By some reckonings, the events in A Choir of Crows take place during the “Little Ice Age”, the era in European history that spawned the sumptuous costumes that we associate with Renaissance Faires today. Because it was just so damn cold. You can practically hear the icy winds of December, 1374 whistling through this story.

The chill actually feels pretty good in this strange summer of 2020. It’s already hot down here.

But I came to this story not for its bracing weather, but because I got into a mood for historical fiction and mysteries, and this series always satisfies that particular itch.

Like the best of its kind, the Owen Archer series takes place during a time of great upheaval, and it mixes its search for whodunnit with insight into why it was done – or why it was covered up – and who is playing politics with whom and to what ends as Captain Owen Archer investigates a series of murders in his city while the worthies of the entire country descend upon York for the investiture of its new Archbishop.

Who is a much lesser man than the one he replaces. A man who is very much beholden to and under the heavy thumb of one of the most ambitious lords of the entire kingdom – his older brother, Sir John Neville, Baron of Raby. The Nevilles were one of the great families of Northern England, and they rose to become kingmakers during the Wars of the Roses.

This series is set at what will be the foundation of those Wars, as King Edward III is old and infirm, his oldest son and heir, The Black Prince, is young but struck down by disease, and the crown will become a prize in the squabbles between alternate heirs, sons, grandsons and even great-grandsons of Edward III in the mid-1400s.

But that is in the future. In the present, Owen Archer has a mess on his hands. Three men are dead. His assistant has discovered a young woman, disguised as a young man, at the site of two of the deaths. One might have been by misadventure but the other was certainly murder. The murdered man was a clergyman, he died within the precincts of York Minster, the Archbishop has not yet been invested in his throne – not that anyone believes he will know how to deal with this problem – unlike his predecessor.

There is a vacuum in authority, but a desperate need to put the entire situation behind them before the archbishop and his party – particularly his powerful brother – arrive on the scene to force a solution. One that suits them rather than any truth.

Owen is under pressure to solve the crimes and protect the young woman who seems to be at the heart of the mess while still being a victim of it. And to keep his family and friends safe from the power struggle yet to come.

Because Owen is not merely the Captain of the City Watch. He’s also The Black Prince’s right hand man in York – making the Nevilles his enemies – quite possibly of the deadly variety.

Escape Rating A: I absolutely adore this series, and reading this now instead of in a couple of weeks was definitely a case of the right book at the right time. After yesterday’s review, I really, really wanted to read this next – so I did.

But as much as I love this series, I’ll admit to having a difficult time figuring out where to recommend a newbie start it. Part of what I love is the way that the mystery dovetails into the history – and this is an era of history that I studied a bit and remember. So I’m riveted pretty much all of the time. I don’t think that would be true for someone who came into it cold, particularly not 12 books in.

Memory says that in the beginning the political situation was less complicated and less part of the story, that the focus was much more on the mystery and on the characters, as Owen arrives in York gets caught up in solving a murder, and is caught between hunting for a killer and fearing that the killer is the woman he has fallen in love with. So start at the beginning with The Apothecary Rose. If historical mystery is your cup of tea, it’s a great place to begin. (If the historical period in which this series takes place fascinates you, Jeri Westerson’s Crispin Guest is operating just a decade or so later, and the political mess has only become even more fraught in the interim.)

Back to A Choir of Crows. Yes, I know that the collective noun for crows is a murder, but that’s not what is being referred to by the title. Just FYI.

The story here does an excellent job of mixing the people with the politics. And in this instance I mean politics with a small “p” and not the large “P” of the national political upheaval going on at the time.

While Owen’s methods for solving crime may lack in 21st century forensics, the issues that he has to deal with are all too familiar. He has to solve the murders before the powers-that-be arrive and force a solution. We’ve all seen that in contemporary life and policing, where someone is railroaded into a confession so that everything can be swept under the carpet. Forensics may have advanced, but human nature hasn’t changed much at all – not even in seven centuries.

