Owen Archer is at it again in 13th century England, this time trying to discover who murdered one of the boat people while helping his son's school friend. Not as convincing as earlier books in this series, but still fun to read. ( )

The previous two in this series were better than the previous couple and this positive trend continues here. I will forget the plot very quickly but the characters are as great as ever. ( )

Robbs nionde bok om 1300-talets York och händelserna kring Owen Archer håller, som vanligt, hög kvalitet. Denna gång dras styvsonen Jasper tydligare in i händelserna, som cirkulerar kring ett försvunnet förlossningskrucifix och konflikterna kring en nystartad skola för både pojkar och flickor inom katedralens område. Liksom tidigare väver Robb på ett välinformerat och lyckat sätt in historiska händelser, personer och konflikter i sin historia. ( )

(#9) in the Owen Archer historical mystery series set in 1300’s York, UK. When tensions mount between bargemen and students, accusations begin to fly when a barge man named Drogo is murdered. First the students are blamed, as it was known that Drogo took the scrip of a student, so it’s felt they were bent on revenge. Then a priest who runs a grammar school near the Abbey falls under suspicion.

Owen is charged by the Archbishop to get to the bottom of the murder, which sends him off to the country in search of clues as winter approaches and his wife Lucie’s delivery date draws near. A second murder complicates the plot, but as Owen and his helpers investigate, it’s clear that the two are tied together. I just love this series, although I can’t really say it’s for the strong plotlines. The mystery was fairly obvious rather early on. I kept waiting for the author to spring a surprise on me, but it didn’t happen. The characters, the author’s writing style and the immersion into the time period are what keep me coming back to this series. This one did not disappoint. ( )

The Guilt of Innocents by Candace Robb. Johnson County Library of Shawnee Mission, Kansas provided Robb’s latest entry in the Owen Archer series. It’s been three years since I’ve read an adventure featuring the captain of the Archbishop of York’s guard, his wife Lucie Wilton, a master apothecary, and their blended family. Robb is one of those authors that devote as much time to developing the family life of her main characters as she does to the mystery in each book.
In this tale, she specifically focuses on Jasper, Owen and Lucie’s adopted son, who is growing into a young man. He works as an apprentice to Lucie, competes with another apprentice, Edric, for the attentions of the family’s nursemaid, Alisoun, and attends St. Peter’s School. Jasper becomes involved in Owen’s investigation into the death of one of the church’s bargemen after a skirmish with boys from the school. The victim had taken a purse belonging to Hubert de Weston, one of Jasper’s classmates and once Hubert is discovered missing, Jasper accompanies Owen through the winter snows to Weston in hopes of uncovering some secrets there that might shed light on the bargeman’s death. The mystery itself is not too complicated with several clues pointing towards one obvious suspect, but the blending of the action with the daily struggles of the Archer-Wilton household and the detailed rendering of life in 14th century York makes for an enjoyable read.

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