Customer Reviews

Assassin in the Greenwood (Hugh Corbett Mysteries 07)

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There is a market for medieval mysteries and The Assassin in the Greenwood is aiming straight at it. Aficionados like to believe they are learning history rather than just whiling away a few hours on pulp fiction, so Doherty gives them frequent, graphic and totally irrelevant historical asides. Unfortunately, he fails to provide them with that other ingredient essential to the genre -- an absorbing mystery.

The plot has too many implausible elements. I hate spoilers, so cannot list them, but one example I can give: When a dead man is found hanged in the cellar, we are given a subtle but very shaky line of reasoning to show that it could not have been suicide, when the glaringly obvious reason - that the dead man did not take a candle into the cellar - is entirely overlooked, by detective and author alike! And there is most certainly no 'Who would have guessed?' at the end. I must also mention that the code that Corbett is trying to crack is ludicrous, as it is not guaranteed (or even likely) to give a unique solution. It does not inspire confidence that the diagram of the key to the solution is printed the wrong way round. I cannot say more than that but you will know what I mean if you play that particular game.

It is a gory and action-stuffed tale. Most of the countless deaths involve throats being cut, pierced or strangled, so don't read this if you trying to pass the time while recovering from tonsilitis.

This book is harmless fun if you like authenticity and plenty of blood, but unrewarding if you are looking for fine writing and skilful plotting.

This is the seventh 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 is 1302 and Hugh Corbett and his servant Ranulf have been despatched to Nottingham to look into the mystery surrounding the death of the Sheriff, who has been poisoned and a masked bandit has performed the barbaric act of cutting off the finger tips of the King's tax collector. Robin Hood has been pardoned by the King. Has he returned into Sherwood Forest? Is he the cause of the current problems.

At the same time as he is trying to investigate the crimes against the crown, Corbett is trying to dodge the attentions of an elusive assassin sent to kill him by none other than King Philip of France. He is also trying to solve a coded message that holds the key to where in Flanders the French King is going to attack.

Corbett and his servant Ranulf are becoming like old friends to the reader. Paul Doherty seems to have hit on a winning combination.

I am really enjoying the Hugh Corbett series, and this book is one of the better ones in this action-packed medieval series. It is set in 1302, and Hugh and his squires are found in Nottingham beside the famed Sherwood Forest. They have been commissioned by King Edward to apprehend the Sherwood Forest thieves led by Robin Hood. It's fun to read this story set around an almost mythical historical figure, and as always. Mr. Doherty uses his extensive historical knowledge to make an exciting story around true historical happenings. I truly recommend this series to anyone who is fond of medieval mysteries. The books are fast-moving, although somewhat bloody, and it's always a pleasure to follow the brilliant Hugh Corbett's thinking processes as he unravels mystery after mystery.