Master of the Medieval Murder Mystery
Welcome to the website of novelist Michael Jecks, known as the master of the medieval murder mystery.
On the left you will find links to all the interesting bits - about me and my writing and the period in which most of it is set. Below you will always find information about my latest Knights Templar mysteries, and about collaborations with my fellow The Medieval Murderers.
Changes ahead!
If you want to keep up with my latest news, have a look at my most recent newsletter, where you can read about my change of publisher. Yes, I'm moving to Simon & Schuster, who already publish the Medieval Murderers books. Find out what this will mean for Keeper of the King's Peace Sir Baldwin de Furnshill and his friend Bailiff Simon Puttock. If you'd like to keep ahead of my news, use the sign-up box below to register for the letter which is posted to subscribers (without the pictures!). I'm intending to maintain the newsletter at the rate of at least one per quarter, so if you want to know what I'm up to, what is new in the world of medieval murdering, and how my dogs are surviving life with a novelist, please sign up!
And keep a close eye on the Events pages, too: I've haven't been travelling as much this year as previously, but this is the place to find out where I am, and I hope that if I am ever in your neighbourhood, you will come and say hello! Whether I'm talking about my own books, chatting about the middle ages with my friends The Medieval Murderers, or even dancing with Tinners' Morris: it's all on the Events page!
Meanwhile, for those who're interested, you can find me at various places on-line. The panel on the left gives you a preview of the pictures I've posted recently on Flickr: click this link to see all my pictures, or click one of the little pictures to go direct to that photo! I'm still posting photos in my diary here on this site - and I'm also taking the opportunity to chat about various topics. And you'll also find those updates on my Facebook page - take a squint! I've discovered that there's also a site devoted to me for fans, designed and run by fans, and a 'celeb' page, whatever that means! More details on Facebook, if you're interested.
Good reading!
"The most wickedly plotted medieval mystery novels"
The Times
"Michael Jecks has a way of dipping into the past and giving it immediacy. He writes with such convincing charm that you expect to walk round a corner in Tavistock and meet some of the characters"
Oxford Times
Latest Books
The 14th century is a great time for a novelist to write about, just because it was not a great time to live. I have plenty to say about this subject elsewhere! Sir Baldwin de Furnshill, Keeper of the King's Peace, wants only to live a quiet life in Devon with his family, yet recent books have seen him get more and more deeply involved in affairs of state, which have taken him first to London and then to Paris.
My latest book is The Bishop Must Die, published on November 12th 2009 - it's a really exciting story, set during the disastrous end of King Edward II's reign, with the sudden invasion of Queen Isabella's army and the rapid decline of royal authority. The action moves from Devon, along the coast, to France, to Kent, and finally to London, through those awful times when all law and order in the kingdom collapsed. I think it may be my favourite of all the series so far!
My previous book, No Law in the Land, is now also available in additional formats: on the left is the paperback edition, in the smart new livery, but look out too for the audio edition, read as usual by Michael Tudor Barnes. I hope you like the new look, and I hope it is creating new friends for Baldwin de Furnshill, and his friend Bailiff Simon Puttock; but the really important thing is the story between the covers, and I hope you will enjoy this new one: Baldwin and Simon finally find their way home to Devon, but even now their troubles are not over - the pair are shocked to find that outlaws now hold sway in the land. And all too soon this leads to more deaths that they must investigate...
As well as my solo books, the Medieval Murderers' joint ventures continue to thrive: we are now up to seven members, with the addition of our newest member, rising star Karen Maitland. We have published our fifth book, King Arthur's Bones, and you can read all about it in the Medieval Murderers section of this web site.
"Jecks succeeds in writing both a book which smells of the Middle Ages and yet is a detective story. No mean feat!"
Crime Time
If you would like to receive an e-mail newsletter from me, please sign up here, using the form below. (You can also use this form to change your email address or cancel your subscription.) I don't promise to write often - my real job is writing the books! - but I will do my best to keep you up to date with news of events, new books and other information. You can read the archived newsletters - with some added pictures! - on this site: I hope you will want to sign up for future mailings.
Your email address will remain confidential to me and the people who look after my website; we won't pass it to anybody else, nor will we send out mailings on behalf of anybody else. Each newsletter you receive will remind you how you can unsubscribe, and you will also be able to do this via the website.
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And you can . I do read everything I receive but I can't guarantee a reply because of my workload. Please send your comments on the website as it's meant to be useful and fun for you as well as me!
Alternatively, and for business enquiries, you can contact me via my agent, Eddie Bell
The Bell Lomax Moreton Agency
James House
1 Babmaes Street
London
SW1Y 6HF
Tel: 0207 930 4447
Fax: 0207 925 0118
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Last update: 14th December 2009