The Devil's Hunt

If you enjoy murder mysteries set in the early middle ages 1200's, this is one for you. The action is swift, the setting are made to seem real, and the mystery only gets worse as it is unraveled. Hugh Corbett is Clerk of the Secret Seal, for King Henry II. That is he is the spy master for England, and does the kings bidding. It is not always straight forward, and Corbett longs to be home with his wife and child. Want to learn more, well settle back and have an enjoyable read.

This is the tenth book in the series of medieval mysteries featuring Sir Hugh Corbett. Obviously this is one of Paul Doherty's earlier offerings and he has since written many more books and is now an established author of medieval novels and has also added a number of novels on Egypt to his ever growing list of titles. Having said that it is one of his earlier offerings does not mean that it is inferior to his current books, quite the opposite. The Hugh Corbett mysteries were and are extremely popular and Paul Doherty is still adding to them. The year 1303 and Edward I hastily recalls into his service Sir Hugh Corbett, one time courier, chief clerk and spy. There are a series of disasters in the town of Oxford and Corbett has been so successful in such matters in the past that Edward wishes to send him to solve the mysteries. Apart from several murders in the university, headless corpses are turning up in the woods outside the town. Compounding all of the problems is the fact that there is an assassin on the loose. A murderer who appears to have affiliations with the King's dead enemy, the Earl de Montfort. The students are a drunken, unruly lot, many of them Welsh and bearing no love or loyalty to the King. This appears to be one of Sir Hugh's most difficult cases yet . . .

This story is a gripping tale of early 1300's Oxford. The battle between Town and Gown is as prevalent then as when we read about it in novels set in an earlier time. But Doherty outdoes himself with this book. He has set an evil atmosphere and established danger for his characters Hugh and Ranulf like nothing before. We also get to see a lot more of Ranulf in this one, and that's a good thing since he is a very strong and brilliantly written character. As in all of his books, Doherty has plotted a wonderful period piece of Medieval England. I wouldn't recommend beginning reading this wonderful Hugh Corbett series with this book, but I do suggest that you begin at the beginning and be prepared to be drawn in to Doherty's wonderful world.

It's the "most scholarly" of the Hugh Corbett mysteries! That's easy to conclude, as the setting of this tenth mystery in this series is in the university town of Oxford! P.C. Doherty has put his super sleuth, actually the "king's clerk," Sir Hugh Corbett, to work solving a tiresome problem for his friend and majesty King Edward I in "The Devil's Hunt." Severed heads of beggars are found in the wood around Oxford --witchcraft, Satanism, and rituals of the "old ways" spring to mind and Edward will have none of it. In addition, the Bellman has posted several notices around town warning that his revenge will know no bounds. He is determined to avenge the death and degradation of de Montfort, Edward's enemy in a civil war some 40 years earlier. And corpses of college officials begin appearing, reflecting the handiwork of this unknown Bellman. Hugh is called out of retirement and agrees to help the king. Thus, with his trusty assistants Ranulf and Maltote, Corbett strikes out for Oxford and for what he hopes is a quick solution to the king's problem. Unfortunately, it is not so simple. More murders occur and the plot (and blood) thickens. Naturally, by the time this tenth installment of the Corbett series comes to a close, all is well for the king. There are some sad turns of events in store for readers who have followed this series, however. Doherty's plot seems far more researched, more complicated than some of the earlier works. His ability to juxtapose the events of the late 13th century with modern thought and reasoning--not to mention writing styles!--is well documented. He clearly is able to make modern audiences appreciate that time period for what it was--oftentimes cruel, far less refined, and justice at the caprice of the king. He captures the tone and atmosphere of medieval England quite well. The author, who writes under a number of other names as well--Michael Clynnes,Paul Harding, Paul Doherty, Anna Apostolou, to name a few--seems a dedicated historian and well worth the time spent in reading his exciting--and convincing-- historical mysteries. His eleventh Corbett edition ("The Demon Archer") awaits.([email protected])

Oxford in the 14th Century was a dirty, tumultuous, unique locale, and Doherty's prose conveys it with nuance rather than adjective overload. Much preferred over the Ian Morson Falconer series, Doherty's Hugh Corbett series reaches a major turning point in this book. From the beginning, it is clear that events of long-lasting significance in the career of His Majesty King Edward's Principal Clerk and Keeper of the Secret Seal will occur before the resolution of the mystery. Or should I say, mysteries. Headless corpses, locked room murders, academic rivalry, faith, family, and obligation are all played out to their end games in this fine addition to the series. While I cut my teeth on Ellis Peters' Brother Cadfael, Doherty's Hugh Corbett is a character of greater dimension and breadth than the good Brother ever was. And Corbett's supporting cast has always been superior to the cardboard cutouts in the Cadfael series. My only complaint with Doherty is that his villains are sometimes a bit thinly drawn, but overall I have devoured the series greedily. I only hope there is more to come.