The young woman at the heart of this mystery is a victim every bit as much – actually as it turns out quite a bit more – than the man who was murdered. But she’s all too aware that even though none of what happened is in any way her fault, she’ll still be blamed for all of it merely because she is female. And that hasn’t changed much either.

However, as many things and issues as are wrapped around this case, at its heart is a good man determined to see justice served, protect his family, his friends and his city to the best of his ability, and to keep his word and his oaths. And that’s a story well worth reading, whether it takes place in this or any other era.

A few years ago, after the story in A Vigil of Spies, it felt like this series was coming to an end. While it would have been a fitting ending, I was pleased as Punch to see Owen return in A Conspiracy of Wolves. And I hope to see MANY further adventures in this well-written, thoroughly researched and utterly compelling series.

The twelfth book in the Owen Archer series set in Fourteenth century York. It's been a seriously long time since I read the earlier books in this series, so I was curious to see what I would make of this one now. It was good to revisit the characters of Owen Archer and his wife but I found them rather flat. The book had a slow pace which made it feel like a real effort to read. Sadly I didn't enjoy it as much as I remember enjoying the earlier books.

Owen Archer has his work cut out for him as he is now a sort of spymaster/consultant to the Black Prince(Edward)as well as Captain of the City Bailiffs, an all encompassing title. The author describes it as a murder mystery in her notes, but it seems almost to be a political historical tale with some deaths involved.

Lucie and Owen's children are recovering from a longish illness as the story opens which is why the hours is full of healers and helpers. I felt the characters had more depth than the last episode, much more vibrant. There were a lot of subplots and much intrigue- babies being born, people falling off roofs, and watchers of ladies at the midden!

The Nevilles descending on the city for Alexander's installation as Archbishop thrown in even more political upheaval, violence and mayhem. Enjoyable if a bit confusing.

Once again Candace Robb has delivered a fascinating picture of the political atmosphere in late 1374 in the north of England, specifically the city of York. A new Archbishop of York has been appointed and he, his brother and their contingent are on their way to York for Alexander Neville's enthronement. England is a country divided between two powerful factions and spies are everywhere ready to report the slightest bit of information. The tension begins to intensify even more when a vicar with the cathedral is found dead. Before the authorities can even examine the body of the first victim a second is found, also on the cathedral grounds. Connected or not Owen Archer knows he has to solve the questions surrounding these deaths before the city is overflowing with strangers here to attend the enthroning.

This twelfth book in the Owen Archer series kept me thoroughly involved in the lives of Owen, his wife Lucie and the political climate of York. Owen has been suffering through a year of grief due to the death of Sir John Thoresby, but he has agreed to become a spy for Prince Edward in the north as well as captain of the cities bailiffs putting him right in the middle of all the actions which take place in this story. Naturally this series has accumulated a regular list of characters who return with each story. There are also a goodly number of new characters specific to this book. Combined they make for a character list which proved unwieldly at times to such an extent that I had to stop reading and try to remember what position that character was occupying. I have read most of the previous books but still had trouble keeping up with everybody. Perhaps a list of characters might be a good addition to the next book.

The research for this book was helped immensely by the author's involvement in a medieval choir. I was grateful for the information provided both in the body of the story and in the Author's Note regarding the title of the book. Candace Robb is one of my favorite authors who write medieval mysteries and this latest addition to her list was a success with me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Severn House Publishing Crème de la Crime for an e-galley of this novel.

This is Candace Robb's twelfth medieval mystery to feature Owen Archer. It is 1374 with the great and the good about to descend on York for the enthronement of Alexander Neville as the new archbishop. The city authorities are in a state of high alert. When two bodies are discovered in the grounds of York Minster, and a flaxen-haired youth with the voice of an angel is found locked in the chapter house, Owen Archer, captain of the city bailiffs, is summoned to investigate.

