But after a night-time march across East Anglia, Lassair begins to understand the danger she is in. Young and confident, when Lassair is asked to use her unique talents to help locate a mysterious treasure she accepts with barely a hesitation - despite the grave consequences should the mission be discovered. On her sisters wedding day, Lassair meets an attractive and enigmatic stranger who brings a breath of the glamorous and fascinating outside world to her backwater Fenland village. Rebellion is in the air and, in the shadows, secrets are muttered that men will kill for. Book Synopsis a well-crafted plot that builds to a chilling climax - Publishers Weekly Starred Review A medieval mystery from the author of the Hawkenlye series It is 1087 and William Rufus has just ascended the throne England lies under a harsh new militaristic regime. When he asks Lassair to help locate a mysterious treasure, she accepts.

(Apr.About the Book Lassair meets an attractive and enigmatic stranger who brings a breath of the fascinating outside world to her backwater village. Clare's intricate, satisfying plot and her wide array of well-drawn minor characters help put her at the forefront of the medieval mystery field.

Those expecting naughty nuns and frolicsome friars will be disappointed. Sir Josse's respect for the abbess's intelligence and integrity is just one of his charms, while the struggle both characters go through to reconcile their religious convictions with the superstitions surrounding the night forest adds more than usual interest. A missing novice and a second body deepen the mystery. Determined to discover what really happened that night, Sir Josse finds evidence that the murdered man and his cohorts had more to poach than small game, and that life in the forest and life in the abbey are not as separate as they may seem. The abbess thinks the sheriff a fool, but until the arrival of her friend, enlightened knight Sir Josse d'Acquin, she must remain content with the official version of events. Abbess Helewise of neighboring Hawkenlye Abbey sends for the sheriff, who dismisses the murder as the work of the 'Wild People,' a strange band of wanderers who come to the forest every June, according to local lore. One summer night in the Wealden Forest, an expertly thrown spear with a well-chiseled flint point pierces the heart of a poacher. Following the success of 2000's Fortune Like the Moon, British author Clare shows in this sequel why many consider her a worthy successor to Ellis Peters.

Ashes of the Elements by Alys Clare