The year is 1480 and King Edward IV sits firmly on the throne, yet the Lancasterian threat lurks in the shadow. Things have taken a drastic turn for Sebastian Foxley’s workshop and his family. It has been months since a fire destroyed the Foxley home and workshop, which also left his brother Jude injured. Seb has decided now would be the perfect time to go on a pilgrimage to Canterbury to pray at the shrine of St Thomas Becket. The pilgrimage had its perils on paper before even setting out on the road. What terrors await Seb and his monty crew of pilgrims and can they survive the trip? Toni Mount’s twelfth Sebastian Foxley Medieval Murder, “The Colour of Sin,” takes our hero on a journey beyond the streets of his beloved London into a wider world full of intrigue.

I would like to thank Toni Mount for sending me a copy of her latest novel. I have enjoyed the previous Sebastian Foxley novels that I have read, so when I heard about the latest novel, I knew I wanted to read it, even though I did not read the novel, “The Colour of Bone” before jumping into this one.

Mount begins her latest Foxley mystery in the middle of October 1480. The Foxley home is being rebuilt while Seb and Jude are not on cordial terms after the accident a few months ago. Seb has decided that now would be the appropriate time to do the one thing that he promised God he would do if Jude was able to recover; to go on a pilgrimage to Canterbury and pray for Jude at the shrine of St Thomas Becket. When Seb’s beloved Rose finds out about his scheme, she accompanies her husband and their two young children, Dickon and Julia. It was going to be a simple family pilgrimage, until Father Christian, known as Kit, tags along and helps with the children.

Like every good pilgrimage, you need a group of people to make it a success, so Seb, Rose, and Kit are joined by the guide Tanner, the Warenne twins Troilus and Tristan, and Mother Thorogood and her black cat. Seb thought that this pilgrimage would be sort of a vacation and would go as smoothly as it is written in his book. However, the journey is more treacherous than what Seb had planned as there are natural disasters, rogues, kidnappings, and plenty of plots. Even on the road, Sebastian Foxley must battle intrigue and murder plots while dealing with family drama and keeping the ones he cares for alive far from home.

This was yet another fun and intriguing medieval murder mystery that follows Sebastian Foxley and his ever-expanding household. There were so many different story strings, but Mount tied them up neatly in a bow with a dose of political intrigue, religious piety, and drama filled with love and anger. I found this a pleasurable read and I look forward to the next novel in this series. If you are a fan of the Sebastian Foxley Medieval Murder Mystery series, I would suggest you read the latest installment, “The Colour of Sin” by Toni Mount.