I *LOVE* historical mysteries, especially those that take place pre-1900s. I officially need to go and read all the books in the series, because this was a well-developed story with characters that felt real. It was like stepping through a time portal and watching the mystery unfold in front of you. Athelstan is an amazing character and a great detective. I cannot recommend this enough to historical fiction and mystery lovers alike.

Atmospheric, grim, and hazy. This book sets a tone reminiscent of Bleak House from the beginning and holds to it to the very end. This is one that is sure to delight fans of historical fiction.

I love a good historical mystery and this one was entertaining, however all the side mysteries got a little much at times and I feel like they distracted from the main story. May require a re-read in the future to give it another shot.

One of my goals for this year was to read more of the Netgalley books I have currently on my kindle and this one has been there for a while. I was thrilled to get a copy of this because I discovered this fabulous series many years ago and loved the characters particularly Brother Athelstan and Sir John Cranston. The series stopped for a few years and then reappeared unexpectedly. So much so that I need to catch up on a few books I’ve missed.

It was a joy to immerse myself in this world again. Set in 14th Century London the author, as always, has done an amazing job of bringing the sights, smells and sounds of the city to life. Because I already know the series, location and main characters I felt like I was returning home after a long time away. Much has changed and moved on in the time that has passed in the series but some things have remained reassuringly familiar.

The mystery is the usual type that Athelstan has to solve, a locked room murder, and this one is particularly fiendish, not least because there is a personal connection for him and more personal danger than in previous books. These stories are always carefully crafted and this one is no different. There was no hint of who had done it until near the end when it became clear that some things were perhaps not as they seemed. The conclusion was appropriate for the story and the only regret I had on finishing the book was that I hadn’t read it sooner. However, I still have plenty of books to catch up on.

If you love historical crime fiction then this is a series you definitely shouldn’t miss.

This is the eighteenth outing for Brother Athelstan and Paul Doherty shows no signs of slowing down. Quality of the writing in this Historical murder mystery series remains at the highest level.

The period is 1381 in a dismal and sometimes grotesque part of the City of London......Athelstan and his partner Sir John Cranston battle with the underworld of society while solving a curious case of a missing corpse and a double murder....Great reading of an evening.

Another excellent murder mystery for Brother Athelstan to solve with all the usual twists and turns. The answer to who did what is hidden in plain sight, but the clues are there.
It was good to see some of Athelstan's parishioners back in the tale.
Paul Doherty never fails to write an entertaining tale.

A interesting and engaging crime mystery. It gives a flavour of life at that time

Brother Athelstan is called to St Benets, the scene of a series of heinous crimes. Not just a double murder but also the theft of church property and the desecration of a coffin of an old lady....her body is also missing. Things become even murkier when it's discovered that the goods taken actually belonged to one of the most notorious and feared gangleaders, The Flesher who also happens to be the son of the missing dead woman. Who would dare cross him? And if Athelstan didn't have enough to contend with the death of one of his own parishioners reveals a shocking secret that seems to link to the very crimes he is investigating.

So I've struggled on how to rate this because it is a good book....a very good book in fact but when requesting it I didn't realise it was the eighteenth (EIGHTEENTH!!) in a series. Sometimes it doesn't matter coming in this late but I felt quite disconnected from the characters and I think that was because I hadn't read the other books. It works as a standalone on most levels but I felt I was missing out on the history of the characters and so not always seeing the full picture. But that's not the fault of the author - that would be mine for totally missing this series which really is my cup of tea. For me it's what Agatha Christie would have written if she'd forayed into historical fiction. If I had my time again I would not have read this....untill I'd read the first seventeen anyway.

Pretty good, I didn't think I'd like this one, but Im glad I read it! Amazing murder mystery for Brother Athelstan to solve with all the usual twists and turns.

Paul Doherty immerses Brother Athelstan in The Mansions of Murder in which the theft of a jeweled treasure on its way from the French to the English disappears eighteen years back. King Richard's London coroner, Sir John Cranston had captained the ship carrying the treasure. Now Brother Athelstan finds the story of the treasure emerging in his parish as a parishioner dies and the corpses of her relatives are found. The dead had been archers on the ship of the treasure. The struggle is on between the forces of order with Brother Athelstan and the Coronoer and a criminal gang anxious to acquire the treasure. Bodies pile up, threats surface. Whodunit?

I requested this from NetGalley because I really like the Shardlake series and the blurb for this historical mystery reminded me of it.

