Guns in the North

Sir Robert Carey #1-3

by P.F. Chisholm

1592. Robert Carey, eighth son of Lord Hunsdon, has – to his servants' dismay – abandoned Queen Elizabeth I's court and is heading north to take up the post of Deputy Warden of the English West March , a lawless badlands, peopled by cattle-rustlers, horse-thieves, arsonists, kidnappers and murderers created by centuries of Anglo-Scottish conflict. Carey, in his lace-collared, pearl-sashed courtly finery, will be expected to bring order to this bloody flux. Plunging readers straight into the raucous world of late sixteenth-century border reivers and unfettered Elizabethan intrigue, Guns in the North , the first chronicle of Sir Robert Carey's adventures, collecting the novels A Famine of Horses , A Season of Knives and A Surfeit of Guns under one volume. A Famine of Horses © 1994.

A Season of Knives © 1995.

A Surfeit of Guns © 1996.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Historical

662 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 13, 2017

About the author

Also known as Patricia Finney.

Reviews

[Alyssia Cooke · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ah absolutely stunning omnibus from an author I had never come across. I thoroughly enjoyed this from start to finish, despite having no prior knowledge of the period or the landscape or the characters. That takes some doing to get a five star rate from me, and Chrisholm manages with aplomb.

A Famine of Horses opens with a newly appointed Sir Robert Carey moving from the dapper and stylish court of Elizabeth I to move to the distinctly Wild West borderlands. The narrative works on multiple levels, giving a remarkable amount of depth to the novel as you follow the over arching political mystery and a more typical murder mystery. And then thrown into the mix are the petty local squabbles and politics and the hard lives lived all around. They all vie for your attention but are juggled exceptionally well, so you don’t find one overshadowed or overshadowing. Chrisholm drops snippets of information, but never enough to allow you to definitively come to a conclusion you are certain of.

The inclusion of this smartly dressed, smooth talking courtier into the Wild West environment of the border is genius, not least because it actually happened. The author manages to capture the divisions and up hill battles well, particularly in view of Carey’s London views on such things as law and order when set against the folk who live their lives raiding or surviving raids. However, she also captures the sense of Honour Amongst Thieves, which is difficult to do without romanticising some very unromantic characters.

Chrisholm sets the scene well and the characters jump off the page at you. It’s a wide cast of characters and whilst the borderlands are undoubtedly rough, there is a limited sense of Honour Amongst Thieves that endears even the toughest of characters. Yet Chrisholm makes a point of saying right at the beginning of the book that we like to think that we are terribly violent and dangerous now, but in reality we are a bunch of wusses. The murder rate has dropped to a tenth of what it was in the Middle Ages—and they didn’t have automatic pistols. It took real work to kill somebody then.

To top this sublime mixture off, the writing style is fluid and remarkable. Chrisholm merges humour with drama well, the dialogue flows beautifully with well depicted descriptions and character development throughout. Authors seldom manage to evoke a true bitter sweet smile in me, particularly when they have actively made me smile or giggle earlier in the novel. I finished this novel with a very satisfied bitter sweet sensation.

A Season of Knives has a far more linear plot than the first and does lose some depth because of it; but is still a really fine read through and through. Chrisholm further develops some of the more minor characters really well though, and although it is a smaller cast of characters, they are really well developed. And whilst the narrative is more linear, it is a complex murder case which neatly tied in to issues of the time including petty treason being a burning offence for a wide killing a husband, whereas murder is always a hanging offence for a man. I think I somewhat preferred the multi-string approach of the first novel, but this was still a very fine read, just a little more directly linear in its approach.

The character building was very well done, and allows for a further exploration of Dodd, Carey and Barnaby as well as his sister and her husband Lord Scropes and the distinctly more corrupt Richard Lowther. It builds on these characters extremely well and allowed for several moments where the characters truly came to life. I found myself thinking of them as I was dropping off on an evening. The detective case itself is complex and well mapped, even if it isn’t as multi-faceted as the previous novel. It kept me guessing the whole way however, and I certainly hadn't figured out what was going on until it was revealed to me.

The writing style is engrossing and generally fluid, although as a book standing on its own I would have dropped a single star because Chrisholm has an off-putting habit of dropping dialogue so you have to figure out what has been said. It is clearly a deliberate writing device but it made sections more difficult to follow than they perhaps could have been. This is particularly noticeable when the novel is exploring issues of the times that you aren’t as a modern reader familiar with. You have a complicated mystery with multiple confessions and three people in jail for the same offence, meaning that it is more crucial than ever that the writing style doesn’t further complicate where it isn’t necessary.

A Surfeit of Guns moves back into a complex and many layered tale which is spectacularly told. The cast of characters once more expands, as does the over arching political narrative which draws you into the depths and recesses of the Spanish court. Carey continues to be a vibrant and interesting lead character but it was excellent to see some more minor characters like Young Hutchkins being fleshed out and expanded on. The same indeed goes for the Scottish court, for whilst we have heard much of King James, this is the first time of meeting him and his court.

Once more, morality issues and other human issues are covered very well, delicately interwoven into the folds of the novel rather than being slammed in your face. There’s something very clever and subtle in how different issues are cleverly weaved within different strands of the tale. The rampant homosexuality of King James court for instance is very well depicted, both from Carey’s perspective and from the King as well. The strands of romance that are twined through the novel are subtle and unobtrusive, so that even as someone with no interest in romance in novels at all, I had to admit to following the sub-story with interest.

