Download or read book Nicholas Bracewell Collection written by Edward Marston and published by Allison & Busby. This book was released on 2013-12-12 with total page 868 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For Lord Westfield's men, sometimes murder takes centre stage...The reign of Elizabeth I has seen a flowering of English theatre. The esteemed theatrical company called Lord Westfield's Men have enjoyed many a success but it falls to Nicholas Bracewell, the company's bookholder and mainstay, to save his beloved actors when they are threatened by fierce rivals, assassins, plague and much more. Includes the first three instalments in the Nicholas Bracewell series: The Queen's Head, The Merry Devils and The Trip to Jerusalem.

Download or read book The Fair Maid of Bohemia written by Edward Marston and published by Allison & Busby. This book was released on 2013-10-28 with total page 263 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Murder turns the journey of a lifetime into a deadly nightmare The plague has struck London once again but so has opportunity for theatre company Lord Westfield's Men. Invited to perform at the wedding celebrations of Sophia Magdalena, the fair maid of Bohemia, the company's bookholder Nicholas Bracewell and his acting troupe begin the long journey across Europe. Confident they will arrive safely and deliver Lord Westfield's secret missive to an alchemist in the Imperial Court, Nicholas is unaware what danger travels with them. Treacherous seas become the least of Nicholas' worries when one of their actors is savagely killed. To make matters worse, when they finally arrive in Prague, Holy Roman Emperor Rudolph II proves to be an eccentric and bewildering host and Nicholas' beloved Anne Hendrik is kidnapped...

Download or read book The Queen s Head written by Edward Marston and published by Nicholas Bracewell Mysteries. This book was released on 2012 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "1587, and Mary, Queen of Scots, dies by the executioner's axe, her head, shorn of its auburn wig, rolling across the platform. Will her death end the ceaseless plotting against Mary's red-haired cousin, Elizabeth? 1588, the year of the Spanish Armada, is a time of more terror and triumph, not just for queen and court but for the whole of England. The turmoil is reflected in its theatres and under the galleries of inns like London's The Queen's Head where Lord Westfield's Men perform. The scene there on grows even more tumultuous when one of the actors is murdered by a mysterious stranger during a brawl. Nicholas Bracewell, the company's bookholder, a role far wider than mere producer, faces two immediate repercussions. The first is to secure a replacement acceptable to its temperamental star - and chief shareholder - Lawrence Firethorn. The second is to keep his promise to the dying Will Fowler and catch his killer." --Publisher.

Download or read book The Laughing Hangman written by Edward Marston and published by Allison & Busby. This book was released on 2013-10-28 with total page 247 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A laughing hangman turns the stage into the gallows... When Nicholas Bracewell finds himself once again in the parlour of his lost love, Anne Hendrik, he was not expecting her entreaties to embroil him in the murder of a beloved choir master. Between tales of cruelty, forgotten maps of London and a butcher determined to rescue his son, it is yet another mystery for the book keeper to untangle. But will his quest endanger Lord Westfield's Men? As their latest play, The Misfortunes of Marriage, threatens to break them apart beneath the playwright's own belligerent ribaldry, the threat of the hangman stalks ever closer. And with every step his laughter rings with the power to turn even the hallowed stage into the gallows.

Download or read book The Princess of Denmark written by Edward Marston and published by Allison & Busby. This book was released on 2014-05-15 with total page 254 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Winter approaches and Westfield's Men are out of work. When their widowed patron decides to marry again, he chooses a Danish bride with vague associations to the royal family. Since the wedding will take place in Elsinore, the troupe is invited to perform as guests of King Christian IV. One of the plays they select is The Princess of Denmark - and it will prove a disastrous choice. Westfield's Men soon find themselves embroiled in political intrigue and religious dissension. Their patron, who has only seen a miniature of his future bride, is less enthusiastic when he actually meets the lady, but he can hardly withdraw. Murder and mayhem dogs the company until they realize that they have a traitor in their ranks. It is left to Nicholas Bracewell to solve a murder, unmask the villain, and rescue Lord Westfield from his unsuitable princess of Denmark.

Download or read book The Vagabond Clown written by Edward Marston and published by Allison & Busby. This book was released on 2014-03-20 with total page 287 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: When unexpected disaster strikes Lord Westfield's Men during a packed performance, Nicholas Bracewell, the theatre company's stage manager and all-around performer of miracles, must save the day once again. A melee caused by men in disguise is brought under control, but before the troupe can lament their destroyed set, Nick discovers a body in the stands with a knife sticking out of its back.

