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The website of historian and critically acclaimed author Paul Doherty gives information about his books, news and future events. If you wish to contact Paul for talks, events, interviews or would like to write to him please email him at: paulcdoherty@gmail.com. Paul is always happy to hear from readers and will always try to personally respond.

Paul Doherty The Collection

 

New Publications

 

The Godless“The Godless” Brother Athelstan

November, 1381.  London has been rocked by a series of bizarre and brutal murders. The corpses of a number of prostitutes have been discovered, their throats slit, their bodies stripped; in each case, a blood-red wig has been placed on their heads.  At the   same time, a mysterious explosion rips through a royal war cog bound for Calais, killing  all on board.  Could there be a connection?  Summoned to assist in the investigations by Sir John Cranston, Brother Athelstan uncovers rumours that the mysterious Oriflamme is responsible.  But who – or what – exactly is he … and why has he suddenly reappeared after almost twenty years?

 

 

 

The Stone of Destiny

“The Stone of Destiny” Brother Athelstan

During the harsh winter of 1381 murder stalks the streets of London in all its grisly forms.  The city’s prostitutes are falling prey to a silent, deadly assassin known as The Flayer who carefully peels his victims’ skins for his collection.  At the same time, Westminster Abbey, which houses the sacred Stone of Scone, is plagued by a series of hideous poisonings.  Could there be a connection between these brutally violent deaths and the Stone, which  the English crown cherishes as a symbol of its rule over Scotland?  Then there are the two former Upright Men, leaders of the Great Revolt, who are found mysteriously hanged in the Piebald Tavern, close to Brother Athelstan’s parish church of St. Erconwald – and Athelstan is faced with his most baffling investigation to date.  Can he navigate this deadly maze of murder and pull the various threads together?

 

 

Death's Dark Valley“Death’s Dark Valley” Hugh Corbett Series

1311. It is four years since the death of King Edward I, but his reign of terror has cast long shadows over the kingdom.  At Holyrood Abbey, sheltered in the depths of the Welsh march, the old king’s former bodyguards protect his secret relics and watch over a mysterious prisoner who is kept in the abbey’s dungeon.  But their peaceful existence is shattered when Abbot Henry is poisoned.  Summoned to Holyrood, Sir Hugh Corbett, Keeper of the Secret Seal, finds the fortress in chaos.  Brothers Anselm and Richard have been brutally slain by nails driven deep into their skulls  No one knows who could be behind the gruesome killings and the news attracts the attention of two unwanted guests: the sinister Marcher Lord Mortimer and King Philip of France’s devious envoy De Craon.  As more mysterious deaths occur, and a violent snow storm sweeps through the valley, Corbett must act quickly to identify the malevolent demon who has risen from hell to turn the abbey into a house of murder…
 

 

Hymn to Murder“Hymn to Murder” Hugh Corbett Series

Spring 1312.  At Malmaison Manor, Lord Simon is the secret perpetrator of a hideous crime – yet he arrogantly assumes his evil deeds will never catch up with him.  But someone has found a way to make him pay.  When Lord Simon is found mysteriously slain, other deaths soon follow.  Meanwhile, ships on the Devonshire coast are being deliberately wrecked, their crews slaughtered, their cargoes plundered.  Sir Hugh Corbett and Lord Simon are united by the secret Chancery and their search for the most precious ruby – The Lacrima Christi.  When Corbett learns of Lord Simon’s death, he is drawn into a complex web of lies and intrigue, and it’s not long before his own secrets start to surface.  As the hymn to murder reaches its crescendo, can Corbett confront an enemy from his past and live to see another day?

 

 

Margaret Beaufort“Dark Queen Waiting” Margaret Beaufort

October 1471.  Edward IV sits on the English throne; the House of York reigns supreme.  With her young son, Henry Tudor, in exile in France, Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Richmond, shelters deep in the shadows, secretly plotting for the day when Henry can be crowned the rightful king.  But as her supporters are picked off one by one, it becomes clear that a traitor lurks within Margaret’s household.  When one of her most loyal henchmen is murdered in St. Michael’s Church, where he had claimed sanctuary, Margaret orders her sharp-witted clerk, Christopher Urswicke, to find out who has betrayed her.  How could a man be killed inside a church where the doors are all locked, with no sign of an intruder or weapon?  If he is to protect Margaret’s remaining supporters from suffering a similar fate, Urswicke must solve a baffling mystery where nothing is as it first appears.

 

 

Margaret Beaufort“Dark Queen Rising” Margaret Beaufort

May 1471.  The Wars of the Roses are reaching their bitter and bloody climax.  Edward of York has claimed the English throne, and his followers are extracting a savage revenge on all who supported the Lancastrian cause.  Surrounded by enemies wherever she turns, the position of Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Richmond and mother to Henry Tudor, the last remaining hope of the House of Lancaster, is precarious to say the least.  Determined to protect her son whatever it takes, Margaret must rely on her sharp-witted clerk Christopher Urswicke to be her eyes and ears.  When four bodies are discovered in a London tavern, their throats slit, and Margaret herself is suspected of being behind the crime, it’s up to Urswicke to prove his mistress’s innocence and unmask the real killer.

 

 

Forthcoming Titles

 

“Mother Midnight” (Sir Hugh Corbett)

To be published by Headline 2021

“The Gallows Tree” (Brother Athelstan Hardback)

To be published by Severn House 2021

“Dark Queen Watching” (Margaret Beaufort)

To be published by Severn House 2021