As tensions start to deepen, an enigmatic figure from Owen's past arrives in the city. Why has he returned from France after all these years - and what is his connection with the bodies in the minster yard and the fair singer?

A Choir of Crows is a novel of political schemes and intrigue. It is an insightful look into where one's loyalties lie, above all, it is about its personal stories. This is also a transitional novel for Owen, as John Thoresby, Archbishop of York as died and as a result, Owen is forced to take on a new position as captain of the city bailiffs. Owen is forced to question where his allegiances to Prince Edward and the arrival of a new Archbishop lie.

All the political manoeuvrings are forced into play between King and ecclesiastical church. It makes for a novel full of political threads and court intrigue. Candace Robb manages to interweave this novel with impeccable research, as with her previous novels in the series.

It was good to be reunited with Owen's York. I thought this book was well written and researched. I found Owen and Lucy are very likeable characters with a history attached from the previous novels. It is this character interplay and the microscopic look at people's lives that sets this series above other medieval mysteries. It makes you wonder what it must have been like in medieval York and this book does bring a very lively sense of history, one for me that is on my very doorstep.

I want to thank both NetGalley/Severn House for providing this book. Opinions written in this piece are entirely my own.

This historical fiction crime novel, set in 1374 England, is replete with the treachery so characteristic of the political and religious realms of the time. I had not read previous books in the Owen Archer mystery series (this is the 12th) but the author has clearly done her homework in replicating a sense of what this time was like.

Edward III was king of England from 1327 to 1377. The descendants of his seven sons and five daughters contested the throne for generations, climaxing in the Wars of the Roses (1455–85). The situation seemed especially critical at the end of 1374, when both Edward III and his heir, Prince Edward, were in poor health, and the next in the line of succession, Prince Richard, was only a child. Thus all sorts of intrigue and political schemes were in play.

Owen Archer, Captain of the Bailiffs in York, served as Prince Edward’s “eyes and ears in the North,” for there was never a shortage of treachery and plotting by one faction against another. Soon Archer has another crime to solve when dead bodies start piling up around the time of the installation of Alexander Neville as Archbishop of York, the second most powerful church position in the realm. Interestingly, the accused of the first two deaths is a young woman who is disguised as a man.

Owen investigates, all the while worrying about his family because of the plague that was striking the realm.

The number of characters and their interrelationships is complicated, although I might have had a better handle on it had I read earlier books in the series. I do enjoy Robb’s female characters, who struggle to maintain their independence as women at a time when options for them were few and unpleasant. I also admire Robb’s explanations of crime-solving techniques in the days way before technology made it easier.

A new installment in a series set in medieval York featuring the town's clergy and an investigator and his family. A slow and cliched start that never really picked up made this a bit of a slog. Readers of earlier books in the series might enjoy it more, but I found the characters a bit dull and the dialogue uneven in its approach to seeming both from a different time and still contemporary.

Fourteenth Century mysteries are just as gripping as those set in the 21st, when Candace Robb is the author.
In book 12 of the Owen Archer series, Robb's one-eyed bowman races to solve a vicar's murder and locate two innocent musicians before the new archbishop arrives in York for his investiture.
Many of Robb's well-drawn characters appear from earlier books, pleasing readers who are already fans, but she provides adequate background to satisfy new readers as well.

Candace Robb's medieval mysteries featuring Owen Archer and his wife Lucy has been one of my favorite historical mystery series since I read the first one, The Apothecary Rose.

The books contain two of my interests--history and mystery--in well-written and suspenseful narratives. The characters have the timeless problems of relationships with others (family, friends, society) and the problems of their specific historical era. Robb's impeccable research and insight into human strengths and weaknesses combine to make each book a living history.

A Choir of Crows is something of a transitional novel. John Thoresby, Archbishop of York has died. A new political set of alliances is set in motion when a Neville is selected to be the next Archbishop.

Owen Archer owes allegiance to Prince Edward and, along with everyone else in York, is unsure of the changes that a new Archbishop will bring.

