The Reward of Delay Podcast

Thieftaker Samuel Kinman finally meets up with Potts in The King’s Head and questions him about his involvement with Monique Vesqeau. Kinsman discovers a new strand in his investigation. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

Samuel meets up with his Watchman, Dudley Netherford and his Researcher, Frank Barber to discuss their investigation. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

Unable to sleep, Frank walks the cathedral grounds at night, prey to Major Morgan’s stories about Lichfield’s pagan past – and his own nightmares and fancies. Then he hears two men in discussion, in French. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

The children find a dead dog at Swan Moggs and come home to Susannah bedraggled and muddy. Samuel meets up with Dudley to plan his visit to Birmingham. On his return home Susannah tells him about the children’s discovery and he goes to investigate. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

Susannah discovers the shortage in her housekeeping money and confronts her husband. Tristram Brougham encourages the other children to see his discovery by a stream. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

Samuel discusses his research with Dudley, Susannah is observed, and Frank visits Anna Seward. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

Frank visits Major Morgan This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

A piece of burnt wood and a message from Rigby This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

Thief-taker Samuel Kinsman and Deakin, thge locksmith, gain access to Jeb Brougham’s premises. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

Frank Barber returns home to find his daughter in tears after she has witnessed an appalling scene when out walking with her young brother. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

Samuel Kinsman meets the locksmith John Deakin to access the premises of the Midland Carrier Company. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

An unexpected meeting after Monique Vesqueau’s interment. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

Samuel visits Frank to make a payment and attends the burial of Monique Vesqueau This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

Samuel, Frank and Dudley wait in the churchyard and make an unexpected discovery. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

Thomas Newton is taken to be buried at St Michael’s church at Greenhill. Samuel and Susannah, Dudley Netherford and Frank Barber attend. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

Samuel Kinsman visits the printer Major Morgan to find out more about Thomas Newton’s membership of a masonic lodge. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

Thank you for reading and/or listening to this serialisation of my historical detective story The Reward of Delay. At some point in the new year, this serial will go behind the paywall and require a fully paid subscription. But when the paywall does go up, anyone who has already signed up to receive the serial posts for free, will still be able to continue as a free subscriber and have free access to the archive.That means it makes a huge amount of sense to sign up today to receive all new posts. It also means you will support my writing and give it a real boost. Thank you!After this week’s episode, Chapter 45, The Reward of Delay will be taking a Christmas break from December 21st to January 4th 2026. The first episode in the New Year will drop on Saturday 10th January 2026.Wishing you all a very happy holiday time. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

Kinsman investigates the stone found with Newton’s body with Mr Umber, the sexton.After next week’s episode, Chapter 45, The Reward of Delay will be taking a Christmas break from December 21st to January 4th 2026. The first episode in the New Year will drop on Saturday 10th January 2026.Wishing you all a very happy holiday time. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

The Reward of Delay Chapter 43. Constable Kinsman visits John Forge in Lichfield’s city gaol. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

Frank completes his research on the documents from Netwon’s offices. Samuel lies in wait for Canon Mainstay. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

The Reward of Delay Chapters 40 and 41 - released a day or so later than usual This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

Discouraged, Samuel returns home where Susannah speaks her mind. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

The jury deliver their verdicts in the Coroner’s court. Rigby wants Samuel to give him Newton’s papers. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

The Coroner’s Court considers the deaths of Thomas Newton and Monique Vesqueau. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

Mrs Sharratt is accosted in the street by the stranger, Dudley Netherford describes High Constable Rigby’s behaviour at the undertakers and Dr Jones arrives with some horrifying information. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

Freelance thief-taker Samuel Kinsman and his friend and researcher Frank Barber go to the dead lawyer’s chambers, seeking any evidence that may account for his murder. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

Freelance thief-taker Samuel Kinsman meets with his friend and researcher Frank Barber and his newly appointed watchman, Dudley Netherford, to discuss the deaths of both local lawyer Thomnas Newton and a young French woman, Monique Vesquau who worked in his household. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

The Reward of Delay by John Davies. Historical detective fiction set in 1789 serialised in short episodes.Ambition thwarted, reputation wrecked, marriage in tatters.Down at heel thief-taker Samuel Kinsman is dying for a fresh start.Be careful what you wish for.The mutilated body of respected local lawyer Thomas Newton is found in Lichfield’s ancient cathedral. Samuel Kinsman’s strong-minded wife Susannah urges him to improve his fortunes by investigating the crime, not least because she is pregnant.Kinsman tries to uphold his principles of detection, but he doesn’t bargain for gun-runners supplying arms to insurrectionists in a France on the edge of revolution, for a sadistic French royalist spy, or for a secret militia of English vigilantes.Kinsman is assisted by his friend and researcher Frank Barber, a manumitted slave and Dr Johnson’s former manservant, and by his stolid watchman, Dudley Netherford. But their probing is hampered by corrupt patronage, family secrets and political intrigue.Their investigation leads to a climax as taut as the hydrogen balloon around which it takes place, and to a twist in the tail just as explosive. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

