Flames of Norwich
A Den Helder / D’Artois Story
by
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May 1266 City of Norwich ‘GOD’S BLOOD! MAY HE DAMN YOU AND SEND YOU TO HELL,” the screech echoed along the row of run down cottages. “Beshit yourself you whoreson! You thieving bastards!” Rosie ap Powell watched cautiously from the door of his two room house on the waterfront. A troop of six rough looking men at arms were gathered around a woman, her beauty faded by age as her clothes were faded with wear. She was the wife of Tom Cobbler the bootmaker. His boots were not the best, and he made only a modest living, but in this poor area he was considered wealthy. And his wife liked to flaunt it. He had scrimped and saved to buy her a ruby (one small one) and gold (well a gold / copper mix) broach to commemorate twenty five years of marriage and she displayed it boldly to fasten her cloak, taking any opportunity to show it off. To her downfall. These men were collecting for a cause and had collected it. With force. Powerless to defend herself she called on the power of God to punish her persecutors. Ineffectually. The men walked on in the direction of Rosie ap Powell, arguing amongst themselves. A small man, belligerent and loud proclaimed ‘Sod this, let’s find the nearest tavern, a barrel of their best ale and a tasty young serving wench for the taking. I’ll even let you go first. There’s nothing here for us, just churls and villeins in this ramshackle part of town. It’s a slum. We’ll tell him “Sorry M’Lord, just the poor living there, no pickings at all”’ He simpered in mock subservience. ‘Yes, of course Roly’ a tall man with the chevrons of authority on his sleeve responded. ‘And when you return empty handed and pissed as a Bishop, M’Lord Deyville will certainly understand, why he’ll even let you sleep it off in his tent I shouldn’t wonder. ‘You know his instructions as well as the rest of us’ he continued ‘Find him some ‘pickings’ and then we get leave to enjoy ourselves. We don’t, and we feel two dozen of the lash. Now keep checking these houses, there must be something worth liberating for Deyville and his beloved cause of Monteforte.’ Rosie’s mind worked feverishly. Self-interest was a long established practice with him. Firstly he had to get them away from his own house, but then, was there an opportunity to get his own sticky fingers in the pie? Ideas clicked into place and he turned back into the room. ‘Catherine’ he called to his wife. ‘What you want?’ she replied tersely. ‘Get yourself out back and behind the peat pile. Not the privy, that’s too obvious. Don’t argue, these men are after some fun, and you’re just the kind of fun they’re after’. Slim and trim, in her thirties but looking twenties, she had dark eyes and long brown hair and as a result she was used to fending off ‘fun’ lovers. Reluctant to be ordered about, Catherine realised there was more to this than she saw and hastily left through the back door and went out into the yard. Scanning the room Rosie hastily threw a few items of cheap jewellery and couple of coins behind a pile of turves in the corner and then opened the door. ‘If you want money for de Monteforte I can show you where to find it’ he called. ‘And what’s it to you?’ one of the men enquired. ‘Look, I’m an honest worker, but the taxes the bloody King keeps taking! Just to fight the bastard Welsh. Who wants that cold and godforsaken country anyway? Full of savages that can’t even rule themselves! Leave them alone and they’ll leave us alone; be too busy fighting each other!’
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About the Book
In the aftermath of Magna Carta, “disinherited” barons raid the city of Norwich to acquire funds for their failing cause, and they met with little resistance. In fear of hidden support for the rebellion, the king sends agents to Norwich, and thus, Martin Den Helder and Sir Michel D’Artois are drawn into a city underworld of murder, extortion, and crime that have some powerful, if secret, backing. Like poking a hornets’ nest, Den Helder and D’Artois feel the backlash of their enquiries. Finally, a vicious murder at the Trinity Fair escalates the atmosphere of tension and resentment between city and church to a full-scale riot, and buildings of the cathedral and city are burned and valuables looted. Violence and murder are unrestrained. Flames of Norwich is a story of murder and mystery woven around real events, people, and places of the city of Norwich in the thirteenth century.
About the Author
John Michael Butcher was born in 1954 and has lived in Norwich most of his life. Educated at Thorpe Grammar School, he studied English and history at A level before working for Norfolk County Council’s education department firstly in personnel (later HR) and then the school’s finance. Childhood rheumatoid arthritis disrupted his schooling but allowed him to indulge his love of reading, which was a family trait. There were fortnightly visits to the Lazar House Library, which was and is featured as a leper hospital in Flames of Norwich. Remember, this was before computers, the Internet, X-box, DVDs, or even VHS, and there were only two channels on television. After writing short stories and skits on local life, it was his friend Mark King who inspired him to make the effort to go for a full-length novel. Mark had ambitions to write and asked John to proofread his draft novel. Thus, they met in the Fat Cat and Canary PH every Friday afternoon to review progress. Mark has now published the Daniel Jones series, young adult sci-fi stories Frenzy and Doom, and the third on the way. When rheumatoid arthritis returned and he had to give up work, John had more time to devote to writing, and Flames of Norwich became a time-consuming passion. Inspired by writers such as Ellis Peters (Brother Cadfael), Michael Jecks (Sir Baldwin de Furnshill and Simon Puttock), Peter Tremayne (Sister Fidelma), and the great Bernard Cornwell (Sharpe plus so many others), his interest in history was reignited, and historical fiction became his chosen genre. As with these authors, he considers historical accuracy as essential. He is also a director and chair of Roseville Close RTM Co. Ltd, a company set up to manage the site of the apartments where he lives. He is single but not lonely, with a large circle of friends locally, and he has already embarked on Reliquary of Blood, a sequel to Flames of Norwich.