The first adventure in the thrilling Justice Belstrang mystery series from John Pilkington. A must-read for fans of C. J. Sansom. 🩸📜England, 1616. Ex-magistrate Robert Belstrang, bored with country life, comes to London to investigate the strange disappearance of Thomas Jessop, son of a poor Catholic neighbour. He finds the youth in Bedlam asylum, silent and starving himself. But when he tries to free Jessop Belstrang finds himself the target of a dark plot to silence him by any means necessary.
But Robert Belstrang is a stubborn man, and with the help of ex-soldier Daniel Oldrigg he sticks doggedly to his purpose. Their investigations take them deep into the fear-ridden Catholic underworld where Belstrang soon uncovers a plan with its roots in the Gunpowder Plot of more than a decade ago.
The underbelly of London is a murky place, but Belstrang will strain every sinew to out the corruption... or die trying.
*This title was previously published as Legacy.
A writer for over forty years, John Pilkington was born in Lancashire and worked at many jobs including laboratory assistant, farm worker, weaver, shipping clerk, picture frame-maker and cabaret musician before taking a degree in Drama and English and finding his true 2 vocation. He has since written plays for radio and theatre, television scripts for a BBC soap, a short-lived childrens series and numerous works of historical fiction, concentrating now on the Tudor and Stuart eras. He also ventured into speculative fiction with his biography of Shakespeares famous jester, Yorick.
He now lives in a village on a tidal estuary in Devon with his long-term partner Elisabeth; they have a son who is a psychologist and musician. When not at the desk he walks, swims, listens to music and tinkers with d.i.y. projects, and is enjoying being a grandfather.
