The Leper's Return - Couverture souple

It is 1320 and civil war is looming as Ralph of Houndeslow rides into Crediton. Ralph faces a daunting task as Master of St Lawrence's, the leper hospital. Not only are his charges grievously ill, they are also outcasts of society, shunned by all healthy folk. The citizens of Crediton have other concerns. The murder of Godfrey of London and the assault on his daughter Cecily, for instance, crimes all to easily attributed to the conman and womaniser John of Irlaunde. Sir Baldwin Furnshill, Keeper of the King's Peace, is not convinced that John is the culprit, and soon his is following other leads, assisted by Bailiff Simon Puttock. But only when they discover the identity of the man overheard talking to Cecily before the attack will the astounding truth begin to emerge.

Meanwhile, feeling against the lepers is growing, fed by rumours deliberately spread. Unless the burghers of Crediton can be made to see reason, Baldwin and Simon could have full-scale slaughter on their hands.

It's 1320 England, and the constant threat of civil war is imminent. The monk Ralph of Houndeslow is new to working at Crediton leper hospital, instantly he finds that his patients are seriously ill, as well as being treated as outcasts by the rest of society.
The citizens of Crediton face worrying times when the goldsmith Godfrey is found murdered, and his daughter assaulted. Sir Baldwin Furnshill and Bailiff Simon Puttock are quickly trying to piece together everything that happened, yet as they gradually find out more and more, the truth becomes overwhelming.
Meanwhile, the public's view of the leprosy patients becomes more and more twisted, it's up to Baldwin and Simon to pour water on the blazing rumours. Civil war, a murder investigation and a full scale public uproar put Baldwin and Simon to the test once again…
'Michael Jecks is the master of the medieval whodunit' - Robert Low