Download or read book The Frost Fair written by Edward Marston and published by Allison & Busby. This book was released on 2011-03-14 with total page 327 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Christmas, 1669. In the grip of the coldest winter for years, the River Thames is frozen from bank to bank and London celebrates with a traditional frost fair held on its broad back. Revellers come from far and wide to enjoy the spectacle: an ox is roasted, booths set up and entertainers employed to amuse the crowds enjoying the holiday atmosphere. Among the throng is ambitious young architect Christopher Redmayne, escorting the daughter of one of his clients with whom he hopes to further a romantic attachment. By chance they meet Christopher's good friend, Constable Jonathan Bale. When a child slips on thin ice the pair make a chilling discovery of a frozen naked corpse embedded in the ice.

Download or read book The Counterfeit Crank written by Edward Marston and published by Allison & Busby. This book was released on 2014-03-20 with total page 264 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Nicholas Bracewell befriends a young beggar who is trying to eke out a living as a counterfeit crank, pretending to have spectacular epileptic fits in order to get money from gullible bystanders. When the beggar is murdered inside Bridewell, Nicholas has to pose as a beggar himself in order to get inside the notorious institution so that he can solve the crime. Counterfeiting of all kinds is exposed.

Download or read book The Bawdy Basket written by Edward Marston and published by Minotaur Books. This book was released on 2002-08-01 with total page 288 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Westfield's Men, the Elizabethan theater troupe at the heart of Edward Marston's intricate and popular series, are enjoying good fortune in their native London. Their talented playwright is at work on his next opus, set to open in a few short weeks, and the group's trusty stage manager and reliable problem-solver Nicholas Bracewell is looking forward to a productive and calm season. Unfortunately for Nicholas, his friendship with Frank Quilter, a young actor who's just joined the troupe, is about to cause him a lot of trouble. Frank's father has been arrested and accused of a murder he didn't commit, and before anyone can figure out what to do he's convicted and hanged for his crime. Destroyed, young Frank promises to avenge his father, at the expense of the play Westfield's Men have contracted to perform. Nicholas, who's loyalty is split between the company and his new friend, agrees to help Frank on condition that he fulfill his obligations as an actor. Enter an unlikely ally in the form of one Moll Comfrey, a comely young saleswoman with more to sell than meets the eye. She has the key to the whole mystery hidden somewhere on her person, and it's up to Nicholas to find out what she's hiding (by whatever means necessary) before the theater, not to mention Frank's life, goes dark.

Download or read book The Malevolent Comedy written by Edward Marston and published by Macmillan. This book was released on 2005-07 with total page 268 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this Elizabethan Theater Mystery, Westfield's Men are plagued by a series of practical jokes, but when one of their actors is murdered, the humor turns sour.

Download or read book The Nine Giants written by Edward Marston and published by Allison & Busby. This book was released on 2013-01-28 with total page 242 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The fiery star of the company of players called Lord Westfield's Men, Laurence Firethorn, is hot for a lady, wife of the Lord Mayor elect. A tryst at London's Nine Giants Inn is arranged. Meanwhile, the lugubrious landlord of the actors' home base is laid even lower by a plot to take over ownership of the inn. A young apprentice actor is subjected to a horrible assault and a waterman pulls a mangled corpse from the Thames. The drama comes to a climax at the annual Lord Mayor's show as his barge moves grandly down the river....

Download or read book The Roaring Boy written by Edward Marston and published by Nicholas Bracewell. This book was released on 2013 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A mysterious stranger appears at the Queen's Head pub following a performance by Lord Westfield's Men, a leading Elizabethan company of players. The stranger, Simon Chaloner, follows Nicholas Bracewell, the producer, and playwright Edmund Hoode home and gives them a manuscript called 'The Roaring Boy'. His drama is based on events surrounding the murder of a mathematician. When Bracewell and Hoode stage the play, the performance causes a riot, sending Hoode to prison. In order to save his men, Bracewell must solve two murders, on.

