#61 - The Queen's Man by Sharon Ann Penman

The year is 1193. A merchant is murdered on the road to London, while carrying an important letter for the Queen of England, Eleanor of Aquitaine. The murder is witnessed by Justin de Quincy. de Quincey takes the letter, and its news of the fate of King Richard, to the queen himself. He is untimately hired by the queen to solve the murder and to discover if the King of France was involved in the plot to intercept the news of her eldest son's fate.

That's the basic storyline for "The Queen's Man'', the first in a series of medieval mystery novels by Sharon Kay Penman.

I really enjoyed this book. The medieval setting made this a new approach to a mystery novel for me. Definitely an escape from formula plots!

There are 4 books in this series: The Queens Man, Cruel as the Grave, Dragon's Lair, and Prince of Darkness. Penman has also written several other novels set in the medieval period.

50 Book Challenge 2007: 41/50