Death and the Chevalier

by Robin Blake

Overview

As the Young Pretender and his Jacobite army approach, Coroner Titus Cragg must solve a brutal murder ― and prevent himself from being executed for the crime.

November 1745. Preston, Lancashire. Rumors abound that Charles Edward Stuart, the Young Pretender, has landed in Scotland, intent on marching south to claim the English throne. Meanwhile Coroner Titus Cragg must investigate a headless body discovered in an icy pond. There is evidence to suggest a connection with the approaching rebel army ― unless someone is deliberately using the Highlanders’ invasion as a cover for murder.

As simmering tensions, conflicting loyalties and open hostilities engulf the town, Cragg finds himself arrested for murder. In order to clear his name and escape execution by firing squad, Titus must team up with his old friend, Dr Luke Fidelis, to expose the real killer.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780727889201
Publisher:	Severn House
Publication date:	04/07/2020
Series:	A Cragg and Fidelis Mystery , #6
Edition description:	First World Publication
Pages:	288
Product dimensions:	5.70(w) x 8.50(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Robin Blake is the author of five previous Cragg & Fidelis mysteries, as well as acclaimed works on the artists Van Dyke and Stubbs. He has written, produced and presented extensively for radio, and is widely published as a critic. He lives in London.

Editorial Reviews

02/10/2020

In Blake’s so-so sixth mystery featuring coroner Titus Cragg and physician Luke Fidelis (after 2019’s Rough Music), it’s 1745 and rumors are flying that Charles Stuart has landed in Scotland, leading an army that will support his claim to the English throne. Against that fraught backdrop, Cragg is disturbed by the discovery of a headless male corpse near Cragg’s home in Preston, Lancashire. The body bears no indication of how the man met his end, and the missing head makes identification impossible. The subsequent discovery of a severed head only makes things worse, as Fidelis concludes that a second man must have been murdered. Fidelis deduces that the men were an advance party for Stuart, a theory bolstered by a letter shoved in the severed head’s mouth claiming that the two men were Stuart supporters, killed as “an act of legitimate warfare” by those loyal to King George. Despite that preemptive legal defense, Cragg and Fidelis probe further. The resolution doesn’t live up to the promising premise, and the story line doesn’t maximize the potential of depicting sleuthing in the midst of a war. Blake’s been better. (Apr.)

Publishers Weekly

'An action-packed read with fully realized characters and vivid historical detail'

Booklist

'An action-packed read with fully realized characters and vivid historical detail'

Booklist

Continues to bring Georgian England to life ... A fine historical mystery

Booklist on Rough Music

It's a pleasure to watch Cragg and Fidelis feeling their way through an investigation with rudimentary science but well-honed knowledge of human nature

Booklist on Skin and Bone

2020-01-13
A coroner finds himself in hot water when the forces of Charles Edward Stuart, pretender to the throne, invade England in 1745.

The populace in the Preston area, where coroner Titus Cragg lives, is split between Jacobite supporters of the Bonnie Prince and Hanoverians who support the German George, but both are fearful of being caught up in a war. A constable calls Cragg and his friend Dr. Luke Fidelis (Rough Music, 2019, etc.) to a rural area where a naked headless body has been discovered. Soon enough, they find a head, but it doesn't go with the body. After discovering a second head and body, Fidelis deduces that the men were Highlanders, perhaps advance scouts. It's a ticklish case in which the law is murky and their only clue a bit of a tartan. The dead men may have been visiting Barrowclough Hall, home to a father and son with violently opposed political views. After the younger Barrowclough and his servant, Abel Grant, deny any knowledge of the incident, the jury reaches a verdict of death by an unknown hand. The discovery by one of Cragg's law clients of a purse filled with gold coins involves Cragg in a dangerous situation when the client is killed and his housekeeper accuses the Scots. Then the arrival of the rebel army forces Cragg to house some of the leaders, including the Marquis d'Éguilles, whom Cragg catches trying to rape his wife, Elizabeth. Cragg's problems grow as he's arrested for killing the headless Highlanders, escapes with Fidelis' help, and becomes embroiled with a famous highwayman who claims that the purse full of gold coins is his. It will take all of Cragg's skills and a bit of luck to uncover the links among all these mysteries and save himself and his family from disaster.

Blake effortlessly combines a complex puzzle with some fascinating, little-known historical facts.

Kirkus Reviews

"Blake effortlessly combines a complex puzzle with some fascinating, less-known historical facts" ― Kirkus Reviews

“An action-packed read with fully realized characters and vivid historical detail” ― Booklist

From the Publisher