Title:

The Riddle of St. Leonard's

Author:

Candace Robb

Category:

Mystery & Thriller

Rating:

Date Reviewed:

May 22, 2026
he Riddle of St. Leonard's is the fifth book in the Owen Archer mystery series, set in 14th century medieval England. The recurring characters are all established now - Archer and his family and their apothecary shop, Tom and Bess Merchet the tavern owners, John Thoresby (the Archbishop of York), Magda Digby - the witchy water-woman. The action takes place in the city of York. The black death (which the York citizens call manqualm) has come again this summer, and the mortality count is large. Many people have fled the city for the dubious safety of the countryside. Owen and Lucie have sent their own children away, but wonder if they have done the right thing.

The novel takes a while to establish the plot. St. Leonard's is one of the biggest hospitals in England, but its finances are in trouble. The archbishop's nephew, Richard de Ravenser, runs the hospital but it is beset by thefts, deaths and wild rumors of criminal activity. In medieval times, when wealthy people neared the end of their mortal span, they could set up a "corrody". A corrody was usually the donation of assets, such as land or treasure, that transferred to the hospital when the owner eventually perished. (Think of a corrody as the 14th century equivalent of an annuity). In exchange, the hospital provided care and board for the elderly patron while they remained alive. But at St. Leonard's, there has been a rash of mysterious deaths of some of its corrody-pledging patients. Could St. Leonard's hospital be murdering people in its care in order to fix its finances? Rumor and superstition are rife in medieval times; once a reputation is destroyed it is difficult to repair.

In addition to the mysterious deaths, Ravenser discovers that there has also been a rash of thefts from St. Leonard's. Goblets, a chess set, a cross and other objects have vanished. A search of Honoria de Staines, a beautiful lay sister at St. Leonard's, has revealed two beautiful glass goblets in her possession - they appear to match the set of the missing drinking cups. Honoria claims to they were given to her as a gift; which is quite possible, because there have long been rumors that the beautiful Honoria was sleeping with wealthy York men. Naturally, this fuels more rumors regarding St. Leonard's. Ravenser is desperate to resolve these problems, and his uncle, the Archbishop, has a man known to be a useful "spy": Owen Archer.

Archer resents the directives of the powerful Archbishop. He and Lucie are running their apothecary shop during a time of plague. It is a stressful time, and he wishes to be with his family, not solving problems for St. Leonard's. But the Archbishop is a powerful man and his wishes are not to be denied, and so finally Archer gets on the case.

The Riddle of St. Leonard's is book five of the Archer series. When I began reading them, I believe that there were twelve books total. Now that I have finished book five, the series stands at sixteen volumes, with A Lion's Ransom being published in January of 2026. At this pace, I will never finish the entire series! The Brother Cadfael series finished with twenty books, does Robb aspire to eclipse that total?