Description
Exeter, 1195: At a local jousting day, there's a serious altercation between Hugh Peverel, lord of Sampford Peverel, and a stranger by the name of Reginald de Charterai. Two days later, Hugh's body is found in a barn. Is de Charterai to blame? The county coroner, Sir John de Wolfe, soon finds plenty of other suspects for the killing of the almost universally hated Hugh Peverel.
All three of his brothers had a motive, as did his attractive young wife, Beatrice. Then there's a Saxon villager whose two sons were hanged some months earlier, being arbitrarily sentenced by Hugh at his manorial court. Also, there's the manor reeve, Warin Fishacre, who harboured a deep grudge against Hugh for taking the virginity of his daughter just before her marriage. With so many suspects to choose from, Sir John is confronted with one of the most difficult cases of his distinguished career...