Award-winning Author of the Sister Frevisse Mysteries and the Joliffe Player Mysteries 

 

  

 

JOLIFFE

In the pages of Margaret Frazer's national bestselling Dame Frevisse series, the player Joliffe has assumed many roles on stage, to the delight of those he entertains. Now, in the company of a troupe of traveling players, he finds himself cast in the role of sleuth...

 

 

THE MIDDLE AGES COME TO LIFE...

TO BRING US MURDER

The year is 1434, and preparations are under way for the Corpus Christi festival in Oxford, England. Plays are a traditional part of the celebration, and Joliffe and the rest of his troupe are to perform Isaac and Abraham. Until then, their theatrical antics are in demand by a wealthy merchant who offers them an opportunity to ply their trade for room and board.

But when the body of a murdered man is found outside the barn door where the troupe is lodging, Joliffe must raise the curtain on the merchant's mysterious past and uncover the startling truth behind a murder most foul...

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"Everything I'd hoped to find: memorable characters, a meticulously detailed world, an intriguing crime, and a satisfying conclusion." - Roundtable Reviews

 

 

A WEDDING ILL-FATED...

It is the autumn of 1434, and the end-of-harvest reckoning during Michaelmas has been less than plentiful. Fortunately, Joliffe and his fellow players are surviving and thriving under the patronage of Lord Lovell. His grace is sending them to perform at Deneby Manor as a gift for the marriage of Sir Edmund Deneby's daughter, Mariena.

But Joliffe has been engaged to play two roles - that of a player and that of a spy. Deneby's daughter was betrothed once before, to a healthy man who fell ill and died before they married, and Lord Lovell fears a similar fate befalling Mariena's newly intended. And as Joliffe uncovers the secrets of the Denebys' sordid history, it becomes clear that this is a wedding celebration destined to end in tragedy...

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"Another wonderful entry in the author's long series of medieval mysteries ... As always, the author provides a treasure trove of historical detail ... In less assured hands, this detail might be intrusive; here, it simply adds to the ambiance..." - The Romance Reader's Connection

"Deftly drawn characters acting in a stage of intricate and accurate details of medieval life." - Affaire de Couer

 

 

THREE FAMILIES OF WEALTH...

ONE MURDER OF PASSION

In the spring of 1435, Joliffe and his fellow players are sent to the village of Ashewell not only to stage plays, but to uncover some dark secrets about the town's three wealthy families: the Ashewells, the Medcotes, and the Gosyns. A rivalry has been brewing among the families, entangling the entire town in a web of seduction, deception, and blackmail.

Matters go beyond the breaking point when someone turns to murder to settle their grievances. And if one murder is good, why not another? If all the world is a stage, then it's up to Joliffe to bring the curtain down on this tragedy - before another man takes his final curtain call...

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Large Print Edition

"The author seamlessly weaves in period details that give the reader a true sense of the perils, beauty, and reality of life at this time. The mystery, as always, is expertly done, and revolves around true concerns of the time. Any reader interested in mysteries and history will find this one well worth the time." - CA Reviews

 

 

 

 

A ROYAL INTRIGUE...

In the late autumn of 1435, Joliffe and his fellow players are in London to perform for the Bishop Beaufort. But his Eminence has other duties in mind for the company. With the Duke of Bedford's passing, ambitious lords and clergymen are plotting to assume his role as advisor to the young King Henry VI - and the Bishop needs to know what his rivals are planning.

Dispatched to entertain - and spy on - England's royals, Joliffe and company encounter intrigue from various factions both within and without the kingdom. And when men who know too much begin to die in violent ways, the players start to fear for their own lives...

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"An amazing wealth of historical detail. While the mystery is compelling, and rooted in a fascinating historical period, it's the details of everyday life that make the story and charactes leap off the page... Will appeal to readers who enjoy historical mystery and historical fiction." - CA Review

"Will entertain and confound you with its intricately plotted mystery and richly detailed writing... Ms. Frazer knows the fifteenth century and it shows..." - Romance Readers Connection

 

 

 

THE TREACHERY OF WAR...

In agreeing to serve the powerful Bishop Beaufort, Joliffe and his players have made what may be a deal with the devil. It surely seems so in the winter of 1436, when the Bishop sends Joliffe alone to France and into the middle of a war.

There, Joliffe is to act as a servant to the duchess Jacquetta of Bedford -- young, beautiful, and recently widowed. But his real mission is to train as a spy under the late duke's spymaster, and he soon finds that all the wealth of a widow's household is no defense against murder; a city's walls are no defense against enemies within; and not only mean can serve as spies...

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Carefully and faithfully rendered, 15th-century England and France and all the political difficulties come easily to life... Medieval mystery fans will once again enjoy the clever player Joliffe and his adventures. - The Mystery Reader

 

 

 

A PLAGUE OF DEATH...

While his troupe leader recovers from grievous injury, Joliffe is forced to find work in the treacherous world of a medieval hospital. Plagued almost to despair by the endless complaints and imaginary ailments of the elderly widow Mistress Cisily Thorncoffyn, the erstwhile spy and theatrical player is almost relieved to discover that patients are dying from more than their illnesses. Care for the sick and elderly in both body and soul is a sacred and holy duty, but Death's cruel scythe can always use a helping hand... 

Now, with Mistress Thorncoffyn loudly proclaiming that someone is trying to kill her and swearing her wrath on anyone who allows it to happen, Joliffe has no choice but to find the sickening anger which has claimed so many lives before more of the innocent ill are afflicted with a final rest.