Review: A story full of holes
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 12 7, 2010
First of all let me apologize for my poor English.I find this book totally incomplete because I am full of questions and have the following comments.How did Stephen get his commission as coroner, from whom? And is Stephen crowner just for the shire (hundred) or only for the city which would be unlikely?  It was not an easy job to get in 1262 England. Also he is not very authoritative although he has the Crown and the sheriff to back him up and has the power to act. He is too easy going for a knight. Knights normally went to war for the spoils of war, stealing and raping where they could. They were very proud people mostly of Norman French stock.How come jurors were sent out from the sheriff's office? They would normally sit in court and not go out to examine a dead body as far as I know.And where is the church in all this. The Catholic Church had a very firm grip on England in 1262. And where are the women's coifs or wimples?The city of Ludlow seems too clean to me. In 1262 England people would throw their night soil out of their windows and the streets would be full of muck from cattle being driven into the city either to be sold or slaughtered. People would wear wooden clocks to avoid all the muck. There would be no planks to cross the street. At least I have never heard of it. And an inn with a wooden floor and no rushes and tiles on the roof. The innkeeper must be exceptionally rich if that is the case.People who wash and that all over. They would be unwashed, full of lice and stink to high heaven. I could go on and on. I have only read about a hundred books about mediaeval England but could still be wrong about what I say in which case I apologize. It is a good story and is well written.