Book picks similar to
UNHOLY INNOCENCE by Stephen Wheeler


mystery
historical-fiction
medieval
historical-mystery

Entangled Threads (A Victorian San Francisco Mystery Book 8)


M. Louisa Locke - 2022
    

Crusade of Murder: (Templar Knight Mysteries #11)


Maureen Ash - 2021
    But some months later, when a second brother is killed near Lincoln, and then a third is wounded, it becomes obvious that a deadly campaign is being waged against the warrior monks.In concert with Gerard Camville, the sheriff of Lincoln, Bascot investigates the murders but, despite their best efforts, not a trace of the killer is discovered. As the attacks continue, both are frustrated by the lack of clues to his identity, and it is not until an unexpected witness comes forward with revealing evidence that a trail is found for them to follow.

The Canterbury Tales By Night Omnibus


Paul Doherty - 2012
    Includes An Ancient Evil, A Tapestry of Murders and A Tournament of Murders. Perfect for fans of Ellis Peters and Susanna Gregory.An Ancient Evil: As the travellers gather at the start of a pilgrimage to Canterbury, they agree to amuse themselves on their journey with evening tales of mystery, terror and murder. So begins the Knight's tale. It opens with the destruction of a sinister cult during the reign of William the Conqueror, and then moves to Oxford some two hundred years later where terrible murders are being committed. The Abbess of the Convent of St Anne's, believes the murders are connected with the legends of the cult and petitions the King for help... A Tapestry of Murders: As Chaucer's pilgrims continue towards Canterbury, they choose the Man of Law to narrate the next tale of fear and sinister dealings. In August 1358, the adulterous Dowager Queen Isabella, the 'She Wolf of France', lies dying of the pestilence in the sombre fortress of Castle Rising, where her 'loving' son has kept her incarcerated. But as in life so in death Isabella causes intrigue, violence and murder. Nicholas Chirke, an honest young lawyer, is brought in to investigate strange events following her death - and quickly finds himself at his wits' end trying to resolve the mysteries before a great scandal unfolds. A Tournament of Murders: While Chaucer's pilgrims settle for the night, the Franklin narrates a mysterious, bloody tale... In 1356 the Black Prince has won his resounding victory at Poitiers. As impoverished knight Gilbert Savage lies dying in the wake of the fight he tells his squire, Richard Greenele, that the story of his parents perishing during the plague is untrue. Richard, if he wishes to uncover what really happened, must travel to Colchester and seek out a sealed letter telling the truth of his parentage, and a most macabre confession that will set him on a mission for revenge from which there is no turning back...

A Death of Innocence


David Penny - 2020
    Together they uncover a web of deceit and lies to reveal the sad truth behind the murder.Meanwhile, another kind of death has come to Lemster—one that cannot be solved by reason alone.A Death of Innocence is the first of three prequels relating the story of how Thomas Berrington leaves England to begin his travels to Moorish al-Andalus.

The Earl's New Identity


Jasmine Ashford - 2017
    The Earl's New Identity is a clean regency romance with a twist fueled by past horror, true love to be tested between Earl of Rippon and Actress Lola. Will he about to reclaim the title he placed aside, or watch while the woman he loves is punished for a crime she didn’t commit. Will he find true love amid crisis ahead? London, 1812... An Abandoned Title…. The life of a midshipman offered Wesley, Earl of Rippon, exactly the kind of life that he required. Rising through the ranks of Britons finest naval fleet, Wesley had all but forgotten the haunting screams that drove him from his home. Content to leave behind his title and everything it represented, there was nothing in the world that could make him reclaim the life he left behind... Nothing but her. A Britain Beauty… Waiting a long time for the day she would have her chance to perform her theater debut, Lola had hardly expected that she would become Britain’s most famed actress. It was a long way from her days spent singing on the street for coin. But she would never regret the day her urchin ways had drawn the attention of a Navy midshipman. And Cold Blooded Murder… But when Lola's theater day is ripped apart by a host of brutal murders, and the police suspecting that Lola herself is behind them, Wesley is faced with a grim choice. Reclaim his title to protect the woman he loves. Or watch helplessly as she is punished for a crime she didn’t commit. Regardless of the choice… lives hanging in the balance. Can Wesley face the horrors of his past? Or will his inability to accept it force them both to take their final bow?

