Hostage to Fortune (The gripping mediaeval mystery series) - Sarah Hawkswood

Bradecote and Catchpoll face a frantic race against time in an unforgiving winter landscapeJanuary 1144. Hugh Bradecote does not want his betrothed travelling on a pilgrimage to the shrine of St Edgyth at Polesworth, but the Archbishop of Canterbury’s envoy and his entourage of monks seem perfect as Christina’s escorts, until they are captured by a renegade who kills for pleasure. Against a backdrop of a hard winter and a frozen River Severn, Undersheriff Bradecote and Serjeant Catchpoll are struggling to rescue Christina before a psychopath does his worst and Bradecote cracks under the pressure. Author is based close to the book’s setting of Worcester and is an energetic promoter of her books Continuing Hawkswood’s medieval-set mystery series, which will appeal particularly to fans of Ellis Peters’ Cadfael books and Ariana Franklin’s Mistress of Death series