If you'd rather place an order by talking to one of our cheerful order desk clerks, please call 1-888-232-4444 (USA and Canada only) or 250-383-6864. From Europe, ring our UK order desk clerk at local rate number 0845 230 9601 (UK only) or 44 (0)1865 722 113.

The Irish Fiasco: Stolen Silver in Seventeenth Century Ireland: A Luke Tremayne Adventure

by Dr. Geoff Quaife

254 pages; quality trade paperback (softcover); catalogue #07-2110; ISBN 1-4251-4875-1; US$18.59, C$18.59, EUR12.70, £9.60

Luke's murder investigation and search for stolen silver is complicated by intriguing Royalists, Irish rebels, influential women, treacherous comrades, a loveable witch, maladjusted siblings, murderous charcoal burners, and devious priests.

About the Book

In 1648 as England toppled into a second civil war the parliamentary army was busy subduing Royalist uprisings and a Scottish invasion. Cromwell sent his top agent, Luke Tremayne, to Ireland to investigate the murder of a fellow officer and the disappearance of a fortune in Spanish silver, and to assist in the defence of Dublin Castle - one of the last remaining Parliamentary garrisons. Disaster strikes before Luke leaves England and once in Ireland his new deputy, Simon Cobb, scarred by the events of the massacre of 1641, adds to the tension. Luke is constantly thwarted by the mysterious Arabella McGregor and by a professional unit of Ulster republicans led by a red headed colonel and a blond deputy. Luke's endeavours are monitored by the amiable Royalist, Sir Gerald Burke and his attractive daughter whose kidnapping leads Luke deep into the Wicklow Mountains. Here he is almost murdered, and uncovers a secret Catholic refuge controlled by an enigmatic Father Ambrose. A sensual herbalist who is accused of witchcraft by the diabolical Abbot Malachy increasingly distracts Luke. The dual mission takes him to the shores of Lough Derg, to Cork and the network of drains under Dublin Castle. The execution of King Charles in 1649 creates great support for the Royalists in Ireland and the army of the new English Republic faces complete annihilation. Luke must find the silver if Dublin Castle is to hold out until the promised arrival of General Cromwell. In a final twist Luke's world is turned upside down.

About the Author

Geoff Quaife was born in Melbourne, Australia. He has been a school and university teacher, an historian, and academic administrator. His historical interests have been sixteenth and seventeenth century European history. He has published on the sexual mores of the English peasantry and on the great witch hunts of early modern Europe. He is admirer of Cromwell and his army. He is author of the first Luke Tremayne adventure, The Spanish Relation