Following the death of his Mother, John Grey has retired from being in the pay of spymaster Arlington and taken up residence as Lord of the Manor in his home village in Essex. Just prior to Christmas a man's body is found the village is in uproar demanding that the local 'witch' be hanged for the murder. Grey is not so sure and stalls for time. As the list of suspects grows longer and time grows short the village is cut off by snow and Grey finds that he has not travelled so far from the wily politics of his former paymaster.
I really like the John Grey stories. They're not as complex as some historical mysteries but hit a nice mid note where the plot is complex and not too absurd and the sense of time and place excellent. Here the superstitious and traditional villagers are played against the changes brought into place in Restoration England.

This is the first of these books that I've read but this is clearly part of an ongoing series set in the mid 1600s with John Grey, ex-spy, lawyer, now lord of the manor solving mysteries.

Initially I was put off by the knowing tone and 21st century sensibilities, but got into the flow of the narrative and enjoyed the novel as a good addition to the historical detective genre. John Grey operates methodically and scientifically in a village enthralled with tales of witchcraft, assisted by his wife. It is a bit of a locked room mystery as the village is cut off by snow, so we know one of the villagers is guilty, but which one? Grey formulates a number of hypotheses, taking the reader along with him, and reaches a satisfactory conclusion with a few twists at the end.

I will look out for other books in the series.

Credible In Characterisation, Intricate In Narrative......
Book five in the John Grey series of historical mysteries sees John a Justice of the Peace and settled in his inherited manor house. Witchcraft, high emotions, tensions, mystery and murder abound within a setting rich in historical detail. Credible in characterisation and intricate in narrative, swiftly moving and laced with witty humour and clever dialogue. An engaging read.

I'm happy I requested this ARC because I discovered this amazing series.
I expected a bleak historical mystery and I found a witty one, engrossing and entertaining.
I loved everything in this book: the well crafted plot, the fleshed out cast of characters and the well researched historical background.
I loved it so much that I got all the other novels in this series.
An excellent and fun read, highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

This book was fast paced. Hard to put down. It flowed well and it was very well written. It caught hold of me and had me hooked from the start . I was literally on the edge of my seat reading this book.

This is the 5th book in the ever brilliant John Grey series by L.C. Tyler. Its a series that continues to go from strength to strength, and one that i'm always excited to get a chance to read.

Book 5 sees the action move from London to Grey's home village deep in rural Essex. Because of this, the plot is concise and excited. Within only 3 or 4 locations in the village, Tyler manages to write a captivating whodunnit the genuinely had me guessing up to the final pages.

As ever, the book is joyously witty. The back and forths between Grey and his wife are always ammusing, and the added quips we get from Sir Felix are a pleasure.

A hugely enjoyable book.

This is my first read of LC Tyler's hisorical mystery series set in the reign of Charles II in 1668, featuring lawyer and magistrate, Sir John Grey, who has undertaken many assignments for Lord Arlington, the King's spymaster, and Secretary of State for the Southern Department. Grey's mother has recently died, leaving him griefstricken, and now living in her manor in the village of Clavershill West in North Essex. He is no longer working for Arlington, and has returned home. He has a young son and is married to the astute Aminta, a London playwright, whose father, Sir Felix Clifford, has taken up residence in their home. It is a desperately bitterly cold and snowy winter in the run up to Christmas, the village has been cut off from the outside world, when the brutally murdered body of the good looking carpenter, George Barwell, is discovered by two shepherds in the woods. His face has been disfigured beyond recognition, he is identified by his father in law, the influential William Taylor and Barwell's wife, Amy.

Barwell is the subject of numerous rumours and has a reputation of going with a number of young women and even an older married woman. He was forced to marry Amy by Taylor when he got Amy pregnant, but being married has not curtailed his activities, and one of the women he promised to marry wants revenge, hoping to enlist the services of the local witch, Alice Mardike, who declined to help her. Alice's mother was hung for being a witch, and the area had been visited by Matthew Hopkins, the Witch-Finder General, offering to find witches on payment. The villagers have relied on Alice to provide many remedies for varying illnesses and ailments. However, now led by Taylor, they now take against Alice, accusing her of cursing Barwell, denouncing her as a witch and responsible for Barwell's murder. The mood becomes increasingly belligerent and ugly as they try to force Grey into legitimising the hanging of Alice, who doesn't believe in witchcraft and is convinced Alice has nothing to do with the murder. He and his family find themselves in danger as he tries to investigate and identify a killer walking amongst them.

LC Tyler does some impressive research on witchcraft in the seventeenth century to capture the prejudice and irrational witch hunts of the period in this novel. He captures the misogyny and the social attitudes towards women in these times, the persecution, the abuse they could suffer and their inability to live the life they may want to live, whilst living under the threat of being fingered as witches with no evidence whatsoever. Clavershall West has all the features of a small place, petty feuds, rivalries, jealousies and resentments, where people are whipped up into a fervent, murderous, volatile mood where they bray for the hanging of Alice, even if she is not guilty of any crime. It soon becomes clear many have good reason to see that Alice is scapegoated, as many have secrets and motives for wanting Barwell dead themselves. This is an atmospheric and gripping historical mystery, that works reasonably well as a standalone, that I very much enjoyed reading. Those who enjoy historical fiction and mysteries are likely to like this series. Many thanks to Little, Brown for an ARC.

In a snowed in village in 1668 a gruesome murder occurs. The body of George Barwell a newcomer to the village is found disfigured. It will take new lord of the manor and justice of the peace John Grey all his law skills to hold back the villages. They wish to hang the village witch Alice Mardike for the crime as they believe it’s the work of the devil. This is a dark time in history of great prejudice and superstition and innocent women found themselves put through bizarre rituals to prove guilt or innocence of being a witch. John finds himself in great danger as a murderer walks amongst them and the more he investigates the closer he gets to a killer. This is a good paced book that gives you a glimpse of local village life in the 1600’s and the great characters that are so believable.
I was given an ARC of this book by Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.