I love a good historical mystery series, and one of the best is the ‘Seeker’ series by S.G. Maclean, a Scottish writer. The novels, which begin with The Seeker, published in 2015, are set in the time of Oliver Cromwell. While I am very familiar with the time of the Restoration (mainly thanks to my love of Samuel Pepys and his Diary – and young Mr Pepys gets several mentions in this book), I didn’t know a lot about England under the iron rule of Cromwell. Damian Seeker is an agent of Cromwell in the year 1654 and has to stamp out plots to bring Charles II back to the English throne. When a hero of Cromwell’s army is found dead, Seeker must find out the culprit. Although I have little sympathy for his anti-royalist role, I did find him a compelling character and raced through the first five books of the series. There’s a sixth one coming, which I have pre-ordered. The author has been shortlisted four times for the Historical Dagger Award, and has won it twice. I can see why.
I do love a bit of romance mingled with crime, and this series satisfied me on that count too. But most of all I loved the history, seeing England in the aftermath of the Civil War, learning of the struggles of Cromwell and his men to hold power against scheming royalists, and the worries about succession as Cromwell aged.
It really is a terrific series – perfect holiday reading!
Do you enjoy historical crime books too? Let me know by leaving a comment.
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