“Why wouldn’t you listen? Why? Just another couple hours and we’d be back in London in a nice dry room, meeting the king. A pair of them had dismounted and were now soothing the four draft horses they’d cut loose from our carriage. “Now there’s a thing I never seen before,” he said.Īhead of us, twenty of the King’s Men waited, stunned, atop their warhorses. Their father, chewing absently on a piece of straw, considered the flames. “Oh, Christopher.”īehind us, a farmer, his wife, and two young daughters leaned against a wooden fence, cattle watching nervously from a distance. Sally stood next to him with her head bowed, palm covering her eyes, auburn curls falling across her face.

The heat drove away the late winter’s chill, but I wouldn’t have felt it anyway. “I told you,” he said, staring at the slowly crumpling carriage, our boots sinking in the mud. The frame turned charcoal black, while inside, the stuffing in the seats gave bright flashing bursts as buttons popped off the upholstery. Fire raged across its body, the silk curtains fluttering through the windows in smoking tatters to the road. He is the author of the award-winning and bestselling Blackthorn Key series.The carriage burned with a bright orange flame. About the Author Since escaping from university with a pair of degrees in theoretical physics, Kevin Sands has worked as a researcher, a business consultant, and a teacher. As Christopher and his friends begin to investigate, they soon discover theyve stumbled upon a plot to kill the king.and anyone else who dares stand in the traitors way. Then an anonymous letter arrives at Blackthorn-a mysterious warning hidden inside a riddle and secret code.

First, an old friend is ambushed and left for dead.

Everyone is relieved at their return-the plague has ended, and the king, pleased with their service, offers a surprising reward. Christopher, Tom, and Sally are back in London at last. Book Synopsis Christophers homing takes a sinister turn when a murderous conspiracy is uncovered in this fifth novel of the award-winning Blackthorn Key series.

About the Book In 1666, after four months away, friends Christopher Rowe, Tom, and Sally return to London triumphantly but, guided by coded riddles, face a conspiracy that threatens Christopher, as well as the King himself.

Kevin sands the traitor's blade