Cheating the Hangman

A fork of lightning and a crash of thunder herald the completion of a heinous crime. In woodland belonging to the eccentric Lord Wychbold, a body has been crucified on a tree. On Easter Day, the Reverend Tobias Campion returns from morning service at St Luke's and discovers the corpse, already beginning to putrefy. A crown of thorns frames his face, bludgeoned beyond recognition, and a loincloth preserves what is left of his modesty.

The victim will not rise again; though the well-concealed secrets of the village will have to, if the perpetrators are to be found. After a post-mortem examination fails to identify the victim, Tobias and his old friend, Dr Hansard, pledge to uncover the truth. Forced to question the gentry as well as the local parishioners, the pair hear whispers of Satanism, of unsavoury pasts and sinister obsessions. Before long, an attempt is made to silence their enquiries into the murder; Tobias, injured but no less determined, realises he must be close to the truth if someone wants him dead. Faced with hostility and resentment from the villagers, Tobias needs to unearth their dark secrets to bring the murderer to light.