"August, 1558. As London is bustling with growing trade from foreign lands, and Queen Mary's health is once again a hot topic, Jack Blackjack has much to keep him busy. And that's before his new tenant - a Dutch merchant - disappears under a cloud of suspicion, quickly presumed murdered, and Jack's latest female companion's body is found mere streets from her dwelling place. People around Jack keep inconveniently getting murdered, and he seems to be the most likely culprit! With both the authorities and the unsavoury echelons of London on his tail, nowhere is safe for Jack to hide. He must go about proving his innocence - and uncovering the mirky truth - while ensuring he doesn't find himself dancing the Tyburn jig!"
"March 1557. Jack Blackjack is back in London and enjoying a sedentary life. After his treacherous voyage back to his beloved city the previous year, he desires nothing more than women, wine, beer and more women. But his new parish of St Helen's has different ideas for him . . . A week after first laying eyes on the tempting Miss Rachel Nailor, she turns up dead on the church vestry floor . . . and someone is trying to frame him for her murder! Rachel was a woman with many secrets. But was she murdered in a fit of lustful rage, or was it part of a wider political play? Who would want Rachel dead - and Jack hanged for it? With his master breathing down his neck, and old foes crawling out of the woodwork, Jack has never been in more danger!"
"August 1556. Jack Blackjack is on a simple mission: make it back home to his beloved London. It should be simple, right? Wrong. He's made it as far as Exeter, but before he can secure a fresh steed in that hellish city, he's faced with a dead priest, ruthless thieves, and a devious Dean who's determined to see the back of Jack. That suits Jack just fine - he wants to leave! So when wealthy merchant Wolfe, offers passage to London via sea, Jack jumps at the chance . . . and unwittingly into further danger! With thieves, pirates and potential murderers at every turn who can Jack trust? Will he uncover the truth behind the dead priest and missing merchant ships? But more importantly, will he ever make it home to London with his purse strings and limbs intact?"
"July 1556. Jack Blackjack spends the night at a Devon tavern, agrees to a game of dice - and ends up accused of murder. To make matters worse, the dead man was the leader of the all-powerful miners who rule the surrounding moors. But who would frame Jack for murder . . . and why? Jack realises that the only way to clear his name - and save his skin - is to unmask the real killer. But knowing nothing of the local ways and customs, how is he to even begin? As Jack's attempts to find answers stirs up a hornet's nest of warring factions within the town, events soon start to spiral out of control . . ."
"London, 1556. Hal Westmecott, one of the city's most feared executioners, reckons Jack Blackjack owes him a favour – and now he's come to collect his dues. Hal has ordered Jack to track down his long-lost son. But when Jack's search draws him to the attention of a ruthless nobleman, a dead priest's vengeful brother and finally to a bloodstained body in a filthy lodging house, he comes to realise he is an unwitting pawn in a mesh of schemes dreamed up by the most powerful people in England. Just who is a friend, who is a foe – and will Jack escape with his life intact?"
"After their gruelling journeys to Galicia and Scilly, Baldwin and Simon are at last back on the English mainland. Eager to get home, they set off on horseback but only get as far as Cardinham on Bodmin Moor. Here, they are detained by the castellan who requires their help to solve two murders on the estate. The first victim is a widow, found dead with her two children. The second is Serlo, the miller, who has recently been discovered embezzling castle money taken in tolls. As Baldwin and Simon begin a double investigation, they must look beneath the village friendships and family loyalties to find an evil killer and secure Cardinham's safety."
"On their return home from their pilgrimage, Baldwin and Simon's ship is attacked off the coast of the Scilly Isles by pirates and Simon looks on in horror as Baldwin is swept overboard. Washed ashore on the tiny island of Ennor, Simon is distraught to think that his closest friend is dead, but he has to put aside his grief when the master of the castle orders him to investigate a murder. Meanwhile, Baldwin himself has been washed up on St Nicholas and is nursed back to health by the beautiful Tedia. He uncovers a different picture of the island as he too begins to investigate the murder. Can Baldwin and Simon's parallel investigations uncover the truth?"
"1555. A priest has been stabbed to death in the village of St Botolph, his body left to rot by the roadside – and Jack Blackjack stands accused of his murder. As well as clearing his name, Jack has his own reasons for wanting to find out who really killed the priest, but this is an investigation where nothing is as it seems. Was it a random attack by a desperate outlaw, or do the answers lie in the murdered priest's past? As he questions those who knew the dead man, Jack is faced with a number of conflicting accounts – and it's clear that not everyone can be telling him the whole truth."
"Baldwin Furnshill and Bailiff Simon Puttock have been granted leave to go on pilgrimage. Together they travel across Europe to Portugal, but danger seems to follow them, as they are among the first on the scene when a beautiful young girl is found brutally raped and murdered on the hillside of Santiago de Compostela. Baldwin and Simon lend their investigative skills to the ensuing enquiry headed by the local pesquisidore, Munio. With so many keen minds on the case it can only be a matter of time before the culprit is found. But they are reckoning without the unexpected appearance of a face from Baldwin's past – a face which looks set to threaten both the investigation and Baldwin's very future."
"London 1555. Queen Mary is newly married to Philip II of Spain – and not everyone is happy about the alliance. The kingdom is divided between those loyal to Catholic Mary and those who support her halfsister, Lady Elizabeth. Former cutpurse turned paid assassin Jack Blackjack has more immediate matters to worry about. Having been ordered to kill a man, he determines to save him instead. But Jack defies his spymaster at his peril…and even the bestlaid plans can sometimes go awry. When it appears that Jack has killed the wrong man, he reluctantly finds himself drawn into affairs of state, making new enemies wherever he turns. Can he survive long enough to put matters right?"
"June, 1554. Professional assassin Jack Blackjack has been despatched to the palace of Woodstock, where Queen Mary's halfsister, Princess Elizabeth, is being kept under close guard. Jack's employer has reason to believe that a spy has been installed within the princess's household, and Jack has been ordered to kill her. Jack has no choice but to agree. But he arrives at Woodstock to discover that a murder has already been committed. As he sets out to prove his innocence by uncovering the real killer, Jack finds the palace to be a place steeped in misery and deceit. But who among Woodstock's residents is hiding a deadly secret – and will Jack survive long enough to find out?"
"January, 1554. Lightfingered Jack Blackjack knows he's not going to have a good day when he wakes with a sore head next to a dead body in a tavern's yard. But when he discovers what's in the dead man's purse, his day is set to get much worse. The purse explains why the mysterious man with the broadbrimmed hat wants to catch him. But so does the Lord Chancellor, as does the enigmatic Henry. In fact, almost everyone seems to be after Jack Blackjack. If it weren't for the rebel army marching on London determined to remove Queen Mary from her throne, Jack could leave the city. Instead he must try to work out who killed the man in the yard, and why."
