An enjoyable if slightly stogy prequal to the medieval crime series, the Crowner John mystery series. Sir John de Wolfe accompanies Richard the Lionheart on his journey back to England from Palestine in 1192. This was a difficult journey as Richard had to cross Europe and evade his numerous and very powerful enemies along the way. Richard was captured and held to ransom. Sir John de Wolfe escaped and returned to his home in Devon, his unhappy marriage and difficult relations with his brother-in-law, the local county Sheriff. The story concludes with the appointment of Sir John de Wolfe as the King’s Coroner which is the direct link to the ongoing series.
The story fails to solve a central problem, why does it exist? In the ongoing series Sir John de Wolfe has a position which requires him to be involved in resolving crimes. It has a powerful and effective story engine and a skillfully used historical context that add greatly to the pleasure of reading the stories. This book lacks any clear story engine, it is involved in setting up the details that are used in the following series.
This lack is most apparent in the first half of the story which follows Richard’s journey. There is no mystery or crime involved in this journey. It is very vividly described, and the cast are lively and engaging. King Richard steps off the page, a complex mixture of desire to be recognized and given the due of his status and recognizing the danger involved in revealing himself. The sheer physical grid of the journey and the problems of having information recent enough to be useful are woven into the details in a effective way. The problem is that it takes up half the story and does not have sufficient impact on the second half of the story.
On his safe return from war Sir John de Wolfe faces some problems, his deeply unhappy arranged marriage to a wife whom he does not love or desire, feelings full returned by his wife. Absence at war had suited them both. Sir John takes an interest in the problems of the widow of a man he knew and helps restore a tavern she runs. Finding a body of a murdered man in a river, he is given the task of finding out why he was killed.
This investigation lacks the force of the one he conducts as a Coroner; it never develops any tension or momentum.
Bernard Knight knows the context and his cast inside out. He can confidently create the period and bring the reader into the situation. The story is never dull, and the cast are lively enough to engage the reader. It simply never stands up on its own, there is nothing essential about it for either enjoying the ongoing series or in its own right.
