Murder for Christ's Mass — Maureen Ash

After eight years of captivity in the Holy Land, Templar Bascot de Marins finally escaped. Injured in both body and soul, he is on a sojourn at Lincoln castle, where the coming holidays hold the promise of hope and long life -- but not for everyone...

The town of Lincoln is covered in white on Christmas morning. But the snow also conceals the mortal remains of a clerk who worked in the local mint -- stabbed, robbed, and left on the floor of a stone quarry. With the sheriff busy entertaining noble guests, Bascot is asked to investigate.

The only clue he finds is a pristine coin stamped with the visage of King Stephen, who reigned some fifty years earlier. The sheriff suspects that a hoard of hidden treasure may connect the killer to the victim. But Bascot, aided by his young protégé Gianni, soon discovers that the motive goes beyond money -- and beyond mere murder...