1. The Castle Abductions
Nottinghamshire, 1590. County Bailiff Edward Mountsorrel is deceived into allowing deer to be stolen from a local estate, while Town Bailiff Francis Barton investigates the disappearance of Nell, a young woman last seen leaving an alehouse with a wealthy stranger. What begin as separate cases soon…
2. The Assassination Players
Nottinghamshire, 1591. Two of Elizabeth I’s justices are murdered within days, together with a woman connected to one and a prisoner awaiting trial before the other. Edward Mountsorrel and Francis Barton begin investigating the killings, but their local case is interrupted by the arrival of William…
3. The Slaughtered Widow
Nottingham in 1593. Town Bailiff Francis Barton has been arrested for the murder of his former lover, the widow Agnes Timberlake, and the case against him is a strong one. Agnes was hacked to death where she lay in her bed and Francis was found standing…
4. The Clamorous Dead
Nottingham, 1596. A hanging at Gallows Hill is interrupted by a woman who pronounces a curse and warns that the dead will return for the living. Strange nocturnal events follow, and Edward Mountsorrel is ordered to investigate as rumours of witchcraft spread through the county. Edward…
5. To Kill a King
Nottinghamshire in 1603. Queen Elizabeth’s long reign has finally come to an end and the Tudor era is over. Scottish King James has been handed the crown of England, but not everyone is happy about that, and there are several plots being hatched to replace him…
6. Death by Gunpowder
Nottinghamshire in 1605. Frustrated in their two previous attempts to restore the Catholic faith to England, a group of heretics plan to assassinate King James in Parliament in a massive explosion timed for November 5th, 1605. But when that plot also fails and Guy Fawkes starts…