In 1141, civil war over England's throne leaves a legacy of violence. As hundreds of pilgrims arrive at the shrine of St. Winifred, Brother Cadfael wonders if two of the pilgrims, obviously intensely bound to each other, are bound to the murder of a knight in Winchester.

When her son Richard is held for ransom in an Austrian dungeon and Prince John plots with the French king to prevent Richard's return, Queen Eleanor sends Justin de Quincy into Wales to recover a ransom payment that has gone missing.

Bowing to an urgent summons from his former lover, Justin de Quincy hastens to Paris only to find that the Lady Claudine was, in fact, acting on behalf of his nemesis Prince John. As the Queen's man, de Quincy has already encountered John's murderous side. But now John tells him of a document implicating him in a plot to kill his brother, King Richard. The document is a forgery, and, despite his hunger for the crown, John is innocent of the charge....

January 1304 and Hugh Corbett, devoted emissary of King Edward I, has been charged with yet another dangerous mission: restore order to the village of Mistleham in Essex and return a Templar treasure to the King.

Investigating the February 1304 murder of the king's disgraced Chief Justice, Sir Hugh Corbett sifts through clues to determine if the culprit is a vengeance-seeking adversary of the victim or a copycat killer.

February, 1381. A ruthless killer known as the Ignifer--Fire Bringer--is rampaging through London, bringing agonising death and destruction in his wake. He appears to be targeting all those involved in the recent trial and conviction of the beautiful Lady Isolda Beaumont, burned at the stake for the murder of her husband. As the late Sir Walter Beaumont was a close friend of the Regent, John of Gaunt orders Sir John Cranston and Brother Athelstan...

Oxford, Spring 1353. When young bookseller Nicholas Elyot discovers the body of student William Farringdon floating in the river Cherwell, it looks like a drowning. Soon, however, Nicholas finds evidence of murder. Who could have wanted to kill this promising student? As Nicholas and his scholar friend Jordain try to unravel what lies behind William's death, they learn that he was innocently caught up in a criminal plot. When their investigations...