A Tudor Rogue!

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Rebellion's Message (A Bloody Mary Mystery #1) 
by Michael Jecks    
I first reviewed Rebellion's Message in 2016. Before going any further, I must say I do like the cover for this new digital edition. I loved Jack Blackjack when I first met him and have continued to shake my head over his wayward journey. He's somewhat like that annoying younger brother, always walking deeper and deeper into trouble, and then wondering how on earth things had come to pass. Thankfully, like a cat with nine lives, he seems to land on his feet, even if the landing is somewhat shaky.
Jack being Jack, and me being me, I am incorporating parts of my review from two years ago.  Rebellion's Message was the first in a Tudor mystery series rife with "intrigue, deadly court politics, a roguish, likeable anti hero, and murder-- all centered on the firm historical detail of the period during the rebellion of 1554 lead by Jane Grey supporters against Queen Mary."
An "engaging mystery tale told by a bumbling young scapegoat, Jack Blackjack who has the perfectly respectable occupation of a cut purse, living off his wits, along with his fellow gang members, all lead by the nasty piece of work, Bill Tanner. Not your band of merry men, rather a group of people living in squalor, thieving and more to make a living. Jack is besotted by the lovely Moll, Bill's girlfriend."
"Jack becomes unknowingly caught up in the rebellion. (He just never looks around the corners!) One minute he's stealing a purse, the next he finds himself coming to consciousness with a dagger in his hand, a dead body beside him and lump on his head. Taking off ahead of the hue and cry, Jack's road to discovering who framed him is littered with dead bodies, traitors, and important personages."
In 2016, I termed Rebellion's Message as masterly and I must say I continue to stand by that opinion. Jack Blackjack will always be one of my fav. Tudor rogues, that's when I'm not holding my head in my hands despairingly, muttering, "Really Jack!"

 A BlackThorn ARC via NetGalley

*****

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