The Deadliest Sin

The Medieval Murderers #10

by The Medieval Murderers, Karen Maitland (Contributor), Susanna Gregory (Contributor)

In the spring of 1348, tales begin arriving in England of poisonous clouds fast approaching, which have overwhelmed whole cities and even countries, with scarcely a human being left. While some pray more earnestly and live yet more devoutly, others vow to enjoy themselves and blot out their remaining days on earth by drinking and gambling.
And then there are those who hope that God's wrath might be averted by going on a pilgrimage. But if God was permitting his people to be punished by this plague, then it surely could only be because they had committed terrible sins?
So when a group of pilgrims are forced to seek shelter at an inn, their host suggests that the guests should tell their tales. He dares them to tell their stories of sin, so that it might emerge which one is the best.That is, the worst ...

Genres: Historical Fiction, Mystery, Historical, Fiction, Historical Mystery, Crime, Medieval

480 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2014

About the author

A pseudonym used for collaborative works by the following:

Simon Beaufort,
Philip Gooden,
Susanna Gregory,
Michael Jecks,
Bernard Knight,
Karen Maitland,
Ian Morson, and
C.J. Sansom.

Reviews

[Michael Dawson]

As interesting as this book sounds, It is very hard to understand and with no chapters, very hard to read.

[patricia]

Pilgrims are holding up at an inn on the way to Walsingham because of rain storms. To entertain themselves and each to prove a point each tells a story to prove which of the deadliest sins they believe is the worst. The Deadliest Sin is written by several authors including Michael Jecks. The story holds together and it is pretty seamless between the authors. No judgement is made you decide for yourself which sin is the deadliest. Written to unfold in the 14th century during a time of upheaval and plague in England the stories each stand out.

[Baz]

Bit like the curate's egg - good in parts. Quite liked the 'Canterbury Tales' format but a couple of the tales I found too long winded.

[Glenys]

I found this book interesting to read, written in the style that it was.
There were no conclusions, just a series of vignettes drawn together as tales told to pass the time when the pilgrims stopped for shelter at the wayside inn.
Set during a time of plague, it was a time for listening to tales of evil acts in the guises of the seven deadly sins.
Each tale was different and no title of "Deadliest Sin" could be judged.

[Candida]

These are a collection of short stories in this book. I read another one in the series and only a few characters were recurring in this book. Some of the stories were more entertaining than others. The stories all seemed to be in keeping with the period they depicting. This series is fun and insightful.

[Kent]

Whenever I get to the last book in a series I enjoy, I always feel a tinge of regret and often delay the inevitable. So this was on my to read list for a few years.

I finally got around to reading it. Of course, being an anthology, some of the stories are better than others, but as a whole I enjoyed it greatly and am sad to have completed the series.

[Grace-Elisa]

This should really be rated a 2.5 as I only enjoyed about half the book. As always with this series, some authors deliver more than others so, even if you don't enjoy the opening chapters, it's worth seeing it through and dispensing with the ones you don't like.

[Sonny]

I'll admit that I didn't enjoy this one as much as some of the others in the series....but it was still a good collection of short stories surrounding a single topic. Stories involving Sir Symon Cole and his wife Gwenllian are always my favorites.

[Megan P]

Gave up at page 160. Not my type of book.

[Margaret]

Not a bad read. As usual the writers use a linking device, in this case the seven deadly sins.

Enjoyable read, but other volumes have been better.

[Joy Norman]

Liked the book and interesting ways to see each sin told a different way. Very cleverly written when it's raining and go in the Inn. Each one I talking about which sin is worse!

[Judy Trenkle]

Better editing please, to catch name and place discrepancies.

[Charley Robson]

Yep. DNF'ing, and not even 20 pages in.

But then, if a book can disappoint, irritate and alienate me before we even leave the narrative's framing device, I'm not spending my precious money renewing it from the library just so I can spend another week screwing up my nose at the thought of picking it up again.

Maybe I'd love some of the stories written by the authors I vaguely recall enjoying at some point, but I am not hauling myself through an entire anthology's worth of stale, boring cliché and completely unjustified trope-y dreck to get there.

[Martina Lennon]

The title of this book is The deadliest sin.I am a big fan of historical crime,but this particular author grouping only includes three of my favourites, Michael Jecks, Bernard Knight,Susanna Gregory, so that's why it is only a 3. The premise of this is also very similar to Paul Doherty's series Canterbury Tales of Mystery and Murder, one of the early exponents of this genre along with the late and in my opinion great Ellis Peters.

[Miro]

"Medieval murderers" are telling seven different stories via the storytellers staying in a tavern on their pilgrimage. Some of the stories are more enthralling, some less. Moreover , it is remarkable to observe the different writing style of authors. I found the book very good and well suited for everybody interested in the medieval times...

[Ruth]

With contributions from some of my favourite authors, I knew I was going to enjoy most of it. And, I wasn't proved wrong. As with any anthology there were bits that I didn't particularly enjoy but would still recommend this book to the normal crew.

[Chris]

I didn't like this 'Canterbury Tales' format as much as the usual one of following an artefact through the ages. The tales seemed to drag, I had to take a break from it midway, and was relieved to finally finish it.

[Sally Archer]

Wonderful read these authors never disappoint

[Cara Strachan]

Quite enjoyed it but not as much as their other books

[Cathy Coplon]

Al the different authors blended well to tell an excellent story

[Nicki]

An interesting way to approach the 7 deadly sins by telling stories as a debate in a pub on a cold night. but it didnt keep my attention. i gave up towards the end.