Firstly thanks to the publisher for an advanced copy of this book.

This is the third in the series concerning Dr Nick Shelby, Bianca and their "almost" family members set in Elizabethan England. I have really enjoyed the previous 2 books and this one also does not disappoint. This book is set over 2 continents and tells the story of how Nick and Bianca deal with their own mysteries in their own ways, and if left unsolved these mysteries will have a catastrophic outcome to England and the Queen in particular.
This series just gets better and better and I truly hope that the 4th installment will not be long in being published. I would recommend however that you read these books in order to ensure you understand the journey they have both been through.

I highly recommend this book to those who have already read the first 2 and if you haven't start at the beginning you will not be sorry.

I loved reading this book. Loved it.

The third book in the Jackdaw Mysteries series is another brilliant read, and somehow manages to improve on the previous 2 books.

This time we find reluctant spy Nicholas Shelby sent halfway across the world to Morocco to uncover a plot, and at the same time in plague ridden London, Bianca inexplicable finds herself investigating the same murderous plot.

Perry's writing style is effortless. The interplay and dialogue between the characters is so natural, and the plot develops so quickly that there's no need for any filler. He brings 16th century London to life just as vividly as CJ Sansom and Rory Clements.

I love the cast of characters in this series, i love the setting and i love the feel of the books. They're great page turners, and just all round good fun. I cannot wait for book 4.

The third in this wonderful series featuring Nicholas Shelby and Bianca Merton. This book, set in 1593, takes the action to Marrakech in Morocco. As always S. W. Perry has produced a well-researched story with truly likeable characters. The plot is well-thought out and provides lots of suspense and tension. An excellent read that not only entertained but increased my knowledge of the medieval Islamic world. Highly recommended.

This is the third in the Jackdaw series of mystery novels of S W Perry featuring his two protagonists, Nicholas Shelby, free-thinking physician, and his beautiful Anglo Italian friend and companion, the apothecary and Bankside tavern keeper, Bianca Merton.

The action begins, however, far from the London of 1593, in the streets of Marrakech where Adolfo Sykes, agent of the Barbary Company of London, founded by the Earls of Warwick and Leicester, is ambushed and seized on his way to the city hospital, the Bimaristan al-Mansur.

Back in London, Nicholas Shelby is summoned from his bed by Robert Cecil, privy councillor and son of Lord Burghley, the Lord Treasurer. The reason for the summons initially appears straightforward. Robert Cecil and his wife are worried that their two-year old son, William, has contracted the plague which has returned to London. Nicholas is able to put their minds at rest on that score and it is only then that Cecil’s real purpose in summoning him is revealed.

We learn that Adolfo Sykes is not only the Barbary Company factor in Marrakech but also an agent of Robert Cecil. Cecil is concerned that he has not heard from his spy for several weeks and wants Nicholas to travel to Marrakech to investigate what has happened. This is an important mission because England’s defences are dependent upon the saltpetre that it receives from Morocco in exchange for matchlock muskets. This high-quality saltpetre is used to produce more powerful gunpowder that ensures that the English navy’s ships have maximum firepower.

The murder of Solomon Mandel, a Jewish Bankside resident and customer of the Jackdaw Tavern, draws Nicholas and Bianca into this unfolding mystery. While Bianca remains in London, struggling to defend Bankside from the threat of the plague as it advances relentlessly into Southwark, Nicholas realises that Robert Cecil will use any means possible to ensure Nicholas does his bidding and, in spite of Bianca’s protestations, travels to Marrakech. There he uncovers an international conspiracy that threatens England’s security.

The author has woven together seamlessly his knowledge of England’s developing relationship with the Arab world at the end of the sixteenth century, and the importance of Arab writers to the development of medicine in Europe at that time, with a fast paced, action-packed adventure that covers two continents and has enough twists and turns to satisfy the most demanding reader.

I would like to express my thanks to Net Galley and Atlantic Books/Corvus for making a free download of this book available to me.