Download or read book The Queen s Head written by Edward Marston and published by Allison & Busby. This book was released on 2012-03-26 with total page 223 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: His name was Will Fowler, an actor in the esteemed theatrical company called Lord Westfield's Men, a vibrant young man flushed from the success of a recent performance at the Queen's Head theatre. So exuberant was he that he persuaded the resourceful manager of the company, Nicholas Bracewell, to quaff a pint or two at a nearby pub. Alas, it was to be Will's last taste of beer. A tavern brawl left him dead - but not before he gasped for Nicholas to find his fast-fleeting, red-bearded murderer and administer a just revenge. Yet finding Will's murderer in London's dark, crowded streets was a seemingly impossible task - not to mention the fact that Lord Westfield's Men were just commanded to appear at the court of Elizabeth I - an honour one dare not refuse. . .

Download or read book The Wanton Angel written by Edward Marston and published by Allison & Busby. This book was released on 2014-02-13 with total page 252 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the tenth installment of this dramatic Elizabethan series, Westfield's Men are flying high after a celebrated performance of The Insatiate Duke at the Queen's Head. However, victory is bittersweet as the company is soon faced with dissolution and the loss of their theatre; were it not for one of the company's rising stars. After acquiring a new benefactor, the company plan to build their own theatre. However, before they have the chance to find out who this guardian angel is, one of the group is found brutally murdered. Cue Nicholas Bracewell to uncover not one, but two hidden identities, of both the murderer and the anonymous benefactor, before the company gets disbanded.

Download or read book The Fair Maid of Bohemia written by Edward Marston and published by Poisoned Pen Press. This book was released on 2012-03-06 with total page 250 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: When plague strikes London, Lord Westfield’s Men count themselves fortunate they’ve been invited to perform as part of the wedding celebrations for Sophia Magdalena, the fair maid of Bohemia. The long journey across Europe is a daunting prospect but stage manager Nicholas Bracewell is confident they will arrive safely, and confident the mission Lord Westfield sets them—to deliver secret documents to Talbot Roydon, an English alchemist at the Imperial Court—will go without a hitch. En route, murder strikes one of the actors during their first performance at Flushing. It’s the first of many setbacks. Once in Prague, Holy Roman Emperor Rudolph II proves a madcap host. Worse, not only do attacks on the players continue as the royal wedding day approaches, but someone kidnaps Nicholas’ sweetheart Anne Henrik...

Download or read book The Trip to Jerusalem written by Edward Marston and published by Allison & Busby. This book was released on 2012-03-26 with total page 241 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For Lord Westfield's Men, every high road leads to death. When the deathly horrors of the Black Plague decimate the audiences in London's theatres, the acclaimed troupe of players called Lord Westfield's Men take to the high road to seek out fresh audiences. But wherever they go, they are thwarted by misfortune, and are baffled by mysteries. Their scripts are stolen, their players abducted. A dead man walks, and a beautiful woman hears the voice of God. Only one man is clever enough to match swords with the troupe's burgeoning troubles. Upon Nicholas Bracewell, the company's bookholder and mainstay, falls the burden that may cost him his life - as they head for an ancient inn called the Trip to Jerusalem, where the last act of a bloody drama is about to begin.

Download or read book The Vagabond Clown written by Edward Marston and published by Saint Martin's Paperbacks. This book was released on with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: When unexpected disaster strikes Lord Westfield's Men during a packed performance, Nicholas Bracewell, the theater company's stage manager and all around performer of miracles, must save the day once again. A melee caused by disguised men is brought under control, but before the troupe can lament their destroyed set Nick discovers a body in the stands with a knife sticking out of it's back. They soon realize they are out one theater and one clown: Barnaby Gill, always hilarious on the stage and hopelessly curmudgeonly off, has broken his leg. With long months of repairs before them, Westfield's Men embark on a tour of the Kent countryside in order to salvage some of the down time. They hire a stand-in for Gill, one Gideon Mussett, a gifted comedian and an even more gifted drunk. It seems no clown is perfect; while Gill has never been a barrel of laughs when not in front of an audience, Musset simply doesn't seem to know when to quit being funny. Their major wound bandaged, no matter how temporarily, Nick and the troupe are hoping to leave their troubles behind. But misfortune follows them at every turn, and the company finds that no matter what they do or where they go someone very sinister is just moments behind. It's up to Nick Bracewell to find out what's going on, and exactly how it ties in to their wayward comedian. Will the Vagabond Clown prophecy the end of Westfield's Men, and perhaps the demise of Nick himself? Longtime readers of mystery master Edward Marston will line up to find out in this suspenseful entry in a series that never disappoints.