From the inside cover:

"The barrel should have contained books---instead it held treasure and a severed head....

Gil Cunningham and his auld acquaintance, Glaswegian merchant Augie Morison had been expecting a delivery of books from the Low Countries, and they found the gruesome substitute. They report their find to the Provost but at the inquest the next morning Morison is accused of murder and imprisoned. To prove the merchant's innocence, Gil sets out with is friend and future father-in-law, Maistre Pierre, the French Master-Mason, to track down the treasure's owner and identify the dead man.

The trail they follow leads them from the court of James IV at Stirling, to an unexpected death on the bare slopes of the Pentland Hills"

In addition Gil's sister, Kate, & his future wife, Alys, are taking care of Augie Morison's two young daughters while at the same time doing some investigating of their own.

I like the characters, the story was interesting, but I felt it was longer in details that I could have done without & so I skipped over parts.... The Scot's dialect was difficult to understand in parts and made me pause in order to ken what was being said. Therefore - 1 star! ( )

The third installment of the Gil Cunningham series of medieval mysteries which take place in Scotland and in particular Glasgow. I'm finding these a little harder to come by than some of the other books I've been reading so this one was from Amazon. What I find interesting is the time and place and the details of everyday life more than the actual mystery.

In this episode Gil and an old acquaintance, Augie Morison, have ordered some books from a dealer in the Low Countries, and the small barrel has finally arrived. Gil and his friend Pierre go along to see the delivery opened and all present are surprised to find that the contents are a head, some Royal treasure, and brine. Of course all this is reported to the Provost and an inquest is held but complications ensue. Gil along with Pierre travel back and forth across Scotland trying to solve the mystery of the head's identity and why it was packed with some of the King's property. Back in Glasgow Gil's fiance and his sister find that they are just as involved in unraveling the mystery. I enjoyed [The Merchant's Mark] and will eventually track down the next book in this series. (Since there are references to people and events from earlier books one should probably read them in order.)

The Gil Cunningham mysteries give me what I like best: a cast of strong, likeable characters, and a convincing entree to another time and place. Gil's forceful sister Kate, and her devoted serving woman Babb are welcome additions to the cast of characters.

The story is set during the reign of James IV (1488 - 1513). Gil's upperclass family took a fall when his father and brothers fought and died for the losing side, James III, in a civil war. Gil has had to struggle to establish himself well-enough to marry his beloved Alys, daughter of a French master mason.

In this book, a close friend is arrested for murder; Gil and his other friends, are determined to clear him. The case proves to have complicated political ramifications, in addition to simple greed. His investigations take him as far as the royal court and a meeting with James IV.

These are somewhat challenging mysteries. McIntosh uses a lot of Scots words; it is almost always clear enough what they mean, although I enjoy looking up precise meanings later. The plots are quite complex, with multiple sides and ambiguous characters. This is the sort of series that I think is worth rereading from time to time.

Looking forward to the next!

First book in the series: The Harper's Quine: A Medieval Murder Mystery ( )