Too Good to Hang is the eleventh engrossing medieval mystery in Sarah Hawkswood's great series featuring Lord Undersheriff of Worcester Hugh Bradecote, Serjeant Catchpoll and Underserjeant Walkelin. While there's significant character development of the central trio over the course of the series, this book would also read well as standalone, given that sufficient background information is given to set the scene.

It's spring 1145 and in the village of Ripple young ploughman Thorgar is summarily executed after being found with the battered body of the unpopular parish priest, Father Edmund. Alerted to the injustice by Thorgar’s grieving sister, the Lord Sheriff of Worcester dispatches Undersheriff Bradecote, Serjeant Catchpoll and Underserjeant Walkelin to investigate. The Sheriff’s men uncover simmering antipathies amongst the Ripple community, and rumours of the recent discovery of a long-lost treasure. Could this prove a motive in the killing of Father Edmund and the scapegoating of young Thorgar? The action reaches a crescendo with a thrilling chase by boat down the River Severn to Tewkesbury in pursuit of the villain.

Sarah Hawkswood creates an immersive setting in terms of both time and place. Customs and language of the twelfth century are seamlessly integrated throughout the narrative, while the aspirations and preoccupations of the characters are sufficiently familiar to a 21st century audience to maintain interest and generate empathy. The characterisation of the central trio remains strong, as series readers have come to expect, with young Walkelin gaining greater authority on each outing and Catchpoll reliably providing insight and moments of dry humour in his familiarly taciturn manner. As always, the supporting characters in this story are varied and intriguing, with several formidable female characters keeping the investigative trio on their toes, while undercurrents of jealousy, resentment and greed reveal several potential suspects for more than one crime that has taken place in Ripple. Evil doesn't lurk too far beneath the surface, but secrets can't stay buried forever...

I'd strongly recommend Too Good to Hang, and the entire Bradecote & Catchpoll series to any reader who enjoys well-researched and immersive historical fiction.

My thanks to the author, Sarah Hawkswood, publisher Allison & Busby, and NetGalley (UK), for the opportunity to read and review this engrossing title.

It is great to return to the world of Bradecote , Catchpole and Wakelin in the Author's latest medieval , murder mystery .As always the Author manages to bring to light the mores of the time - the hard life of a small village , the power men held over women and the power one man holds over them all .

Priest , Father Edmund is found dead and the unfortunate Ploughman discovered near is body is hanged despite protesting his innocence . When his sister seeks justice in Worcester , a sympathetic Lord Sherriff sends the trio to investigate and they soon discover secrets held within the village , even the dead Priest had a terrible secret .
Rumours of a treasure being found swirl around the village and when an old woman is found dead in her home it appears her house has been searched - was the killer searching for the rumoured treasure ?
The Sherriff's men must use all the guile and wit to discover the true killer's identity as a missing young boy's life is now at risk

This is yet another thoroughly enjoyable murder mystery by the Author - full of diverse characters , great worldbuilding - using the lives , sights , sounds and politics of the era to good effect .

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own

The village of Ripple is generally fairly unassuming but beneath the surface there are issues. When the local priest is found murdered suspicion naturally falls upon the man found at his side, ploughman Thorgar, and he is treated to summary justice. His sister believes him innocent and travels to the city to seek justice from their Lord. Bradecote, Catchpoll and Wakelin travel to Ripple and find more than just one death.
Hawkswood has written a series of very entertaining Medieval crime mysteries and this is the latest of them. It is relatively short and not too demanding but gives a great sense of the era around the war of succession between King Stephen and Empress Matilda. The visioning of a small village and the petty troubles and jealousies therein are well imagined.

Always looking ahead to a new book in the Bradecote & Catchpoll series. In Too Good to Hang Thorgar the Ploughman is hanged for killing the priest Father Edmund, despite his protestations to be innocent. Thorgar´s sister Osgyth seeks justice at Worcester, and Bradecote is sent to the village, together with Serjeant Catchpoll and Underserjeant Wakelin. They soon find out that the priest abused little girls in the village and that there are other secrets among the inhabitants. With all their skills they try to uncover the truth, while other difficult implications are occuring. I liked the characters, especially Wakelin, who tries to imitate Catchpoll´s bearing, and wise women like the healer Agnes and the two Oldwomen. The setting is interesting as always, with signs of the hard life then, the power of men over women and one man over all of the village. After the thorough search events then tumble in an action-laden ending till all the loose ends are knit together. The only point I wasn´t always sure of was the use of mediaeval words and phrases, for which an appendix would have been helpful.
Thanks to Allison & Busby and Netgalley for an ARC ebook in exchange for an honest review.

My thanks to Allison & Busby for an eARC via NetGalley of ‘Too Good to Hang: a Medieval Mystery’ by Sarah Hawkswood.

This is Book 11 in Hawkswood’s Bradecote and Catchpoll series of medieval mysteries. She provides background on characters and setting for readers new to the series though the books can easily be read as standalones.

April, 1145. Thorgar the Ploughman is found standing by the bloodied body of Father Edmund, a priest in the village of Ripple. Despite his pleas of innocence, he is summarily hanged for being caught in the act.

His sister, Osgyth, travels to Worcester to seek justice for Thorgar. The Lord Sheriff is sympathetic to her case and sends Hugh Bradecote, along with Serjeant Catchpoll and Underserjeant Walkelin, to discover the truth. It’s not long until they expose strong motives for placing the blame on the ploughman’s shoulders.

There are secrets festering among the inhabitants of Ripple, as well as whispers of a treasure long lost and now rediscovered. The Sherrif’s men will need to use all their skills to uncover the true killer.

