The Three Deaths of Justice Godfrey

L.C. Tyler 

WHEN a respected London wood monger and Court Justice is found dead in a ditch six days after he mysteriously disappeared, it won’t be an easy case for John Grey, Justice of the Peace, former royal spy… and a man who finds his fuel in cynicism.

If he doesn’t solve what seems to be an increasingly inexplicable crime, it could mean innocent men being hanged purely as a regrettable political necessity.

If you haven’t yet enjoyed the black humour and dark deeds that make L.C. Tyler’s dazzling John Grey series such an original and unmissable treat, then dive in now and discover real history brought to glorious life with the perfect blend of wit, stand-out characterisation, and a fascinating mystery.

Also known for his superb Herring comedy series starring hilarious author and agent duo Ethelred Tressider and Elsie Thirkettle, Tyler (pictured below) is a former civil servant and a past chair of the Crime Writers Association.

His current speciality is the John Grey historical series featuring a clever, sardonic lawyer operating during the reign of the restored King Charles II, and frequently finding himself caught up in labyrinthine skulduggery and daring double dealing.

And what we get is Tyler at his entertaining best… a Restoration crime odyssey delivered with a wealth of research and verbal artistry, creating a delicious slice of history in all its dark, dank and deadly reality, and a veritable stage show of witty one-liners wrapped up in an enthralling mystery adventure.

In October of 1678 Sir Edmund Berry Godfrey sets out in his second-best coat from his house near Saint Martin-in-the Fields early one foggy morning. Then he vanishes and several days later, his body is discovered in a ditch near Primrose Hill. He has been severely beaten, strangled and stabbed through the chest... killed three times, in fact. There’s no doubt somebody wanted him dead. However, the cash in his pockets is still there and, in spite of the wet weather and muddy roads, his clothes are dry and his shoes are spotlessly clean.

People are quick to connect his killing with the role Godfrey has played in exposing a Catholic plot to kill King Charles II. His name is, after all, an anagram of ‘dy'd by Rome’s reveng’d fury.’ Parliament, whipped into a frenzy by the conspirator Titus Oates, demands a suitable perpetrator is found. But it soon becomes clear that Godfrey had not merely offended the Catholics. He had, some weeks before, predicted his own death with uncanny accuracy.

Magistrate John Grey is summoned from his Essex manor of Clavershall to investigate the murder, which has links to serious political unrest, and he must act with speed if he is to save the lives of innocent men who are now in serious danger of being used as political pawns...

Tyler certainly knows his stuff but, with a twinkle in his eye, he brings us history and mystery with the lightest – and most enjoyable – of touches as Grey is plunged into a dark web of conspiracy, espionage, greed and bribery in in his hunt for Godfrey’s killer.

With a fast-paced story bristling with suspense, drama, engaging characters, both real and fictional, and a thrilling plot peppered with devilish serpentine twists and caustic one-liners, The Three Deaths of Justice Godfrey is an excellent tenth adventure in this authentic, entertaining and much-loved series.
(Constable, hardback, £24.99)