Publisher's Synopsis
December, 1194. The well-born ladies of Exeter are not having a good week. First, Christina Rifford, the daughter of a rich merchant, is raped. Then, just months before her marriage, Lady Adele de Courcy is found dead in one of the poorest areas of Exeter.
The common factor is Godrey Fitzosbern, the local silversmith. But despite Crowner John's suspicions and the vengeful accusations of the families of the two girls, it is John's duty to protect Godfrey until he can find proof of his guilt.
Aided by his mistress Nesta and hindered by his social-climbing wife Matilda and her power-hungry brother Sheriff Richard de Revelle, John de Wolfe slowly begins to put the pieces together. But a final, brutal act of violence brings a new twist to John's investigation before he finally arrives at the truth.
