Squire Throwleigh's Heir by
Michael Jecks
hbk out June 99
Published by Headline
at £17.99
Squire Throwleigh’s Heir by Michael Jecks Headline Hdbk £17.99 ISBN 0-7472-2147-2
Number seven in the Michael Jecks series of novels featuring crime investigators Sir Baldwin Furnshill and Bailiff Simon Puttock, and once again we have a thoroughly enjoyable and entertaining read. Jeck’s knowledge of the medieval history of Devon and Cornwall is used to good effect in his latest whodunnit set in and around Dartmoor. Aspects of daily life in the manorial demesne, relationships between masters and servants, procedures and etiquette that are part of social functions, outbreaks of the violence which is always below the surface in this harsh environment, fights and the various medieval weapons , and descriptions of the environment, countryside and buildings, are all woven into an informative and atmospheric background.
Squire Throwleigh dies, apparently of a heart attack, while on his horse and in the process of chastising one of his tenants whose son has misbehaved. Not long afterwards and the deceased Squire Rowleigh’s own small son and heir is also found dead, seemingly run over by a cart. Sir Baldwin and Simon Puttock come to offer their condolences to Lady Katharine. Sir Baldwin suspects that the cause of little Herbert’s death is not all it appears to be. And a number of people stand to gain in one way or another by the tragedy.
A lot of people have secrets to hide and the truth is hard to come by. There were a number of suspects close to the scene of crime at the time of the boy’s death. At a time before forensic science came into the story, not to mention lie detecting devices, it would be fairly easy to let the verdict of accidental death stand. But the former Knight Templar has a passion for justice and wishes above all to see justice done.
A number of red herrings, hints of lies and hidden motives, all make for a complicated plot. But the denouement is neat. And the end has a surprising twist in its tail.
Squire Throwleigh's Heir by
Michael Jecks