All in all, I found this to be a thrilling and emotionally moving tale that kept my heart in my mouth at the same time as tearing at my heartstrings. A stunning novel that really deserves more praise than it has. I’m astonished that I have never come across this author before and will certainly be following her work in the future.

A wonderful compilation of novels here and a stunning author.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the omnibus of the first three Robert Carey books. The books are set in Carlisle (which still advertises itself as 'The Great Border City') in 1592 where Carey, escaping the English Court and his many creditors, has taken up the position of Deputy Warden of the West March. As a former Courtier complete with lace collars and pearl sashes Carey is instantly out of place with the locals who are made up of cattle rustlers, horse thieves, arsonists, kidnappers and murders. Centuries of conflict between the English and Scottish have left the north a lawless badland where people are loyal only to their of surname (basically their clan) and only out for themselves.
This is a fantastic backdrop of some historical murder mysteries. Chisholm has used history and real people to really bring the Elizabethan Carlisle to life. A lot of the streets and buildings mentioned are still there to this day as are many of the Surnames.
I had read the first book, 'A Famine of Horses', a year or so again but it was great to go back and start from the beginning. The books get better and better as the series goes on. The best murder mystery is in the second book 'A Season of Knives'. We get to see a full investigation and coroners hearing which we didn't get in the first book. The third book 'A Surfeit of Guns' is quite different from the first two as we find our selves crossing the Debatable Lands and joining the Court of King James of Scotland as Dumfries.
A fantastic read full of murder, feuding, espionage, forbidden love and even a bit of hay making all sprinkled with a dollop of real history that brings everything to life.

Pointless Trivia: Page 735 is mis-numbered as page 729. Story isn't out of order there is no duplicated or missing pages just a wrong number. Pointless but it peaked my interest. What can I say I lead a sad lonely life.

[Debbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an omnibus volume containing the first three books in P.F. Chisholm's Robert Carey series: A Famine of Horses, A Season of Knives, and A Surfeit of Guns.

These books revolve around Robert Carey, grandson of Mary Boleyn and cousin to Queen Elizabeth, and whose actual grandfather was probably Henry VIII rather than Mary Boleyn's husband William Carey.

The story begins in A Famine of Horses on 18th June 1592 with Robert Carey, straight from the court of Elizabeth I, arriving in Carlisle in the English West March to take up his new position as Deputy Warden that he has been appointed to by his brother-in-law, Lord Scrope.

He almost immediately finds himself dealing with a murder, stolen horses, the hostility of Richard Lowther who expected to be made Deputy Warden himself, rampant corruption, blackmail, and protection fees known as black rent, feuding clans, reivers, thieves, and much more.

All this provides much meat for stories full of action, intrigue, double-crossing, and danger. Chisholm has populated these books with memorable and thoroughly enjoyable characters, and through her use of language and dialogue, and close attention to the fashions, foods, abodes, and customs of the time the reader is fully immersed into life in Elizabethan Carlisle.

Chisholm paints Carey as a likeable and intelligent man who has to use all his wits to survive in this far northern outpost of England. Add in Carey's attraction to a married woman, Elizabeth Wriddington, the wiliness of the Scots and northern English trying to put one over him and each other, the court of James Stuart, King of Scotland, and some well-paced and well-written mysteries to solve and these are extremely enjoyable historical novels.

I look forward to spending more time with Robert Carey.

[Mark Luongo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite the enjoyable read! Oh those contentious times along the borders of England and Scotland. Deputy Warden Robert Carey, an historical figure, seems to get himself in one dangerous spot after another. Full of a number of interesting characters who ably complement "Robin", as sister Philadelphia calls him, and some who relentlessly seek to do him in. You'll feel the chill of the Scottish & English "marches" as well.
One note to mention, be patient with the Scottish dialogue. sometimes you have to re-read in some spots. Keep "yer" phone handy for definitions of some Scottish slang. "Dinna fash", it is like an Outlander episode where you have to put the CC on to get some of the dialogue.
Overall, a terrific book.

[Christina Kirby · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fantastic tale. I am an avid reader of historic fiction, especially around this period. Wasn’t too sure about the style of writing at the start of the first book, but, I soon was enthralled and taken totally over. The story flowed, and took the reader on a journey over the borders. I became hooked by the charms of Robert Carey, and his interactions with Dodd. There were times when I actually winced when torture was carried out. The author painted the story so very well. I felt totally absorbed. Great book. Great story, and excited to read more about this charismatic character from the past.

[Val Cowan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great history and a real hero Robert Carey Based in the West March and Carlisle 3 great detective stories based on horses, knives and guns. The Debatable Lands and the ‘surnames’ take a bit of keeping up with but worth it These books mix real historical people (Carey, Lord Scope and King James among others) with beautifully drawn soldiers, surnames and women If you like history and a good whodunnit look no further

[Bethan Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this. Read these years ago but I had forgotten how good they were. Looking forward to reading the next collection and catching up with the recent books. I might try some of the other ones again.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing. Very gritty and shows the time and place in all its reality. I can hardly wait to read more. If you like Sharon Penman, then get this.

[Francois Ellis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it!

[Robyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved these three books! ❤️

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not quite as much mystery and intrigue as I was expecting, but a thoroughly enjoyable bit of historical fiction nonetheless!