The fifth and final men's Test begins on 27 July, with Australia having retained the Ashes following a rain-affected draw at Old Trafford in the fourth Test. London, September 1666. The Great Fire rages through the city, consuming everything in its path. Even the impregnable cathedral of St. Paul’s is engulfed in flames and reduced to ruins. Among the crowds watching its destruction is James Marwood, son of a disgraced printer, and reluctant government informer. Also, one of the characters gets away with murder far too easily. This is a major issue since they are meant to be a major character, going forward and yet - we're supposed to accept a person who killed two people as the sleuth or co-sleuth in future? I don't even buy the justification for their actions, at least not in the 2nd and 3rd instance. What is to stop them just casually stabbing someone every time they get angry?

Catherine’s story is told almost entirely in the third person, which I thought rather a shame. She is the stronger and more ambiguous character, surprisingly modern in both outlook and reaction to adversity.Andrew Taylor has also written a number of novellas with ghostly or other-worldly themes, originally as Kindle Singles. The first three have now been published in print form under the title Fireside Gothic. This is terrific stuff: intelligent, engrossing and, in its evocation of a long-vanished London, wonderfully plausible.' Toby Clements, Daily Telegraph Even if you've read Pepys on the Great Fire you don't get as vivid a portrait as Taylor gives in this novel. The heat, the winds, the burning embers, the almost spontaneous flaming and the fact that it went on for months after the main fire was subdued are all vividly portrayed in this novel, which is apparently the first in a series. The punditry team will include Michael Vaughan, Sir Alastair Cook, Phil Tufnell, Glenn McGrath, Jason Gillespie, Ebony Rainford-Brent, Vic Marks and Hartley, with Andy Zaltzman returning as scorer.

With Charles I beheaded and Oliver Cromwell in his grave, King Charles II has claimed the throne. Now his reign is threatened by unrepentant republicans, the most radical being the Fifth Monarchists who want a Puritan theocracy with King Jesus as ruler. Trapped in these shenanigans are Catherine “Cat” Lovett, whose father fought against Charles I, and James Marwood, whose father, now pardoned, followed Cromwell. While seeking her father in the aftermath of the fire, Cat lives with her Alderley cousins, who resent and exploit her. Meantime Marwood has been extorted into working for Whitehall by a shadowy figure he knows as Williamson, a man who apparently has significant influence with the king, Privy Council, and Common Council. Williamson demands Marwood find Cat’s father, still a threat. Soon Cat and Marwood find themselves in danger. Taylor's ( The Silent Boy, 2015, etc.) characterizations are distinctive, with Marwood cautious, constantly worried his physically weak and senile father will be returned to prison; and Cat fascinated by architecture, pushing against social barriers to become assistant to Master Hakesby, an artist rendering Christopher Wren’s plans to rebuild St. Paul’s Cathedral. Taylor is marvelous at replicating a historical world that might otherwise be relegated to dusty history books, especially through his renditions of the era’s arch speech and his approach to class and status. Additionally, when a character remarks after an assault that “it was well known that young women were lascivious creatures,” Taylor again shows his talent for adding depth by weaving in examples of the historical subjugation and oppression of women. It’s worth noting that these fascinating minutiae interlaced into the narrative have no negative effect on focus or pace. His most recent books are historical novels as well as crime fiction. They explore different historical eras: Bleeding Heart Square, is set in the 1930s mainly in London (2008); The Anatomy of Ghosts (2010), set in eighteenth-century Cambridge; The Scent of Death, set in British New York, 1778–80; and its sequel, The Silent Boy (2014), during the French Revolution.Enter the story’s two main protagonists. James Marwood is the son of a Republican, who lost everything when Charles II regained the throne. Catherine Lovett is daughter of a regicide – one of that small circle directly involved in the trail and execution of the king’s father. Both are affected and their actions shaped by forces beyond their control. She is a spirited teenager who dreams of becoming an architect and escaping an unsatisfactory marriage her aunt and uncle have arranged. Marwood, the son of another old puritan, is a minor civil servant whose only desire is to live down his notorious name and make his way in the world. When Cat is raped by her cousin, she tries to kill him and is forced into hiding. As the Great Fire burns the heart of London in 1666, political manipulators and religious fundamentalists struggle behind the scenes for control of the kingdom. You may change or cancel your subscription or trial at any time online. Simply log into Settings & Account and select "Cancel" on the right-hand side.

There will be a new episode of the Test Match Special podcast every day throughout the summer while the Tailenders podcast with England bowler James Anderson and No Balls with England bowler Kate Cross and former England spinner Alex Hartley will also provide their unique take on the action. He has won many awards, including the CWA John Creasey New Blood Dagger, an Edgar Scroll from the Mystery Writers of America, the CWA Ellis Peters Historical Award (the only author to win it three times) and the CWA's prestigious Diamond Dagger, awarded for sustained excellence in crime writing. He also writes for the Spectator. In this elegant, engrossing novel set during an extraordinary period, Taylor skilfully presents a London in which so many must still pay the price for the Civil War and the murder of King Charles I' Sunday ExpressAndrew Taylor provides a masterclass in how to weave a well-researched history into a complex plot.' The Times, Books of the Year