Simon Danforth Mysteries

by Steven Veerapen 3 books in this series

The Simon Danforth Mysteries are set in Scotland during the violent transition from the final weeks of James V’s reign into the minority of Mary, Queen of Scots. The Abbey Close opens around the Battle of Solway Moss in 1542; The Royal Burgh follows the regency crisis of 1543; and The Cradle Queen develops the struggle over the infant Mary during the Anglo-Scottish conflict that became the Rough Wooing.

Simon Danforth is fictional, but rulers, regents and clerics including James V, Mary of Guise, Cardinal David Beaton and James Hamilton are historical. Veerapen uses murder investigation to explore the way religion, medicine, noble faction and foreign pressure shaped mid-sixteenth-century Scotland.

Reading order

Books in this series (3 books)

1. The Abbey Close

Steven Veerapen

First published 2018

3.8(868)

Paisley, 1542. Simon Danforth, a Catholic exile with a difficult past, is drawn into the closed and suspicious world around the abbey as Scotland and England move towards war. Employed by Cardinal David Beaton, he encounters violence and secrets at the same moment that James V’s…

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2. The Royal Burgh

Steven Veerapen

First published 2018

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…

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3. The Cradle Queen

Steven Veerapen

First published 2018

4.1(407)

The infant Mary, Queen of Scots sits at the centre of a struggle between factions at home and Henry VIII’s pressure from England. Simon Danforth is drawn again into the royal household and the dangerous politics surrounding Mary of Guise, Cardinal Beaton and the question of…

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