1217: England has been invaded. Much of the country is in the iron grip of Louis of France and his collaborators, and civil war rages as the forces of the boy king try to fight off the French. Most of this means nothing to Edwin Weaver, son of the bailiff of Conisbrough Castle in Yorkshire, until he is suddenly thrust into the noble world of politics and treachery: he is ordered by his lord the earl to solve a murder which might have repurcussions not just for him but for the future of the realm. Edwin is terrified but he must obey; he takes on the challenge and learns more until he uncovers the horrific secret which has been dead and buried for fifteen years, a secret which might kill them all - and realises there are some questions to which he might not wish to know the answers.

1217: Lincoln is not a safe place to be. A French army has captured the city, and the terrified citizens huddle in the rubble of their homes as the castle, the last remaining loyal stronghold in the region, is besieged. Edwin Weaver finds himself riding into grave danger after his lord volunteers him for a perilous mission: he must infiltrate the city, identify the traitors who are helping the enemy, and return to pass on the intelligence. The last man who attempted such a thing was captured over the castle war was a warning. The city is awash with violence and blood, and Edwin is pushed to the limit as he has to decide what he is prepared to do to protect others. He might be willing to lay down his own life, but would he, could he, kill?

1217: Edwin Weaver has returned to Conisbrough from his blood-soaked adventure in Lincoln, but he has no change to rest: preparations are underway for a noble wedding and the earl's sisters and their families have arrived at the castle. When the household marshal is murdered and a violent band of outlaws begins terrorising the area, the earl asks Edwin to resolve the situation so that the wedding plans aren't disrupted. But Edwin is convinced that there's more to the situation that meets the eye and, with growing horror, he realises that the real target might be someone much closer to the earl. With few likely to believe his theory, can he risk public ridicule and humiliation? If he's wrong, he'll have to leave his home to avoid the repurcussions; but if he's right and says nothing, many of those he knows and loves could die.

1217: The war for the throne of England is far from over but as commoner-turned-earl's-man Edwin Weaver waits to see where his lord's loyalties lie, a messenger arrives from Roche Abbey: one of the monks has been murdered. The abbot needs help to find the killer and Edwin soon finds himself within the unfamiliar and claustrophobic confines of the abbey, where faces are hidden and a killer stalks unnoticed. Drawn ever deeper into a web of lies and deceit, Edwin not only has to discover the identity of the murderer, but must also decide where his real duty lies.

'And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them; and they were judged every man according to their works' Book of Revelation, 20:13 1217: Commoner-turned-earl's-man Edwin Weaver joins the earl's army as it marches for the Kent coast to defend the realm against an invading French fleet. But when a series of accidents puts the earl's life in danger, he soon realises that the enemy is closer at hand. Before he can solve the mystery, however, Edwin finds he must face a double not only a bloody battle, but one that will take place on the high seas. As the bodies pile up, Edwin discovers that it is not just the French who are trying to kill him . . . The fifth book in a thrilling series of mediaeval mysteries by C.B. Hanley.