Sylvian Hamilton

The Gleemaiden

"Countess Judith kept her husband's head in a box..."

As penance for the sin of sacrilege (The Pendragon Banner) Richard Straccan must leave his new bride, and oversee the transport of a huge bell from London to Durham. With a motley train of pilgrims – and a vengeful saboteur – Straccan has his hands full, but there are bigger problems waiting for him: multiple murder, treason, the kidnapping of the queen – and the mystery surrounding a little orphaned boy known as the Logos.

His friend Miles Hoby has managed to escape from the bloody chaos of the Cathar Crusade in France, bringing to England the glee-maiden Roslyn and a small boy, David d’Ax; they are hotly pursued by three knights, known as the ‘Angels’, who have one purpose only – to kill David.

On his journey north Straccan meets his old acquaintance, the reluctant spy Larktwist. Together they track the queen’s kidnapper to his hide-out, and make a grisly discovery. But can Straccan protect David, and find out why the Church has ordered his death?

The third in the Chronicles of the Bone Pedlar.

First published in the UK by Headline in February 2004.