The Unlikely Spy

Gareth & Gwen Medieval Mysteries #5

by Sarah Woodbury

August 1146. Prince Hywel has called all the bards of Wales to him for a music festival to mark the third anniversary of his rule over Ceredigion. He has invited all the lords of Wales too, including his father, his uncle, and his neighbor to the south, King Cadell. But with the highborn also come the thieves, spies, and other hangers-on.

And when a murderer strikes as the festival starts, Gareth and Gwen are charged with discovering his identity--before the death of a peasant shakes the throne of a king.

The Unlikely Spy is the fifth Gareth & Gwen Medieval Mystery.

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

332 pages, Paperback

First published June 11, 2014

About the author

With over a million books sold to date, Sarah Woodbury is the author of more than forty novels, all set in medieval Wales. Although an anthropologist by training, and then a full-time homeschooling mom for twenty years, she began writing fiction when the stories in her head overflowed and demanded that she let them out. While her ancestry is Welsh, she only visited Wales for the first time at university. She has been in love with the country, language, and people ever since. She even convinced her husband to give all four of their children Welsh names.

Sarah is a member of the Historical Authors Fiction Cooperative (HFAC), the Historical Novel Society, and Novelists, Inc. (NINC).


She makes her home in Oregon.

Reviews

[Lora Shouse · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Unlikely Spy is the fifth of the Gareth and Gwen mysteries. I love this historical mystery series set in twelfth-century Wales. At least some of the characters are based on actual historical figures (although Gareth and Gwen themselves are at least mostly fictional). At least some of the murders they are tasked with solving must be fictional as well. But the political situation in Wales in the twelfth century, in which the many tiny kingdoms that made up Wales at the time, and the endless intrigues between their rulers make these mysteries seem entirely plausible. The methods they use to solve their cases in the absence of modern crime-solving tools (they don’t have access to fingerprint, DNA, ballistic, or fiber analysis tools, of course) seem entirely appropriate and plausible for the time.

Gareth is now the captain of Prince Hywel’s guard. Hywel, the second son of king Owain of Gwynedd, is now serving as lord of Ceredigion, a small coastal area in Gwynedd. At this time, Gwynedd is one of the larger of the Welch kingdoms. Hywel, a gifted singer himself, is currently sponsoring a sort of music festival at his castle in Ceredigion. It is against the background of this festival that the search for the murderer of a man found floating in the millpond takes place.

Far and away the cutest characters in the story are Gareth and Gwen’s daughter, Tangwen, and Hywel and Mari’s son, Gruffyd. The two children are still less than two years old, but Tangwen in particular is already able to get into things and cause trouble. I wonder if they will be more in evidence in later books in the series.

It’s interesting to see Hywel’s older brother, Prince Rhun taking an active part in this investigation. Rhun has been helpful before, but his other duties have mostly kept him too busy to be closely involved in the murder investigations.

In this case, the murder appears to be the result of someone mistakenly thinking the victim too stupid to realize the significance of the spy errands they asked him to run. Gareth and Gwen – and Hywel – again wonder if Cadwallader, Hywel’s uncle, is responsible. Of course, Cadwallader, himself a prince of Gwynedd, didn’t commit the murder himself. But, as usual, he is mixed up in it, even if only indirectly.

[Meri · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book!!!

I've been reading Sarah Woodbury's books for about a year now. The stories are always amazing. The cliffhanger on this one makes you want to fast forward time til the next book is released.

[Bethany Swafford · Rating 4 out of 5]

Prince Hywel has called for a musical festival, inviting all the bards in the land, his father, his uncle, and King Cadell to come to Ceredigion. Just as the festival is about to begin, a body is found in a millpond. Gwen, Gareth, and Hywel's brother Rhun stand ready to chase the clues down to find a murderer. What they find along with the man's identity is a tangled web of treachery.

The past really comes into play in this book. It was interesting to follow Rhun for (I think) the first time in the series. As the oldest son of King Owain, he has many responsibilities on his shoulders and he has his own strengths to lend to solving the mystery. Gwen is not as free to chase clues as she once was with a toddler to be looked after. Gareth's actions as Hywel's man means he could be a target, and he chafes at the guards who stay by his side at times.

The mystery was a good, with a tangled plot to be unraveled. There were many names tossed around that it became a bit confusing to keep everyone straight. My biggest complaint is that it felt as though the story was left incomplete, with a bit of a cliffhanger.

Still, it is well paced and, of course, I adore Gareth and Gwen. I look forward ot seeing how the next book plays out.

[PR · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another Enjoyable Puzzle

The stories this series tell continue to be intriguing and fun to read...suspenseful, interesting and well plotted. I am enjoying them all in a row. These books are a quick read with characters I am continuing to care more about ...they have become real to me as have the settings and the customs, the clothing and the terrain. I do not believe I will ever 'get" the Welsh...spelling or pronunciation, though! These are wonderful books. I am beginning among to feel as if I am there observing everything "up close and in person". I would recommend this series to adults and teens everywhere.

[Tanja Glavnik · Rating 4 out of 5]

The only reason I docked a star was because of how confused I was feeling about a third into the book as all the names were being thrown about, everyone was lying, and people kept going back and forth.

I'm an avid Agatha Christie reader, so I thought I'd do better at murder mysteries in general - but I guess I need even MORE practice!

Overall, however, Gareth and Gwen remain a power couple, and I'm now looking forward how we deal with war in the following book.