Devil in the Dock (A Robin Starling Courtroom Mystery Book 5)


Michael Monhollon - 2016
    His clothing, combined with his yellow teeth, oily hair, and prominent hooked nose, made him look like Lucifer’s indigent second cousin. It soon became clear to everyone, including Robin Starling, his idealistic attorney, that he would have killed Bill Hill if he had felt like it. The only question was, had he felt like it back on that brisk March day?

A Lamb's Tale (A Natural Detective Book 2)


J.J. Salkeld - 2016
    But when one neighbouring farmer is accused of rustling another man's Herdwick ewes, and a local feed merchant falls victim to an apparent phishing scam, Owen Irvine is reluctantly drawn into both cases. Aided and abetted by Cumbria Police's Farming Crime Specialist PC Kathy Stone - and with the reluctant help of DI Andy Hall - Irvine needs to move fast, if he's to avert a tragedy in the valley. But when Irvine's none-too private investigations bring him into close contact with a vicious organised criminal could it actually be Irvine - and all those he holds dear - who will find themselves in the greatest danger of all?

Candlelit Madness


Beth Byers - 2019
     Welcome to a very flapper evening! Are you ready for the roaring twenties? For spunky young women crafting their own lives? If so, you’ll love Violet, Julia, Edwina, Hettie, Ro, and Lola. Inside, you’ll find several short stories with adventures, cocktails, kisses, and fun. With stories from The Violet Carlyle Mysteries, The Piccadilly Ladies Club Mysteries, the Lola Star series, as well as the brand-new Hettie and Ro Adventures. For fans of Carola Dunn, Jacqueline Winspear, Georgette Heyer, and Lee Strauss. A light, cozy mystery with a fun peek into a an evening with bright young things.

The Colour of Betrayal


Toni Mount - 2017
    Fearful that his opponent is dying from his injuries, Lawrence seeks sanctuary in a church nearby. When Ducket is found hanging from the rafters, people assume it's suicide. Yet, Sebastian Foxley is unconvinced. Why is his young apprentice, Jack Tabor, so terrified that he takes to his bed?Amidst feasting and merriment, Seb is determined to solve the mystery of his friend’s death and to ease Jack’s fears.

The Shadow of William Quest


John Bainbridge - 2014
     A mysterious stranger carrying a swordstick walks the gaslit alleys and night houses seeking vengeance. A man determined to fight for justice against all the wrongs of Victorian society. Who is the secretive William Quest? Following Quest's trail from the teeming streets of London to the lonely coast of Norfolk, Inspector Anders of Scotland Yard is determined to uncover the truth. This exciting Victorian thriller takes the reader into the sinister hinterlands of Victorian London as the hunter becomes the hunted. Then to the wild and lonely countryside of Norfolk for an exciting denouement.

Twelve Miles From Rome: A Lucius Marius Nola Mystery


Steven J. Kears - 2015
    Lucius Marius Nola, a retired veteran of the Roman Army, inherits a farm in the Alban Hills on the outskirts of Rome. Nola is looking forward to a new life in the countryside, living off the land, and more importantly, escaping his violent and disturbingly troubled past. However, no sooner has Nola begun to enjoy life once again when, against his will, a strange turn of events draws him into a web of murder and intrigue. 'Twelve Miles From Rome' is the first of a thrilling series of ancient world mysteries featuring Lucius Marius Nola.

