The Atwelle Confession

By Joel Gordonson

A Tudor mystery where ancient gargoyles predict modern-day murders.

After discovering rare gargoyles mysteriously positioned inside an ancient church being restored in the small English town of Atwelle, architect Don Whitby and historian Margeaux Wood realize the gargoyles are predicting bizarre murders.

Five hundred years earlier, as the church is being built, two powerful families in Atwelle contest control of the region amidst King Henry VIII's dispute with the Pope. The same bizarre murders are committed. Two stories of identical macabre murders five hundred years apart converge on one surprising solution in the mystery of the gargoyles and the Atwelle Confession. Perfect for readers of historical mysteries and suspenseful thrillers.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1590794303
• ISBN13: 9781590794302
• Release Date: September 2017
• Publisher: Select Books (NY)
• Length: 288 Pages
• Weight: 1.20 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 6.3" x 9.1"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

A Great Idea for a Historical Mystery

There’s something odd about St. Clements church in Atwelle, Cambridge researcher Margeaux Wood can feel it. When odd gargoyles are found carved into the eaves of the church during its restoration, her hunch seems to be confirmed. Teaming up with Don Whiby, the architect in charge of the restorations, Margeaux sets out to uncover the story behind the unique carvings. But then there is a murder, and soon another, and the pattern of the murders seems to echo the mysterious carvings in the eves. Furthermore, these murders seem to echo similar crimes committed during the reign of Henry VIII . . . I really liked the concept of this book. The interplay between Tudor England and modern times was well done. Gordonson gives the reader a wealth of historical detail to work with, and I found the balancing act played by both church officials and highly placed citizenry during Henry VIII’s conflict with the Vatican to be truly fascinating. The mystery itself is original and interesting. That being said, I found the execution of the book to be somewhat wanting. The characters of Margeaux and Don, and others central to the plot, feel a bit unfinished. There is little to the characters beyond the immediate needs of the story, nothing about wants, desires, or dreams beyond the gargoyles in the church. Additionally, the antagonists seem to have little motivation for being such. They are acting to foil or to harm our protagonists, yes, but why? There are some nicely suspenseful scenes in this book, with a good creep factor to boot. But I did find that several opportunities for suspense were passed by, possibly to increase the pace of the book. The plot does move quickly, but occasionally feels like it’s stampeding along, sacrificing plot and character development in the process. I guess my overall impression is one of haste. The plot gallops along, leaving us with quick glimpses of something fascinating. Taking the time to give the reader a bit more to work with, to flesh out the characters, the world they live in, and the (really quite interesting) central mystery would have given this book real punch. In all, this is a fantastic idea, with a great amount of attention paid to historical detail. Gordonson is certainly able to craft a compelling story. But I feel that as written, we are seeing only the bare bones of a great story. An advance copy of this book was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.