The Mansions of Murder follows Brother Athelstan as he investigates a most perplexing mystery. First, there's a locked room (locked Church) murder of two strong men. And then two preserved bodies are found in the house of a recently deceased, upstanding member of his parish. The mysteries seem unconnected at first, but as Brother Athelstan and coroner, Sir John Cranston investigate, the signs point towards a gang leader nicknamed 'the Flesher', who also happens to be someone Cranston hates due to their history.

What I liked about this book was its descriptive language. I could picture the grimness of medieval England through the prose and it is definitely not a place that I would like to visit.

However, the language can sometimes work against the story. It was so descriptive that it took me a very long time to be able to form an impression of Brother Athelstan and Sir John Cranston characters. I even got lost in the text a few times. Plus, there was a very long conversation (almost a monologue) to reveal the backstory which I thought was a bit heavy-handed.

I admit that while I understood the ending, I still don't understand how they got to the ending. Perhaps it's because I got overwhelmed by the language, and while I have a very good sense of how England was in the 14th century, I don't have a good sense of how the story flowed. This is probably suited for fans of historical fiction who value setting. And I suppose I should have started from the first book, rather than the jumping in midway.

Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for a free and honest review.

The novel is set in 1381 England, John of Gaunt is the Regent and with young Richard II as the King; the Great Revolt has been completely crushed and the Lords of the land, like Beaumont, Arundel and John of Gaunt rule with an iron fist. London is completely under the sway of underworld gangs, the riflers who ran the law around the slums of Thames, who were in turn used by Lords, in keeping control of London. The most powerful of these gangs are the Sycamores, led by Simon Makepeace aka, The Flesher. They are vilest, cruelest, and the most influential gang of London, running a host of businesses, from taverns to murder for hire to prostitution. They manage a Mansion of Murder, as is commonly known; a former Church now owned by The Flesher, with high walls and brutal dogs, let loose on people who become a problem for the former. In this background, where no one dares to raise their voice against The Flesher, a crime is committed against him – his mother’s who had recently died and whose body was kept in the Church for mourning, prior to the burial, is snatched away with demand for ransom. Furthermore, Parson Reynaud of the same Church and Daventry, Arundel’s go between, are both found murdered inside the church! Meanwhile, Fat Margo, the embalmer in Brother Athelstan’s parish, dies, bequeathing all her possessions to the Parish. However, Brother Athelstan soon discovers, that the possession includes the unexpected but well preserved body of Margo’s husband and son, who were believed to have died in a battle 18 years ago. Thus, Brother Athelstan and Sir Jack Cranston, the Lord High Corner for London, try to solve for two unrelated mysteries, and find truths, closer home!

As I read through the novel, I remembered why I wanted to find this series again – simply because it is such a good thriller. 14th century London comes alive in Mr. Doherty’s hands, with its slums, and gangs and dirt. You can feel the stink, the sweat and the ugliness of London as it rises, very different from its current modern avatar! The history is impeccably researched and all details and nuances of 14th century, wonderfully crafted in the main narrative of the novel. The characters are all well rounded and without getting into too much off background, the motivations and actions of all, both primary and secondary easily understood and come across as extremely plausible. The plot moves along smoothly, though sometimes, Brother Athelstan’s mediation seems to slow down the narrative a bit, it does not really hamper the overall flow. The end was, while not wholly surprising was presented in a very innovative manner and tied in all the lose ends, extremely well! The only thing, which left me a bit bemused was the title of the novel, as the actual Mansion, has very little to do with the actual mystery and seems in hindsight, a bit sensational, which may take away, the actual good solid storytelling of the book! To end, this is a very enjoyable, thoroughly gripping book, well written and a good read for all Historical Fiction cum Murder Mystery aficionados!

" ... murder in all its gruesome forms, a daily occurrence ..."

It has been quite a while since I have picked up a "Brother Athelstan" mystery, and this one for me, I could take or leave it.

Don't get me wrong, Doherty spins an impressive mystery here, but I felt he crammed too many "side stories" into the first few chapters, which had me wondering where this tale was heading, and what was relevant and what was not. Yes, it is all tied up neatly towards the end as the multiple tales begin to merge and coalesce into one.

A cast of characters (eve if at the end) and map of the area would not have gone astray.

I was honestly taken aback by this book when I first read it. When I saw it on Netgalley, I didn't realise it was part of a long series. Despite being thrown off by the writing style in the beginning, I tried my best to continue reading, telling myself that I would eventually get used to it. I didn't. I tried though, I really did. So here's my review based solely on what I've read of the book, which was around 40% of the novel.

