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The Heretics

by Rory Clements Book 7 in the John Shakespeare series.

First published 2013

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4.4(3,930)

England, 1595. A Spanish raid on Cornwall raises fears that the attack was a rehearsal for invasion, and Robert Cecil orders John Shakespeare to discover its purpose. The investigation becomes more urgent when members of England’s intelligence network are murdered in succession.

The trail connects the Cornish coast, imprisoned Catholic priests at Wisbech and Thomasyn Jade, a young woman traumatised by coercive exorcisms. Shakespeare must determine how religious persecution, foreign strategy and a domestic conspiracy combine in a threat directed toward Elizabeth I.

Historical Periods

Elizabethan Religious Settlement1559–1563 CE Anglo-Spanish War1585–1604 CE

Historical people

Elizabeth I1533–1603 Robert Cecil, 1st Earl of Salisbury1563–1612

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