Also, Hywel - there is a MILLION ways I can imagine for things to go from bad to worse if your father cuts his brother loose as the traitor he is. I don't think you want to see any one of those come true in any way, shape or form!

[Diane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Prince Hywel is putting on a music festival at Aberystwyth Castle. He has invited bards from all of Wales to attend and compete for prizes. There are so many people coming that his wife and son, Mari and Gruffydd, along with Gareth, Gwen and their daughter, Tangwen, are staying at the monastery. And a body is discovered at the millpond and Prior Rhys of St. Asaph has taken Gwen to investigate (since Gareth was unavailable). Gwen determines the man was murdered, not drowned, and things take off from there. There are two wives, a missing mill worker, a cloth merchant, spies, and too much misleading information.

[Alayne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another good story featuring Gareth and Gwen, although not as good as the previous 4 that I have read. Two things in particular made me fall out of the story - the use of the terms "burlap sacks" and "Excuse me?!" in that very American accusatory mode. I did a little bit of research on the internet and found that burlap is a North American term in use since the 1800s, and that the medieval period did not have sacks at all. So shame on Sarah and her team to not have checked and picked those things up.

[Bonnie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another series that I hadn't read for some time. These mysteries are dependably good. I like the main characters, Gareth and Gwen. This one involves the murder of a not-very-bright man who seems to be a bigamist. This could have something to do with the murder. It turns out that there could be several motives. The murder takes place while there is a music festival that brings people from all over Wales, which also complicates things. It is an intriguing mystery.

[Wendy Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

3 1/2 to 4. As always in this series, I enjoyed the characters, setting and mystery but the writing was a bit pedestrian at times. Too many conversations seemed to be Gwen said, Gareth said, Hywel said, Rhun said etc. I was wishing some of the characters could at least have asked or replied occasionally.

[Audrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lively Welsh music festival in 1146 turns deadly when a man is found in the mill pond. Gareth, captain for Prince Hywel, and his sharp-witted wife Gwen start digging for answers—only to find the victim’s death tied to secrets that could shake the court. Fast-paced, clever, and full of medieval color, this one kept me guessing right to the end.

[Nance Roepke · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm getting to like the Gareth and Gwen series a bit more. I would say it is Mystery Lite. So much of it is predictable but the Mysteries themselves are pretty good and I did like this one. Maybe a 3.5.

[Caroline S · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have been binging these for a month lol sorry to everyone who has to scroll through this bulk update. Really enjoying these would definitely recommend... one can only hope these get an HBO series because otherwise I'm going to have to go to Wales and see all these places for myself

[Maeghan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lots of twists and turns

These characters just keep getting better. The main three, Gwen, Gareth, and Prince Hywel, you are getting to know better, and Prince Rhun comes more into his own here. Good mystery, not one I could figure out ahead of the story. Great read.

[Bruce · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am not a fan of mysteries, but anything Sarah Woodbury writes, I like!

[Heather]

Keeps you guessing!

[Rebekah Adams · Rating 5 out of 5]

The beauty of the welsh lands and the thrill of a mystery. Gwen and Garett never disappoint!

[Kelly Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

One if my favourite series. A good story of murder and music set in 12 century Wales.

[Patricia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoy this series. I am absorbed in the stories and with the characters. On to the next book in the series.

[Page · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really liked the two princes taking a bigger role. Per usual, I greatly enjoyed this book.

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fast read with a lot of twists and turns. The only thing I wish for is to hear the music that is talked about in the story.

[Voirrey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I do love the way that things that happen in one book have an effect in another, and so the characters become more and more real. The relationships between King Owain and his sons and between Hywel and Rhun themselves develop here, and it is interesting to see more of Rhun this time.
The music festival is an interesting part of the story, and the tangled web of both Welsh and English politics again provides a fascinating backdrop to what at first appears to be a fairly straightforward death of a not very important person. The realities of motherhood again are not forgotten, either.
We leave this book with a sense of fear for the characters we have come to know, as it looks as if war is on the horizon.

[Bron · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've enjoyed this whole series so far, not least because Gwen and Gareth are very likeable characters and it's interesting to read how their lives progress. But out of them all, this one feels a bit unfinished, they solve the process of the murder but it somehow feels that the depths of the motive have not yet been plumbed. I'm hoping that's because there's going to be a sequel which will reveal more. This is also the first one in which I've felt some sympathy for the 'body' and I would have liked to have seen a bit more about his life and thoughts, rather than just getting it second hand from companions who didn't seem to value him very much.

[Ali · Rating 3 out of 5]

Look, some of the plotholes in this one were big enough to drive a truck through, and the writing remains nothing to get excited about, but as a journey through the worlds of the middle classes and the poor, this book holds enough interest to make it worthwhile. Another key strength is the background, but constant, understanding of how Gwen's relative freedoms are further curtailed by children.

I can't defend the plot though.

[Valerie Antijunti · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can't get enough of Gareth and Gwen

The Gareth and Gwen stories just keep getting better and better. Before I was even done reading this book, I was looking forward to the next one. It is written so that I feel as though the story is being told to me by a friend.

[Noreen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a fun read, and possibly my favorite Gareth & Gwen mystery yet.

[Christine · Rating 5 out of 5]

An unexpected supise ending.

[Kathi Reed · Rating 4 out of 5]

good series

[Betsy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Must admit. Up at this hour due to cough. But nice to have something good to read to keep me company.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good

[Debra]

Another great story