Set in 1284 during the regime of Edward 1, this novel is first in the Coubert series. Those were the turbulent times - pentangles (satanic worshippers) and populares colluded to spread anarchy and dethrone the king. Hugh Coubert is pressed into action by the chancellor to investigate the matter.

I am an avid reader of historical fiction and this book quite lived upto the expectations. I have read the C J Sansom's Matthew Shardlake series and Rory Clement's Shakespeare series.
The plot is intriguing but is not mind-twisting like the above series. Probably, the genre has evolved over the years. This book was written 1984, so there certain aspects of the novel are quite raw. In certain ways the villains are predictable, but that doesn't dampen the interest. ( )

En 1248, Eduardo I de Inglaterra es informado de la extraña muerte de Lorenzo Duket, quien, aparentemente, se ha suicidado dentro de la iglesia de Santa María Le Bow, después de haber cometido un asesinato.
El rey sospecha que tras estos sucesos están los seguidores del rebelde Simón de Monfort y su poderosa sociedad secreta, en la cual se practica la magia negra. Robert Burnell, el astuto canciller del monarca, encarga la investigación del asunto a un inteligente escribano del Tribunal real, Hugo Corbett.

1284 in the reign of Edward I, it seems that there are traitors everywhere. Chancellor Burnell instructs Hugh Corbett, clerk, to investigate the death of a goldsmith Duket, after Duket had killed a Ralph Crepyn. But Corbett is soon drawn into a more dangerous situation.
I enjoyed this well paced mystery and look forward to reading the next in the series.
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I am new to historical fiction. I was motivated to seek this one out having recently read the 5 novel series by CJ Sansom set in Tudor England, beginning with "Dissolution". Paul Doherty has written a series of 17 historical novels set around 1300 in England. His main protagonist is Hugh Corbett, an official of King Edward's court who is repeatedly sent by the king to solve some crime or other. The first one, "Satan in St Mary's" is set in London but others are set in different parts of the country as well as London. They are mostly around 200 pages and easy to read with a good combination of interesting characters, real history and suspense. I enjoyed this first one sufficiently that I have now read the first 12 of 17 in the series. Some are naturally better than others. The best ones involve political intrigue with the king's French enemies and spies. "Satan in St Mary's" revolves around murders committed by a cult of sort, supposedly with satanic links. ( )

En 1284, Eduardo I de Inglaterra es informado de la muerte de Lorenzo Duket, quien aparentemente se ha suicidado dentro de una iglesia. Pero el rey tiene serias sospechas, y encarga la investigación del asunto al escribano Hugo Corbett. ( )