After the Puritan ban on Christmas festivities, Restoration London is awash with excess between Christmas Eve and Twelfth Night, but the two men found in Westminster Hall had not died from a surfeit of gluttony, but from poison. The Lord Chancellor appoints Chaloner as his investigator into the killings, believing them to be of scant importance to the affairs of state he deals with. But Chaloner reveals a stinking seam of corruption in the Palace of White Hall, where even the Queen is a victim to the greed of courtiers and functionaries. And the pickings are so rich that men are prepared to go to any lengths to save their own skins and their stolen fortunes.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
Starred Review. Gregory's excellent fourth Thomas Chaloner adventure set in Restoration London (after 2008's The Butcher of Smithfield) effortlessly blends authentic historical details with plenty of red herrings. Chaloner, the chief spy for England's Lord Chancellor, the earl of Clarendon, is on uncertain ground because of his past support for Oliver Cromwell. The earl increases the pressure by giving Chaloner a tight deadline to solve a series of poisonings that have claimed the lives of two government clerks. Convinced that another clerk, Greene, is responsible, the earl orders Chaloner to prove Greene's guilt, despite the spy's misgivings. Gregory provides a number of false endings, a classic golden age of detection plot device rarely used these days, but which, in the hands of a skilled writer, makes every word count. Gregory is also the author of the Matthew Bartholomew series set in medieval Cambridge (The Devil's Disciples, etc.). (June)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Review
"Excellent." —Publishers Weekly
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
So Real!,
By
This review is from: The Westminster Poisoner (Thomas Chaloner Mysteries) (Hardcover)
These Thomas Chaloner books are so real that it's hard to keep realizing that I am reading historical fiction as I read them. The main reason for this is that Ms. Gregory uses real historical people and happenings in these books. The books are set in England during the first years of the Restoration after King Charles II is back on the throne. Chaloner is a wonderful, larger than life hero. He is a spy who works for the new regime even though his family were big Cromwell followers before the Restoration. He must live by his wits in a truly dangerous and scary world. This book is set around Christmas in the year 1663. It appears that someone is going around London killing court clerks and Chaloner has been tasked by his Earl to find the killer, and to retrieve a priceless bust that had been stolen right from the palace. Chaloner finds himself in all sorts of dangerous situations, and the action keeps going right until the very end. These books are a wonderful escape for anyone who loves historical fiction like I do! This was number four in the series.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The best so far,
By
This review is from: The Westminster Poisoner (Thomas Chaloner Mysteries) (Paperback)
I've read all the Matthew Bartholomew series and now all the Chaloner series. I have to say, this one is, in my opinion, the best of the Chaloner series so far. I have not gotten bored while reading it. I have a hard time putting it down at breakfast and actually leaving for work. Very well done and I do recommend it.
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