Banners Of Hell (2024) by Paul Doherty

1312, and Piers Gaveston, treasured favourite of King Edward II, is taken from Warwick Castle and brutally executed by men loyal to the Earl of Lancaster, cousin and opponent to the King.

Gaveston’s corpse is brought to the Dominican priory at Blackfriars, where waits Sir Hugh Corbett, Keeper of the King’s Secret Seal. Many plots circle the priory, which seems to be the centre of countless criminal and treasonous plots, not least the arrival of a fleet of pirates loyal to Lancaster to seize control of London itself.

Things come to a head when an alderman invites two of the chief Rifflers – thieves – for a secret meeting. After locking themselves into their chamber, they are discovered the next morning brutally slain. With all of the plots surrounding him – can Sir Hugh find truths necessary to save both the throne and his own life?

Ah, one of the highlights of my year – a new book by Paul Doherty, one of the undisputed masters of the historical mystery novel, the twenty-fourth to feature Sir Hugh Corbett. Ever since the series came back from its break (2010 to 2016), there is such an added frisson of uncertainty. After the series resumed, Paul moved events forward from the reign of the reasonably-stable Edward I to ill-fated and generally disliked Edward II. We’re still fifteen years from his deposition and death, but his reign was full of rebellion and never absolute. I probably know more than the average bear about Edward II (most people’s knowledge probably concerns the spike up his… but not much else) but I’m not familiar enough with the details of his reign to know what to expect next. For example, he is in danger of losing London to Lancaster, and I have no idea if this happened historically. So while we’re pretty sure that Sir Hugh is going to unmask the evildoers, we don’t know what the state of play at the end of the tale is going to be, let alone who from the leading cast is going to make it.

Hugh Corbett, the centre of the piece, is one of my favourite sleuths as he is very much a product of his time, with values appropriate to a man tasked with keeping the King’s secrets and disposing of his enemies. A fair number of villains are executed on the spot here, their bodies being left to hang as a message – I just can’t see Poirot doing that. While Paul’s other primary sleuth, Brother Athelstan, will tolerate such punishment, Corbett here has to initiate it. It’s quite dark at time, and the scenes where Corbett considers the path he is on, and where it is taking him, are very effective.

All in all, it’s a great read. Paul masterfully juggles multiple plots that still feels like a single story – nothing feels unnecessary. The locked room is simple but might still elude most readers (um, like me) but it’s not a centrepiece of the book. Twenty-four books and Sir Hugh Corbett is still going strong – let’s hope there are many more to come.

Banners Of Hell is out now from Headline in hardback and ebook – and, as you might be able to work out, if you haven’t met Sir Hugh before, there are twenty-three others to try too…