Oswald de Lacy was never meant to be the Lord of Somershill Manor, yet that is the legacy he has taken up, in this first book in S.D. Sykes's medieval mystery series. Dispatched to a monastery at an early age, and sent back at 17 after his father and brothers were killed by plague, Oswald knows nothing about running an estate, and the years of pestilence and neglect have utterly changed the place—and all who live there. Almost immediately, Oswald is confronted by the murder of a young woman, Alison Starvecrow; the ambitious village priest claims that she was killed by a band of demonic dog-headed men, which Oswald knows is nonsense, but proving it—by finding the real murderer—is quite a different matter.

"Everything a reader would want in a historical mystery: a gripping plot, vivid language, living and breathing characters, and an immersive depiction of the past. From the opening line, Sykes grabs the reader by the throat."—Publishers Weekly (starred review)