The Killer On the Bell Tower


Issy Brooke - 2020
    Here, genteel dinner parties hide murderers; sparkling balls harbour dastardly villains; and every light society conversation hints at a darker scandal.The Earl of Calaway and his wife, Adelia, have raised and married off seven daughters. Now free of domestic duties, they are building an enterprise as private detectives of a very personal nature, guaranteeing to keep aristocratic reputations intact.In this short story, which can be read at any point in the series of full-length novels, Adelia and Theodore are invited to the trouble-ridden parish of Peverham where the local vicar is convinced that the death of Sir Phileas Hinge was no accident.After all, so many people wanted him dead. Sir Phileas’s ancestral home of Pever House is now occupied by the bombastic Vice Admiral Frankhaus, and both men hated each other. Then there are the Smiths – the oldest and most established family in the area – who look down on everyone else as being merely shabby new money. All three families – the Hinges, the Frankhauses and the Smiths – are vying for control of the parish, and this comes to a head when the vicar asks for money for a new bell in the church. Each family wants to be the one who contributes the most and to have the bell inscribed with their name for all time.The death of Hinge removes one of the players – but who will be next? Theodore and Adelia race to discover the murderer before death strikes again.This book is written in British English by an actual Brit who used to have to curtsey to the local aristocrat from “the big house” when she visited the village school at Christmas. The spelling and grammar is British English throughout. Splendid!

The Outlaws


Jason Vail - 2014
    Eustace is the bastard son of an earl, Giselle the sheltered daughter of a dotting gentry father, and Robert the son of an impoverished village carpenter. In ordinary times, their lives would not intersect. But when Robert breaks his uncle out of Earl Roger FitzWalter’s gaol, he sets in motion a series of events that sends their lives colliding in a maelstrom of murder and revenge that drives them all outside the laws and customs of England. Step into the tumultuous years of the Twelfth Century, and stand alongside Eustace as he schemes to inherit his father’s title, lands, and power, using every means within his grasp; Giselle as she fights to free herself from a forced marriage and to save her inheritance; and Robert as he struggles to rise above the limitations of his birth in the face of Eustace’s quest for vengeance. A saga to rival Ken Follett’s Pillars of the Earth, The Outlaws sweeps from serene English villages and quiet forest glens, to French battlefields, remote Welsh fortresses, and even the court of King Henry II, where nobles and clergy vie for power and wealth, and disputes are often decided with steel and blood. The Outlaws is sure to please fans of the Stephen Attebrook mysteries, for it reveals the truth about the founding of the powerful Attebrook family — a secret that family would sooner forget.

Chaucer and the House of Fame


Philip Gooden - 2014
    In danger of losing the Aquitaine territory, England sends Geoffrey Chaucer, protégé of the king's son, to France. As a poet on a diplomatic mission, Chaucer must persuade one of the most important noblemen of the region to remain loyal to England's king. But Henri, Comte de Guyac, whose wife Chaucer had previously fallen in love with when he was held prisoner by Henri, is not exactly neutral in his feelings for Chaucer. Wondering how he will feel when he sees Rosamund, the Comte's wife, Chaucer reaches de Guyac's castle and is greeted by turmoil. His mission is further complicated when Henri is killed during a boar hunt. Chaucer soon realizes the Comte's death is no hunting accident and that he must solve the murder before returning home. Enemies and suspects abound, from a troupe of travelling players to factions within the castle itself. Chaucer finds himself in the midst of a brightly colorful puzzle that turns him into a fugitive in a foreign country, unsure who his friends and enemies really are.

Capturing Sir Dunnicliffe


Rebecca King - 2013
    The feelings Miss Harriett Ponsonby stirs in him are less than welcome, but when he is left battling for his life, he has no option but to seek the help of the one woman who stirs his soul. The very last thing he wants or needs is to feel any attraction toward the delightfully intriguing Miss Harriett Ponsonby, especially when it appears that her father is involved with the spy smugglers Hugo has been sent to arrest. Torn between his desire for Harriett, and his duties as a member of the Star Elite, decisions don't come more difficult for Hugo when someone tries to take her life, and he finds himself becoming her bodyguard! Can he really send his future father-in-law to jail if he is guilty of spy smuggling? Will his obligation to carry out his orders cost him the hand of the only woman who has ever come close to touching this battle-hardened warrior's heart? Can they identify not only one, but two murderers in time to prevent another death? Book one of the brand new Star Elite series introduces one of England's elite fighting units as they battle to protect England's borders from French spies, murderers, smugglers and thieves while they battle with the demons on the past, and the women who will change their lives forever. Book 2 - Smuggler's Glory released 20th November 2013. Book 3 - His Lady Spy released January 2014.