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Authors: Candace Robb

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A Spy for the Redeemer

BOOK: A Spy for the Redeemer
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A SPY FOR THE REDEEMER

Candace Robb studied for a Ph.D. in Medieval and Anglo-Saxon literature and has continued to read and research medieval history and literature ever since. The Owen Archer series grew out of a fascination with the city of York and the tumultuous 14th century; the first in the series,
The Apothecary Rose
, was published in 1994, at which point she began to write full time. In addition to the UK, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Canada and America, her novels are published in France, Germany, Spain and Holland, and she is also available in the UK on audiobook and in large print.

She is currently writing the eighth Owen Archer novel, following a short break to write
A Trust Betrayed
, the first in a new series of mysteries set in Edinburgh at the time of Robert the Bruce.

Acclaim for Candace Robb:

‘Ellis Peters has a cohort of pretenders snapping at her heels … most impressive of the bunch is Candace Robb. A definite tip for tomorrow’
Time Out

‘Robb interweaves a complex story of love, passion and murder into the troubled and tangled fabric of Welsh history, fashioning a rich and satisfying novel’
Publishers Weekly

‘A superb medieval mystery, thoroughly grounded in historical fact’
Booklist

‘Gripping and believable … you can almost smell the streets of 14th-century York as you delve deeper into an engrossing plot’
Prima

‘Hugely, but subtly, detailed … complex, ambiguous and gripping. The solution had me guessing almost to the very end’
Historical Novels Review

Also by Candace Robb

O
WEN
A
RCHER
M
YSTERIES

The Apothecary Rose

The Lady Chapel

The Nun’s Tale

The King’s Bishop

The Riddle of St Leonard’s

A Gift of Sanctuary

The Cross-Legged Knight

M
ARGARET
K
ERR
M
YSTERIES

A Trust Betrayed

The Fire in the First

A Cruel Courtship

To find out more about Candace Robb’s novels, visit the Candace Robb website at
www.candacerobb.com

This eBook is copyright material and must not be copied, reproduced, transferred, distributed, leased, licensed or publicly performed or used in any way except as specifically permitted in writing by the publishers, as allowed under the terms and conditions under which it was purchased or as strictly permitted by applicable copyright law. Any unauthorised distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s and publisher’s rights and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly.

Version 1.0

Epub ISBN 9781446440735

www.randomhouse.co.uk

Published by Arrow 2000

5 7 9 10 8 6

Copyright © Candace Robb 1999

Candace Robb has asserted her right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988 to be identified as the author of this work

This novel is a work of fiction. Names and characters are the product of the author’s imagination and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental

This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, resold, hired out, or otherwise circulated without the publisher’s prior consent in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser

First published in the United Kingdom in 1999 by William Heinemann

The Random House Group Limited
20 Vauxhall Bridge Road, London SW1V 2SA

Random House Australia (Pty) Limited
20 Alfred Street, Milsons Point, Sydney,
New South Wales 2061, Australia

Random House New Zealand Limited
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Auckland 10, New Zealand

Random House South Africa (Pty) Limited
Isle of Houghton, Corner Boundary Road & Carse O’Gowrie,
Houghton, 2198, South Africa

The Random House Group Limited Reg. No. 954009

www.randomhouse.co.uk

A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

ISBN 0 09 927797 2

For Patrick and Evan
,

my dear friends who represent me to the world

CONTENTS
 

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

MAPS

GLOSSARY

PROLOGUE

1 Too Long Away

2 Prayers Unanswered

3 Freythorpe Hadden

4 The Archdeacon’s Will

5 Six Horsemen

6 The Captain’s Tale

7 Chaos

8 Into the Wood

9 The High Sheriff

10 Math and Enid

11 Rumours

12 Cynog’s Secret

13 Puzzles

14 A Spy for the Redeemer

15 High and Mighties

16 Ambivalence

17 Mistress of the Hall

18 A Pattern of Evil

19 Penances

20 The Morality of Hywel’s War

21 Troubling Uncertainties

22 Wretchedness

23 Not As They Seem

24 Gloucester

25 Journeys

26 A Crowd

27 An Unnatural Sleep

28 Bedevilled

29 Ill News

30 The Maze

31 Beneath the Linden

EPILOGUE

AUTHOR’S NOTE

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
 

For devoting their time and sharing their knowledge throughout the imagining and writing of this book I thank Lynne Drew, Kate Elton, Sara Ann Freed, Joyce Gibb, Jeremy Goldberg, Fiona Kelleghan, Evan Marshall, Nona Rees, Compton Reeves, Charlie Robb, Patrick Walsh, the staff of the National Library of Wales in Aberystwyth, and my colleagues on the Internet discussion lists Mediev-l, Chaucer, and Medfem. Any mistakes are surely my own.

GLOSSARY
 

archdeacon

as was (and is) customary, the archdeacons of St David’s were appointed by the bishop and carried out most of his duties; however, because the Bishop of St David’s was the lord of the March, his archdeacons were men of considerable power

butt

a mark or mound for archery practice

certes

certainly, to be sure (middle English)

demesne lands

the land immediately attached to a mansion, and held along with it for practical or pleasurable use; the park, chase, home-farm, etc.

houppelande

men’s attire; a flowing gown, often floor-length and slit up to thigh level to ease walking, but sometimes knee-length; sleeves large and open

jongleur

a minstrel who sang, juggled, tumbled

Lady Chapel

a chapel dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary, usually situated at the east end of the church

leman

mistress

liege lord

the superior to whom one gives allegiance and service

Marches/

the borders of the kingdom and the lords

Marcher Lords

to whom the King granted jurisdiction over them

mazer

a large wooden cup or bowl, often highly decorated

minster

a large church or cathedral; the Cathedral of St Peter in York is referred to as York Minster

no fors

does not matter (middle English)

seneschal

in the household of a sovereign or great noble the official who administers justice and controls domestic arrangements

scrip

a small bag, wallet, or satchel

solar

private room on upper level of house

summoner

an assistant to an archdeacon who cited people to the archbishop’s or bishop’s consistory court, which was held once a month. The court was staffed by the bishop’s officials and lawyers and had jurisdiction over the diocesan clergy and the morals, wills and marriages of the laity. Also called an ‘apparitor’.

tabard

a loose upper garment without sleeves

trencher

a thick slice of brown bread a few days old with a slight hollow in the centre, used as a platter

vicar

as a modern vicar is the deputy of the rector, so a vicar choral was a cleric in holy orders acting as the deputy of a canon attached to the cathedral; for a modest annual salary the vicar choral performed his canon’s duties, attending the various services of the church and singing the liturgy

BOOK: A Spy for the Redeemer
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