Life as a roving band of players is difficult. Life as a
roving band of lord's players assigned to do some careful
sleuthing is even harder. Because of his past exploits as a
solver of mysteries and a minder of everyone's business,
the player Joliffe, as well as the troupe of which he's a
member, has been requested to not only take on the possibly
bumbling ne'er-do-well son of a bailiff as a player, but
also to solve a seeming mystery in a nearby manor. One
doesn't take requests of one's patron lord lightly, so
Joliffe and the troupe master reluctantly agree. Once at
their posts as dramatic players, they alternate listening
to the undertones of the village gossip, dodging and
capturing the glances of the amorous lady-servants, and
picking up on a strange current of falseness twining
through the gentry -- all this while training a starry-eyed
new apprentice!
Not only does Frazer write a great tale in the mode of her
Dame Frevisse stories, she also provides excellent tidbits
of information about being a member of a dramatic troupe
during a time in which the church had not made up its mind
about the lawfulness of such an organization. The
characters are witty, the scenes lavish and the writing
delightful. And the presentation of the mystery is top-
notch.
Performing at the wedding of Sir Edmund Deneby's daughter,
the player Joliffe has another task to perform--as a spy.
As he uncovers the secrets of the Denebys' sordid history,
it becomes clear that this wedding celebration is destined
to end in tragedy.
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