Customer Reviews

A Tournament of Murders: The Franklin's Tale of Mystery and Murder as He Goes on Pilgrimage from London to Canterbury

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(2)
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P.C.Doherty, an English headmaster with a family of 7 children still finds time to write 3000 words a day. In this fashion he writes in the region of 4 to 5 books a year-and gets them published! His knowledge of history is encyclopeadic and readers of his earlier books will not be disappointed with this new series which takes each of the Chaucher pilgrims to Canterbury and places them at the center of a murder mystery. Readers who enjoy Doherty's work ought to know that he writes under the following pseudonyms: C.L.Grace, Ann Dukthas, Paul Harding, Michael Clynes and his very latest, Anna Apostolou.

This Canterbury pilgrim series of P.C. Doherty is a wonderful medieval series. This is the third book in the pilgrims' tales series, and I think the best so far. It has everything - intrigue, murder, war, retribution and even a ghost. The story tells of a young squire that goes back to the place of his birth to try to uncover the mystery surrounding his father's disgrace and ultimate death. He finds himself and his friends pitted against some very dangerous and unscrupulous men, but he is not deterred. With the help of his friend Cuthbert, and a few others that he picks up along the way he does determine who the traitor was that framed his father. There is a battle scene in this book that is probably the best description of a medieval battle of any that I've read. I certainly wish there were a few more books in this series. It's one that I can't seem to get enough of. Great stuff!

Quite an excellent book. Doherty perfectly intermingles the pilgrim's conversations with the story told by the franklin. A page-turner and nearly impossible to put it down; I read it in two days! This book has all the classic murder mystery parts: death, sex, intrique, romance, and for those medieval fans, knights, ladies, verderers, castles, and of course those pilgrims. A five out of five stars!

Having read and enjoyed The Man of Law's Tale and The Knight's Tale, I was expecting to find The Franklin's Tale to be no less intriguing. My expectations were far exceeded. I was scarcely able to put it down, and, when I had finished it, I got my husband to read it, and HE couldn't put it down, either. This book is more "gothic" in flavor than the previous two, and perhaps that why I enjoyed it more. This has all the markings of a classic, one that I'll read again and again.

This is my first book to read by P C Doherty, but it will definitely not be my last. I have also found he writes under other names so I will have to pursue those also.
I have just recently been introduced to Chaucer and his tales of the pilgrims on their way to Canterbury. This author writes a most interesting book from influence of Chaucer. It tells of the squire who returns to his homeplace to find out the truth about his family: why his father was murdered, etc. It is hard to put down once you start. We also learn so much about life in this period of time from this book. You won't be disappointed.

Paul Doherty was born in Middlesbrough and is the consummate professional when it comes to writing historical mystery novels. I for one do not know how he can be so prolific with his offering of books and yet make sure that each of them is well researched. Whether they be 13th, 14th, or fifteenth century they are always true to the period. He also writes about Ancient Egypt and Alexander the Great.

A group of pilgrims have joined together, both for company and also for protection, as the roads and forests are littered with thieves and rogues, only too willing to relieve a traveller of their purse and most probably their lives as well. What adds even more spice to the journey is that several of the pilgrims know their fellow travellers but are not letting the fact become public knowledge.

The pilgrims have agreed that at the end of each day's journey when they stop at an inn or other resting place one of them will entertain the others with a tale. Whether the story is true or not only the storyteller will know.

Chaucer's pilgrims are sheltering in a friary, as they settle for the night the Franklin tells a tale. On his death bed Gilbert Savage tells his squire that the story of his parents perishing during the plague is untrue. But to uncover the truth he must go to Colchester and find Hugo Coticol. Could this take by true and does it affect the life of one of the party of pilgrims?

This is another installment in P. C. Doherty's Chaucer series. The Franklin tells the tale of a young squire, Richard Greenele, sent on a mission by his Knight as he lays dying on the battlefield. Richard finds out that he is really a noble and begins a quest to unravel the mystery behind his father's downfall. This is a story of the coming of age of young Richard as well as a wonderful mystery full of murder and deceit.

P.C Doherty is in my opinion the best writer of historical mysteries out there. This book kept me riveted. I loved it.