Revenger: A John Shakespeare Mystery

There will be a terrible reckoning . . .

England is at war with Spain, and Queen Elizabeth's court is torn apart by brutal rivalries among ambitious young courtiers. The inimitable investigator John Shakespeare is dragged from retirement to work for the Earl of Essex, the queen's favorite. His mission is to unravel the mystery behind the doomed Roanoke colony in North America, but instead, he uncovers a plot to kill the aging queen.

With a plague devastating the country, Catholics being tortured, and John's wife keeping secrets from him, Shakespeare has his own survival to secure. Filled with colorful historical detail, Revenger is a stunning novel of savage betrayals and salacious intrigue.

After a career in national newspapers, Rory Clements now lives in a seventeenth-century farmhouse in Norfolk and writes full time. When not immersing himself in the Elizabethan world, he enjoys village life and a game of tennis with friends. He is married to the artist Naomi Clements-Wright. There are five books in the John Shakespeare series of Elizabethan mysteries: Martyr, which was shortlisted for the CWA John Creasey Award; Revenger, which won the 2010 CWA Ellis Peters Historical Fiction Award; Prince, which was shortlisted for the 2011 Ellis Peters Historical Fiction Award; Traitor; and Monarch. All are published by John Murray. A TV series based on the books is currently in development.

You can find out more about Rory, his writing and the world of John Shakespeare on his website www.roryclements.com and at www.johnmurray.co.uk.