The Fire Court: A gripping historical thriller from the bestselling author of The Ashes of London

The Fire Court: A gripping historical thriller from the bestselling author of The Ashes of London
Andrew Taylor

From No.1 bestselling author Andrew Taylor comes the sequel to the phenomenally successful The Ashes of LondonA time of terrible danger…The Great Fire has ravaged London. Now, guided by the Fire Court, the city is rebuilding, but times are volatile and danger is only ever a heartbeat away.Two mysterious deaths…James Marwood, a traitor’s son, is thrust into this treacherous environment when his father discovers a dead woman in the very place where the Fire Court sits. The next day his father is run down. Accident? Or another murder…?A race to stop a murderer…Determined to uncover the truth, Marwood turns to the one person he can trust – Cat Lovett, the daughter of a despised regicide. Then comes a third death… and Marwood and Cat are forced to confront a vicious killer who threatens the future of the city itself.

Copyright (#u92674692-f6e7-59b8-935e-21fce75b2abf)

Published by HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd

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London SE1 9GF

www.harpercollins.co.uk (http://www.harpercollins.co.uk)

First published in Great Britain by HarperCollinsPublishers 2018

Copyright © Andrew Taylor 2018

Cover design by Dominic Forbes © HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd 2018

Cover illustration Old London Bridge (engraving), Jongh, Claude de (fl.1610-1663) / Private Collection © Look and Learn (https://www.lookandlearn.com/) / Illustrated Papers Collection (https://www.lookandlearn.com/history-images/search.php?cat=illustrated-papers-collection) / Bridgeman Images (http://www.bridgemanimages.com/en-GB/)

Andrew Taylor asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.

Prelims show ‘A map of the area of London affected by the Great Fire of London in 1666’ © The British Library

A catalogue copy of this book is available from the British Library.

This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.

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Source ISBN: 9780008119133

Ebook Edition © April 2018 ISBN: 9780008119126

Version: 2018-01-26

Dedication (#u92674692-f6e7-59b8-935e-21fce75b2abf)

For Caroline

Table of Contents

Cover (#ubfae648d-1920-58db-b77f-68225fff8ee4)

Title Page (#u70486309-4b91-5559-8f4a-3742fdabb5f7)

Copyright (#u4fcb7da9-3252-52ae-ab5f-0e0f8472a59e)

Dedication (#u846bc490-395d-5fab-be9a-c38d91af3129)

Map (#u1cfce6b4-53b0-5e26-a313-be7c7c5e6b0f)

The People (#ufe481a68-c31a-5753-b8e0-a80c5daa70f6)

Chapter One (#u96cfa9f3-96ea-54d1-8a64-b311d16bd893)

Chapter Two (#u78dc8896-eb95-5094-93e6-80f7d6ed1b9d)

Chapter Three (#u30964e04-38be-5bf4-b995-85b50e8d4405)

Chapter Four (#ud1a69740-e4ba-5c22-8d44-abac2e6e6fc7)

Chapter Five (#u9cb456e3-1555-569e-9b30-224a410e3004)

Chapter Six (#ub22df5dc-94d2-5eaf-8b73-849dd64f59b3)

Chapter Seven (#u86457269-bf49-5316-8111-0c7b771c76a0)

Chapter Eight (#ud24e1aa1-fa3d-534a-b277-8dbc9fbec3e9)

Chapter Nine (#ufd69117a-fcc3-5d8e-b251-20bdf36b9c4f)

Chapter Ten (#u3ac180f1-c0f5-5d1f-a625-216d82b0fb46)

Chapter Eleven (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Twelve (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Thirteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Fourteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Fifteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Sixteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Seventeen (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Eighteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Nineteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Twenty (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Twenty-One (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Twenty-Two (#litres_trial_promo)