Alexander Neville is to be enthroned as Archbishop in December of 1374, and York anticipates the arrival of the powerful families who will be present for the event. Uncertainty prevails, as always, when major changes involving influential political and ecclesiastical loyalties are in flux. With both the king and the prince in ill health, all sorts of intrigue and political schemes are in play.

Two bodies are found on the grounds of the York Minster, and Owen is called in to investigate. Then a third. There is also a young woman who, disguised as a boy, has been singing with a group of traveling minstrels and is in danger.

An interesting angle has to do with Ambrose, a character who appeared early in the series and who has returned with information that Prince Edward has been a victim of French doctors who have been slowly poisoning him. (History has recorded Edward of having dysentery, but the author has another theory which she explains in the author's notes. Further reading and sources are also listed.)

Although always happy to return to Owen, Lucy, and York, this is not my favorite in the series. There are several plot threads involved that overlap and separate throughout. What A Choir of Crows does is give the reader a needed visit with the characters and set the scene for the following books with the promise of more political upheaval.

If you are interested in medieval mysteries, begin with The Apothecary Rose which introduces the main characters and allows you to follow them as they develop throughout the series. You won't regret it.

Read in May. Blog review scheduled for June 17.

NetGalley/Severn House
Medieval Mystery. July 2, 2020. Print length: 288 pages.

This latest instalment of the popular series set in medieval York was enjoyable though I found slow in parts. I didn't find it as gripping as previous ones but still a light, easy read and it was nice to catch up with 'old friends'!
Thank you NetGalley and Severn House for giving me the opportunity to read it.

4 stars

This book is another good entry into the Archer series. Owen Archer is now the Captain of the City Bailiffs. He is called to investigate the murder of two men found on religious grounds. They were murdered in very different ways. Are the deaths related? Did the men know one another?

When Archer learns that an old acquaintance was at the scene, he is keenly interested. This is someone Archer knew from long ago and he is not sure that he can trust him. Add to this, a young woman is discovered. She is alive, but has been tied up and abused in some way.

Archer and his cohorts investigate the crime.

This book is well written and plotted. The story dragged a little in places, but was easy to read. I discovered that I didn't know some of the terms used, so I ran to my dictionary. I found Archer and his wife were interesting and likable characters. I like reading these historical books because I can have a glimpse of life during a time when society was run by both the church and the crown. Ms. Robb describes the atmosphere and people very well, right down to the clothes they wear. I find it fascinating, while all the while breathing a sigh of relief that I didn't have to live back then. I would never have made it. I'm not tough enough.

I want to thank NetGalley and Severn House/Creme de la Crime for forwarding to me a copy of this very good book for me to read, enjoy and review.

Candace Robb's Owen Archer series is one of my regular historical mystery pleasures. Robb adds to the series regularly—and I know with each new title that I have several hours of reading fun ahead of me. Set in the 14th Century at a time of instability in the English government and conflict between competing noble families, these books are peopled by characters walking fine lines of competing loyalties.

Owen Archer, an archer (what else?) who had to leave soldiering when he lost an eye, now serves as Captain of the Bailiffs in the city of York. His wife is an apothecary. Between his work enforcing the law and her work healing the sick and injured, they frequently find themselves with puzzles of a criminal nature to solve.

This time, two dead bodies have appeared within religious precincts in a single night, killed in very different manners. Are they related? Are they connected to the installation of a Neville to the second-highest church position in England? Then there's another body... This volume also brings back a friend from one of the earliest titles in the series, a friend whose loyalties Archer isn't sure of. What connections, if any, does he have to the murdered men?

A Choir of Crows is a great "beach read" for anyone who enjoys historical mysteries. Not that you have to read it on the beach—it's just the kind of little pleasure you give yourself when you have a few hours of relaxation available.

I received a copy of this title from the publisher via NetGalley. The opinions are my own.