DEATH COMES IN THREES

A well-regarded assassin is anything but.

Summer 1558 finds London rife with tension as Queen Mary awaits the birth of a child, and different factions either support her or hope to overthrow her reign and replace her with Elizabeth. In the midst of all this turmoil, Jack Blackjack still hasn’t figured out exactly how he became known to a select few as a talented killer. But he’s happy to take the money from Lady Elizabeth’s man, John Blount, pay a real killer to do the work, and spend the rest of his commission on wine, women, and fine clothing. Jack is leasing one of his homes to Geoffrey Vanderstilt, a Dutch merchant who’s behind on rent, and his efforts to collect soon embroil him in a dangerous situation. When Vanderstilt vanishes and a pretty maid Jack has dallied with is murdered, he finds himself under arrest. He manages to escape, but his legal perils are the least of his troubles, for several dangerous people want answers, and he has no idea what they’re talking about. Jack gets help from Humfrie, the assassin he’s commissioned, as he attempts to figure out what Sir Edmund de Vere—who’s been buying guns from Vanderstilt—and the equally dangerous Perkin Bagnall want from him. In the end, Jack manages to help both Queen Mary and Lady Elizabeth when he thwarts an armed rebellion. Despite his cowardly ways, his run of good fortune keeps him alive for more adventures.

A hysterical historical. It’s hard not to laugh as the hapless, lucky Blackjack bumbles his way to a satisfactory ending.