London coroner Sir John Cranston has demanded that Athelstan join him at the site of a brutal murder, the tavern known as The Candle-Flame is the site of not one murder, but several! One of the victims was a tax collector, so in addition to his death there was a considerable amount of money stolen.
The question arises; how did the killer do his gruesome work and escape, leaving the Barbican locked on the inside? Athelstan and Cranston begin their investigation by questioning the other guests in the tavern. It is easy to determine that the guests all hated the tax collector. Shortly after this one of the guests is found murdered in his room. Athelstan is sure that this victim may have seen the killer of the others and in turn been killed as a result.
One of the victim’s guards is missing. Could he be the killer? Cranston learns from one of his informants that the Upright Men had nothing to do with the deaths at the Barbican, and they have offered a bounty for information. Athelstan is surprised when the missing guard shows up at his church claiming sanctuary. However well locked in the fugitive is, he is killed there later.
How will Athelstan solve the conundrum of seemingly impossible murders? Author Paul Doherty has the solutions, but he won’t share them until the final pages of the book. There will be surprises for the reader. Enjoy the read!
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