The first and most important thing about the book for those who have just stumbled upon it to know is the writing style. It's vastly different from the usual prose you commonly read. There are extensive descriptions of everything from furniture to whole neighborhoods/areas. To a new reader unfamiliar with the world that the characters are living in, they should greatly help us in understanding the society quickly. Unfortunately, this was not achieved as I got bogged down by the various unfamiliar names of objects, locations, and titles that are supposedly accurate to the era but are not very self-explanatory. There are also frequent info dumps and a massive amount of minor characters that don't play much of a role in furthering the plot but are introduced as if they are. There are a lot of difficult words and awkward sentence structure, which may have been done to reflect the way people spoke at the time, but made it feel as if I was reading a classic. The narrator also frequently told rather than showed, which
takes a bit of the sentiment and thrill from readers when making connections in the mystery or the characters are showing emotion.

Second, none of the characters seem to be likable. Of course, this isn't a flaw in itself, but when the setting is utterly disgusting and the society seems quite unhinged, shouldn't there at least be something to keep the reader turning the pages? With so many characters in there, couldn't one be just the slight bit likable? The only thing that kept me reading was the mystery itself: how does one murder two people in a church and get away with a massive robbery with all the doors locked from the inside? Unfortunately, I didn't make it long enough to find out the answer, but at this point, the costs have outweighed the benefits.

Third, the plot seems to be moving so slowly (again, bogged down by all the descriptions and backstories and whatnot) that I can't honestly say the characters have made any real progress in solving the mystery at the point where I have stopped reading. And I'm almost at the halfway mark!

I guess all of my comments have in some way something to do with the author's writing style. I'm usually quite tolerant of a lot of writing styles, but this one in particular was just not for me. Of course, this is not to say that it isn't a good book. The reviews of the books in this series and the series' following say otherwise. It just isn't one that fits my personal taste, but if you are a fan of unconventional prose and historical mystery/crime fiction, this one is for you. Many thanks to Netgalley for sending me a digital copy of this book.

Eighteenth in the Brother Athelstan and Sir John Cranston series and going strong. I love historical mysteries and this series tops my list. It is now 1381 and gangs are now the problem for London which means a new puzzle for Brother Athelstan and Sir John to unravel. The clues are all there, as usual. Always historically accurate, right down to the smells and muck from the Thames. I'm glad I didn't live in London then but I have enjoyed all eighteen visits. If you are new to this wonderful series, go find the previous seventeen books and have fun catching up. You won't regret it.
My thanks to the publisher Severn House and to NetGalley for giving me an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

‘A bubbling broth of murder, theft, blasphemy and sacrilege.’!

Once again Doherty plunged me into the colorful firmament of medieval London of 1381. The starkness of an age where danger encroaches from every side is vividly portrayed. Doherty's descriptions of the hanging fields and the dark depths of the London alleyways are worthy of an Hieronymus Bosch painting. London Hades is a fitting title given the area where the action takes place.
This time Athelstan and his friend Sir John Cranston, Lord High Coroner of London, otherwise known as ‘Sir Jack,’ are enmeshed in the dark doings of the gangs of London.
Simon Makepeace, the 'Flesher', leader of 'London’s most vicious and notorious [gang, the] rifflers', an abhorrent person as his moniker surmises, and his minions are unstoppable, backed as they are by Lord Arundel. When the bodies of a priest, Parson Reynaud, and two others are discovered mysteriously slain within the church of St Benet's, the Flesher's mother's body stolen from her coffin, and the Flesher's treasure taken from the church's iron-bound strongbox, Athelstan is pressed into service.
Things appear to harken back to when the Twelve Apostles (wonderful gem stones) in their Rose Casket were stolen from the King's barge some eighteen years ago. They were never seen again. The French are taking a keen interest.
Meanwhile another mystery linked to a recent death and a strange discovery in Athelstan's parish of St Erconwald’s sits patiently in Athelstan's mind.
Court politics as always are always lurking in the background.
A mystery that once again puzzles and delights. I did not see the ending coming until the full disclosure was given.

A NetGalley ARC

When in October 1381. Brother Athelstan is summoned St Benet’s church in Queenhithe, finding the body of the priest is just the first discovery. There is the missing body of Isabella Makepeace, mother to the Flesher, the worst of the gang leaders, and hismissing hidden hoard of monies. But all the doors to the church are locked. The Brother and Sir John Cranston investigate.
Another well-written mystery in this series. With the description of the awfulness that is the London slums, and the interesting rounded characters that make up these books.

