But trouble precedes the party to St. David's. On Whitesands Beach outside the cathedral city, a young man is beaten and left for dead, but is rescued and hidden away by the poet Dafydd ap Gwilym. Then, at the gateway to the city, a body is found stabbed to death, his shoes filled with white sand. The mystery thickens as the dead man is revealed to be Owen and Chaucer's contact - and, in an alarming twist, the son of the very steward they are investigating.
Owen wants to resolve his business and return to his apothecary wife, Lucie, and their children. But another murder and the disappearance of the steward's beautiful young wife force Owen to take action - and question his own loyalties.
Candace Robb, with her trademark blend of authentic period detail and skillful plotting, proves once again that she is a master of historical mystery and a natural successor to Ellis Peters
© St.. Martin's Press 1998