The Royal Burgh

by Steven Veerapen Book 2 in the Simon Danforth Mysteries series.

First published 2018

Amazon

4.2(563)

Scotland, 1543. James V is dead and his infant daughter Mary has inherited a kingdom divided over religion, regency and foreign policy. Simon Danforth and Arnaud travel to Stirling as Cardinal Beaton’s position weakens and the government of James Hamilton, Earl of Arran, struggles to control rival factions.

Mary’s infancy, Arran’s regency and Beaton’s political role are historical, while Danforth and the murder mystery are fictional. The second Simon Danforth novel uses the uncertainty of a child monarch’s government to make court politics and local violence parts of the same investigation.