Brother Athelstan and Cranston Are In the Thick of Murder, Theft, and Treason Right In London

This is the 18th novel in the Brother Athelstan Medieval Mystery Series, and the second that I have read. The novel opens in a seedy part of London that is filthy, smelly and run by a master criminal known as the Flesher. In a local church, a priest and a military man in the service of the Earl of Arundel were found each with a single stab wound to the heart and no sight of a struggle, the corpse of the Flesher’s mother, whose coffin was locked up in in the church the previous evening was missing and replaced with a ransom note, and a vault that requires two keys, one in the priest’s possession and the other in Flesher’s possession, was open and empty. Brother Athelstan and Cranston, Lord High Coroner of London, investigate. The main storyline takes off from here with the situation becoming much more complex as the Flesher’s ties to this church and its cemetery become revealed. The events of 18 years earlier when Cranston was in charge of ferrying some precious jewels, known as the Twelve Apostles, and their container, known as the Rose Casket, were stolen, and Cranston almost lost his life.

The B-storyline is very rich as the reader learns more about Cranston’s life and how it was affected by the events of 18 years earlier. The relationship between the man of violence, Cranston, and the man of the cloth, Athelstan, is so comfortable with each other and share very personal aspects of their lives with each other. These two characters became more real to me as I read this novel.

There are not any explicit sex scenes but some implied sex. The expletives are all medieval equivalents, so there should not be any problems for persons sensitive to foul language. Descriptive violence is described, and some as it occurs. In my opinion it is not excessive and is just reflective of the time. There is much use of medieval terms. I recommend reading this novel on a Kindle with easy access to the Kindle’s dictionary and searching the Internet. I used both routinely. Lastly, while this is the 18th novel in this series, I did not find anything that depended upon the previous novels, so first time readers should not shy away from reading this novel first.

Use of Medieval words while providing much authenticity and period flavor to the story did take up time searching for the meaning of these words. One distractor for me was the first part the novel that consisted of Cranston describing the events of 18 years earlier in discussion with Athelstan. All of this information was very important to the development of the storyline, but, for me, it was slow, and my interest wondered.

While I only reward novels with high star ratings when they capture and maintain my interest throughout the novel. As mentioned above, there was a significant part of the novel during which this was not true. On the positive side, the depiction of medieval London using the terms of the age was so enjoyable that in my opinion makes up for this issue. I give this novel a five star rating. If you read this series, it is a must. If you have not, this novel should be a good introduction into the series.

I have received a free kindle version of this novel through NetGalley from Severn House with a request for an honest, unbiased review. I wish to thank Severn House for the opportunity to read this novel early.

I am a big Paul Doherty fan and was eagerly looking forward to reading this book. Boy was I disappointed!

It's late 14th century, London is overrun with gangs, each run (nominally at least) by a noble who uses them to further his own particular aims. King Richard II is king, but not really in power. His nobles fight among themselves to grab what they can with little regard to the needs of the people. Into this mess comes Brother Athelstan to investigate the murder of a priest. As the body count grows, it encompassses the corpse of a leading gangmaster, Simon Makepeace (now there's a misnomer if there ever was one!) aka the Flesher (yep, the name means what you think, this bloke likes to flay his victims), whose mother's corpse has disappeared from her coffin. As if that wasn't enough, an arca was broken into and it's riches stolen. And guess who those riches belonged to? As the corpses begin to pile up, ancient history rears its head, namely the disappearance of a valuable box and it's even more valuable contents.

So why was I disappointed? The book is all talk no action. And the same talk among the same characters keeps repeating. We know that St. Benet church and churchyard is the playground of the Flesher, where he deposits his victims and hides a multiple of sins. We hear this again and again, until we're tired of it. I found I had to push myself to keep reading, until I finally didn't really care what happened and just wanted to be done.

Nobody has a hit all the time, and Paul Doherty's books are generally wonderful, but I would pass on this one.

Terrific historical fiction! I'd not read Doherty before so I was unfamiliar with his well researched and carefully plotted medieval mysteries. What a treat then to discover Brother Athelstan and his friends, who ably investigation a murder in a locked church in 1381 England. Talk about pre-CSI! Very entertaining , especially if you're looking for a different take on the procedural. Or would it be a cozy? This defies conventional genre not only because of the setting and time frame but also because of the characters. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.