a man somehow shot in the face by a crossbow in a locked room and the savage slaughter of an entire family. The reek of the filthy streets is almost palpable, and the vivid descriptions enhance a classic fair-play plot that will appeal to John Dickson Carr fans. With dozens of books to his credit, Doherty continues to impress. Agent: David Headley, David Headley Literary Agency (U.K.).

January 15, 2013
A Dominican priest is tasked yet again with solving several locked-room murders. In 1381, John of Gaunt is Regent of England. He is a fierce and ambitious man whose authority is challenged by rebels who call themselves the Upright Men. Gaunt invites Brother Athelstan and Sir John Cranston, Lord High Coroner of London, to a mystery play performed by the Straw Men, Gaunt's personal acting troupe. The performance at the Tower of London is interrupted by the deaths and wounding of guests, and two severed heads are left at the scene. So Gaunt orders Athelstan, who's well-known for his knack for solving difficult problems (Bloodstone, 2012, etc.), to unmask the killer. When one of the troupe is found dead at the foot of the Tower, it looks as if he was escaping after the attack, but Athelstan is not convinced. Athelstan is already walking a fine line between the Regent and the Upright Men, who each have spies in his parish and even in the highest reaches of their enemies' councils. Perhaps the deaths have something to do with the mysterious woman Gaunt has locked in the Tower. Rumors swirl amid street battles and revenge killings in the squalid, frozen streets of London. More murders follow before Athelstan can gather up the pieces of the cunning puzzle and put them together to solve the crimes. Close attention will reward readers with well-researched historical information, from the minutiae of everyday living to the public events in the lives of the rich and powerful. Mystery buffs, however, are likely to reach the answer before Athelstan.

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April 1, 2013
Brother Athelstan is back in fine form as Doherty continues to set the stage for the Great Uprising of 1381. When Athelstan and Lord Coroner of London Sir John Cranston are invited to the Tower of London to attend a private theatrical event performed by the Straw Men, the private acting troupe of controversial Regent John of Gaunt, they find themselves entangled in intrigue as they attempt to unravel a cunning murder plot. At the conclusion of the performance, the audience is attacked and a pair of severed heads are displayed on the abandoned stage. Though suspicion immediately falls upon the Upright Men, the group primarily responsible for fomenting the anticipated rebellion, sorting out the rebels, the spies, and the innocent bystanders proves to be every bit as difficult as solving the crime. Doherty mires the grisly action as firmly in mystery as he does the multitiered narrative in the mud, muck, and mayhem of medieval London poised on the brink of the Peasants' Revolt.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2013, American Library Association.)