I found this a good book, but not a great one. The central characters are interesting, but they all seem a bit wiser and more broad-minded than I find believable. The mystery itself starts off slowly, but become truly engaging about halfway through the novel. If one likes mysteries in medieval settings, this will prove an enjoyable read. If one isn't beguiled by the setting, the book will likely seem slowly paced and not particularly complexly plotted. ( )

The harbinger of demons sweep before them!

Autumn of 1282. Prioress Eleanor, of Tyndal Priory, the faithful Sister Anne, healer and sub-infirmarian, and Brother Thomas escort Eleanor's brother Robert's pregnant wife out of the their Welsh Marcher lands into one of Robert's lesser holdings, Wynethorpe manor, just inside the English border.
Apart from the threatened difficult birth, the three are plunged into a community troubled by the supposed apparition of a ghost, the shade of a dead man, Hywel, the village stonemason, recently hanged! Twice! And there's a dead priest the ghastly figure was seen leaning over. Dark, demon ridden tidings indeed!
The local abbot, having "failed to exorcize this malign spirit", wants Eleanor to investigate this stark deed, to "save [the village] from this malignancy", and send the demon back to whence it came.
Well actually, half Welsh Abbot Gerald wants a bit more than that and watching Eleanor maneuver around the Abbot's other agenda is fascinating. Eleanor is unconvinced that this is an ecclesiastic matter. Brother Thomas and Sister Anne are initially, sent to "determine if death was caused by a mortal hand."
The situation becomes more complex when two more deaths follow suit.
Amidst the roiling politics of the time, what with Edward I's war against the Welsh, and beyond the troubling deaths, it was Brother Thomas I felt for. Thomas is suffering a whirlpool of emotion and guilt as he fights his natural inclinations troubling his sacred vows, indeed his very being, because of his love for the wine merchant Durant, even as he's tempted by the spice merchant Lambard. The poignancy of his repudiation of Lambard really points to his agony.
The twist being that Eleanor has her own demons to face concerning Thomas. She has been strongly attracted to him and fought those feelings fiercely, even as she goes about obeying her calling. An unspoken love that she constantly battles.
When Eleanor finally realizes Thomas' proclivities she fears for him. The times were becoming more dangerous for men like Thomas. Along with this comes the realization that "her love over time had grown far more complex than lust."
Always a strong advocate for justice, Eleanor has her hands full and I suspect in future sequences, despite being sworn to her life's path, her heart will be heavy.
An intriguing novel of murder, beliefs, politics, love and practices in medieval England.

A Poisoned Pen ARC via NetGalley ( )

In 1282, England is at war with Wales. Prioress Eleanor is tending to the pregnant wife of her brother, Robert, on the border. She is accompanied by her companions, midwife Sister Anne and Brother Robert who has a secret that could prove deadly for him should it be discovered. Eleanor has a reputation for solving mysteries and is approached by the Abbot to uncover the murderer of a local priest rumoured to have been murdered by a ghost, a man who had been hanged not once but twice.

The Twice-Hanged Man is the fifteenth entry in the Medieval Mysteries series by author Priscilla Royal but the first I have read. It provides a compelling mystery with plenty of twists and turns beside some fascinating details of both the conflict between England and Wales and the day-to-day life in Medieval times. I did feel the story seemed to get bogged down by the relationships between some of the characters but I suspect that may be because I have not read any of the other books. Still, I found the mystery satisfying and the descriptions of the period interesting and would recommend it to anyone who is a fan of historical mysteries.

Thanks to Edelweiss+ and Poisoned Pen Press for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review ( )