Path of Gold: A richly detailed and gripping historical crime thriller

by A.J. MacKenzie

Money talks in this gripping medieval mystery thriller for fans of Andrew Taylor and S. W. PerryA dangerous assignment.
It's 1343, and Simon Merrivale is travelling with the Earl of Derby on a mission for King Edward III of England. They are bound for Castile to persuade its ruler, Alfonso, to abandon his traditional alliance with France.
A kingdom ablaze.
They arrive to find war raging across the country. King Alfonso is conducting an epic siege, by land and sea, against the city of Algeciras, held by the Moorish states.

A deadly enemy.

Plots are developing behind Alfonso's back. An old foe of Merrivale's is planning to seize power, not just in Castile but all of Spain. To thwart him, Simon must undertake a dangerous journey, facing down opponents more powerful than any he has encountered so far


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452 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 13, 2025

Reviews

[Charley Robson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another solid, enjoyable conspiracy-cum-mystery - unfortunately, I liked it less than the first. The cast of characters is wide and really enjoyable, with some fun and engaging historic and wholly fictional elements working in tandem, but the setting and plot are both absolutely sprawling; we don't get to see many of them in great depth, and the shifting locations and factions and plot threads are many, and often get tangled up in each other without a clear sense of direction, making the overall arc hard to follow. Like its predecessor, the ending also lost me in a few key places that undermined the whole. Still an enjoyable read, but a bit too tangled and ambitious to keep its footing to fully work for me.