Roberta Gellis, the acclaimed author of The Roselynde Chronicles, is in top medieval form with this second tale of life—and death—in twelfth-century London.
Magdalene la Bâtarde is the madam of the Old Priory Guesthouse in Southwark. Together with the handsome Sir Bellamy of Itchen, she solved the murder of Baldassare the Messenger, but this time the murder victim is none of Magdalene's business.
She is not in the least bit sorry to learn that Bertrild, the unpleasant wife of Master Mainard, is dead. Bertrild once accused Magdalene of corrupting her father and causing his death. In fact, Bertrild was insulting to most people, making threats and using terrible revelations as a weapon against those who would not bow down to her demanding ways. However, when it seems that Mainard will be charged with Bertrild's murder—because no one accepts the oath of a whore that he is innocent—Magdalene decides to investigate.
Fortunately, Sir Bellamy is back in London doing his master's business. Unable to refuse Magdalene, he agrees to help her, and the two set out to solve the murder.
Roberta Gellis has master’s degrees in medieval literature and in biochemistry. She is the author of numerous novels and the recipient of many awards, including the Lifetime Achievement Award for Historical Fantasy and the Romance Writers of America’s Lifetime Achievement Award. Roberta Gellis lives on Long Island with her husband of more than fifty years and her Lakeland terrier, Taffy.
Wanda McCaddon began recording books for the fledgling audiobook industry in the early 1980s and has since narrated well over six hundred titles for major audio publishers, as well as abridging, narrating, and coproducing classic titles for her own company, Big Ben. Audiobook listeners may be familiar with her voice under one of her two "nom de mikes," Donada Peters and Nadia May. The recipient of an Audie Award and more than twenty-five Earphones Awards, AudioFile magazine has named her one of recording's Golden Voices. Wanda also appears regularly on the professional stage in the San Francisco Bay Area.