Synopses & Reviews
Tudor intrigue, murder, and the dark arts—the second in a stunning and acclaimed historical series starring Dr. John Dee, perfect for fans of C. J. Sansom All talk is of the End-time, and the dead are rising. At the end of the sunless summer of 1560, black rumor shrouds the death of the one woman who stands between Lord Robert Dudley and marriage to the young Queen Elizabeth. Did Dudley's wife, Amy, die from an accidental fall in a deserted house, or was it murder? Even Dr. John Dee, astrologer royal, adviser on the Hidden, and one of Dudley's oldest friends, is uncertain. Then a rash promise to the Queen sends him to his family's old home on the Welsh Border in pursuit of the Wigmore Shewstone, a crystal credited with supernatural properties. With Dee goes Robert Dudley, considered the most hated man in England. They travel with a London judge sent to try a sinister Welsh brigand with a legacy dating back to the Battle of Brynglas. After the battle, many of the English bodies were, according to legend, obscenely mutilated. Now, on the same haunted hill, another dead man has been found, similarly slashed. Devious politics, small-town corruption, twisted religion, and a brooding superstition leave John Dee isolated in the land of his father.
Review
"For those of us waiting with bated breath for the next installment in C. J. Sansom's marvelous Matthew Shardlake murder mysteries set in Tudor England, heed my words: Phil Rickman and his John Dee have arrived! . . . The novel chills, thrills and satisfies, providing good history, great plot, and fascinating characters. . . . The Bones of Avalon is a fabulous read and John Dee is a marvelous addition to the world of Tudor intrigue." —Huffington Post on The Bones of Avalon
Review
"He's done it again, with his usual sense of permeating atmosphere, with vivid characters in a complex plot that grows through the bones of history like a deadly nightshade." —Diana Gabaldon, author, Outlander, on The Bones of Avalon
Synopsis
A spooky supernatural thriller by the author of the Merrily Watkins series
Liam Defford doesn't believe in ghosts. As the head of a production company, however, he does believe in high-impact TV. On the lookout for his next idea, he hires journalist Grayle Underhill to research the history of Knap Hall—a Tudor farmhouse turned luxury hotel, abandoned by its owners at the height of its success. The staff has been paid to keep quiet about what happened there, but the stories seep through. They're not conducive to a quick sale, but Defford isn't interested in keeping Knap Hall for more than a few months. Just long enough to make a reality TV show that will run nightly. A house isolated by its rural situation and its dark reputation; six people—known to the nation but strangers to one another—locked inside; but this time Big Brother is not in control.
About the Author
Phil Rickman writes and presents the book program Phil the Shelf on BBC Radio Wales. He is the author of The Bones of Avalon and the Merrily Watkins Mysteries.