In ‘Too Good to Hang’ Hawkswood provides a great deal of period detail and those sights, sounds, and, yes, the smells of her 12th Century setting allowed for an immersive experience. Her use of language retains a sense of authenticity yet remains understandable to the modern ear.

I especially appreciated her depiction of a number of older women in the various communities. They are addressed as ‘Oldmother’. They might be invisible to many but they were very impressive! When one Oldmother comes round after being knocked unconscious she says: ‘I is not dead yet.’ Definitely some Granny Weatherwax vibes there.

Overall, I enjoyed ‘Too Good to Hang’ finding it a satisfying medieval whodunnit. I also have recently enjoyed her Regency romances written under her given name of Sophia Holloway.

Another engrossing story in this series. The murder mystery had me guessing until the end and I enjoyed how Bradcote and Catchpole worked things out. Walkelin is now married and taking a more active role in their work. What I like about this series is I get to know what it was like for ordinary people living at this time. There are descriptions of their homes, their work, the hierarchy in a village and how religion played such an important part in their everyday life. I received a copy and have voluntarily reviewed it. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I have not read all the books in this series but did not feel this hindered me in any way as it is all about the mystery here. The plot held my interest through out with lots of suspects and reasons. There were interesting and compelling characters and the dialogue wasn't difficult to understand. All in all a great series. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This is a great medieval mystery taking place in April 1145. A young man in the village of Ripple, Thorgar, finds Father Edmund dead. When someone else comes by, they claim that Thorgar was the murderer. Soon, Selewine, the Reeve, says that Thorgar should be hanged, and the villagers quickly string him up. Thorgar's sister, Osgyth, walks a dozen miles to Worcester and then to Gloucester to try to see the Lord Sheriff. Fortunately, she sees Mistress Catchpoll who tells her to go the gatehouse and ask for Serjeant Catchpoll. She tells him about her brother, and Catchpole, Underserjeant Walkelin, and Lord Undersheriff Bradecote ride their horses to Ripple with Osgyth behind Catchpole on his horse.

It doesn't take the three men long to decide that Thorgar was not the killer. They soon begin hearing that Father Edmund was a womanizer, and was not well liked in town. They also find out that Thorgar has recently dug up some long buried valuable items with his plow, and Reeve Selewine would like to claim then as his own. Soon, a local old woman is found dead in her home which appears to have been searched. Gradually, the three members of the law get more information. Meanwhile the Woman who is Healer is found having been attacked in her cottage, and then Osgyth's younger brother disappears.

Can Bradecote, Catchpole, and Walkelin find the young boy before he's found by the killer? The book becomes very exciting as we near the end. I am not a medieval historian, but the characters and the ways of living appear to be very realistic. So far, I've only read the first and this the last book of the series, but I've already bought most of those in between and can't wait to read them.

Sarah Hawkswood is a new author to me and despite discovering this is the 11th book in the series I didn't feel that it hindered me in any way.
Thorgar, the ploughman, is found leaning over the dead body of Father Edmund and hung for murder after a very brief trial by the village Reeve and villagers. But his sister appeals his innocence to the Lord Sheriff and he sends Under Sheriff Hugh Bradcote, Sergeant Catchpoll and under sergeant Wakelin to investigate. A hard case for them as hindered by the villagers insistence of Thorgars guilt.
This book is set in the 12th century and I wondered about the language of the time, but I needn't have as this is an easy book to read. A medieval whodunnit.

Young Thorgar the Ploughman is hanged after Father Edmund is murdered in the church. An investigation is launched.
An atmospheric medieval whodunit that leaves you guessing right till the end. The law enforcers have a tough case to solve.
A great story with several suspects, infinite clues.,and red herrings. I enjoyed reading this book very much.

Too Good to Hang is the eleventh book in Sarah Hawkswood’s Bradecote and Catchpoll series. If you’re new to the author’s work though, there’s nothing to stop you starting here. Set in the 1145, this time round Sheriff and Sarjeant must investigate the case of Thorgar the Ploughman, hanged for a murder he swore that he did not commit.

This book has everything you’d want from a fairly short historical crime novel - a plot that holds the reader’s interest, compelling characters, believable dialogue. A strong addition to the series. More please.

Thank you to NetGalley and Allison & Busby publishers for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A new Bradecote and Catchpoll (and Wakelin) medieval mystery is always a true delight, and Too Good To Hang is a fabulous addition to the series.

This time, our trio are called upon to determine the true culprit when an overzealous village has already hanged a man they deem to be responsible for the murder of the priest without trial or even, any real proof, other than the man's unfortunate appearance at the side of the dead man.

What transpires, with careful investigation from Bradecote, Catchpoll and Wakelin, is that there is much more going on in the small settlement than first meets the eye. One of the village priests might well be dead, but there is a good reason for that and an even better reason to suspect almost everyone else within the settlement as well. And there's not just the matter of the dead priest and the hanged man; there are also rumours of old treasure buried close by.

As ever, I love the way the mystery slowly resolves itself. Bradecote is lordly, Catchpoll is more world, and Wakelin is slowly becoming his own man. Added to this, there is a fine cast of strong women ruled by weak men, and the author highlights this in their interactions.

An absolute joy.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my review copy.

I really enjoy this mystery series! This new book has been a real pleasure to read. For some, the plot might appear a bit slow, but to me it really illustrates the pace of an investigation in those very old days. I can relate to all three main characters, and their language vivid with dialect enabled me to be fully immersed in the 12th century ! I can't wait for the next book!
I received a complimentary ARC of this novel from NetGalley and I am leaving voluntarily an honest review.