The Reward of DelayThief-taker Samuel Kinsman is dying for a fresh start. Be careful what you wish for...Lichfield, May 1789. The body of lawyer Thomas Newton is found in a crate of organ pipes in one of England’s ancient cathedrals – apparently bludgeoned to death. Suspicion first falls on a young stonemason, John Forge. But long before down-at-heel thief-taker and former theogian Samuel Kinsman discovers the exact nature of the relationship between Forge and Newton’s widow, Catherine, he realises he faces a tangled web of corrupt patronage, political intrigue and family secrets.Did Newton have a liaison with Monique, the Newton’s vulnerable young maid? And did she commit suicide in the cathedral pool? And what role has been played by local entrepreneur and Kinsman’s informant Jeb Brougham - a man desperate to join Newton’s influential Masonic circle and the last person to see him alive?Threatened by a secret Tory militia and menaced by a vicious French spy, Kinsman’s investigation leads through Lichfield’s Whitsun festivities to a climax as taut as the hydrogen balloon around which it takes place, and to a twist in the tail just as explosive.Sign up now for a free or paid subscription to the weekly episodes of this exciting historical crime mystery. Eventually, all the episodes will only be available to new subscribers via a paid-for channel. But if you sign up now for free access, you will receive all episodes free of charge. So subscribe for fee now while you still can! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

The Reward of Delay – be careful what you wish for…Marriage in tatters, reputation wrecked, ambition thwarted – freelance thief-taker and former theology student Samuel Kinsman is dying for a fresh start.The Reward of Delay is a character-led historical detective story set in 1789 about Kinsman’s investigation into the murder of a respected lawyer whose body is discovered in one of England’s ancient cathedrals.Kinsman’s pregnant wife Susannah spurs him on to improve his own fortunes. But Kinsman doesn’t bargain for the involvement of Huguenot gun-runners supplying arms to insurrectionists in a France on the edge of revolution, nor a secret militia of English vigilantes, nor a sadistic French royalist spy who puts the lives of his wife and children in jeopardy. 'One of my ancestors was the canal builder James Brindley,’ says writer John Davies. 'The period and the region fascinate me. I discovered that Francis Barber – a slave boy inherited by Samuel Johnson who became his manservant and his surrogate son – had been a ‘dozener’ (a constable) in later life in Lichfield – in other words probably Britian’s first black policeman. In my novel, Frank is a researcher (skills he learnt from the great Doctor), and in many ways the ‘brains’ behind the investigation.Sign up now for a free or paid subscription to the weekly episodes of this exciting historical crime mystery. Eventually, all the episodes will only be available to new subscribers via a paid-for channel. But if you sign up now for free access, you will receive all episodes free of charge. So subscribe for free now while you still can! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

A rude awakening fro Samuel. Netherford makes a disturbing discovery. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

The Reward of Delay unfolds in Lichfield, 1789. Across the Channel, France teeters on the brink of Revolution. At home, the Midlands Enlightenment flourishes, the Industrial Revolution roars, and in the shadow of Lichfield’s cathedral a terrible crime is committed: the mutilated body of a respected lawyer is found within its ancient walls.Enter Samuel Kinsman — former Bow Street Runner, now a thieftaker in Lichfield — aided by his steadfast watchman and his friend Frank Barber, who has inherited Johnson’s house and now serves as a dozener (local policeman). Together, they pursue justice through a city rife with corrupt patronage, family secrets, political intrigue, and the dangerous games of gun-runners, French royalist spies, and English vigilantes.As Kinsman’s marriage frays and his honour is tested, the investigation drives him to the limits of endurance. Will the pursuit of truth cost him everything? This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

New and only on Substack!This brand-new historical detective story, now being serialised on Substack, places none other than Dr Johnson’s former manservant, Francis Barber, at the centre of a thrilling mystery. Recent research has revealed him to be one of Britain's first black policeman. The Reward of Delay unfolds in Lichfield, 1789. Across the Channel, France teeters on the brink of Revolution. At home, the Midlands Enlightenment flourishes, the Industrial Revolution roars, and in the shadow of Lichfield’s cathedral a terrible crime is committed: the mutilated body of a respected lawyer is found within its ancient walls.Enter former Bow Street Runner, Samuel Kinsman, now a thieftaker in Lichfield, aided by his friend Frank Barber, who has inherited Johnson’s house and now serves as a dozener (local policeman). Together, they pursue justice through a city rife with corrupt patronage, family secrets, political intrigue, and the dangerous games of gun-runners, French royalist spies, and English vigilantes.As Kinsman’s marriage frays and his honour is tested, the investigation drives him to the limits of endurance. Will the pursuit of truth cost him everything?Richard Skinner, now Director of the Fiction Programme at the Faber Academy, wrote in his editorial review:Very intriguing indeed… You have a classic murder mystery at the novel’s heart… interesting and original… Samuel’s training and duties are a precursor to our idea of what ‘detection’ is and, as such, this provides another fascinating backdrop.For lovers of Dr Johnson, this is a rare chance to see Frank Barber brought vividly to life — not as a footnote in literary biography, but as an active, intelligent participant in an adventure rich with historical texture. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

The Reward of Delay by John Davies. Historical detective fiction set in 1789 serialised in short episodes.Ambition thwarted, reputation wrecked, marriage in tatters.Down at heel thief-taker Samuel Kinsman is dying for a fresh start.Be careful what you wish for.The mutilated body of respected local lawyer Thomas Newton is found in Lichfield’s ancient cathedral. Samuel Kinsman’s strong-minded wife Susannah urges him to improve his fortunes by investigating the crime, not least because she is pregnant.Kinsman tries to uphold his principles of detection, but he doesn’t bargain for gun-runners supplying arms to insurrectionists in a France on the edge of revolution, for a sadistic French royalist spy, or for a secret militia of English vigilantes.Kinsman is assisted by his friend and researcher Frank Barber, a manumitted slave and Dr Johnson’s former manservant, and by his stolid watchman, Dudley Netherford. But their probing is hampered by corrupt patronage, family secrets and political intrigue.Their investigation leads to a climax as taut as the hydrogen balloon around which it takes place, and to a twist in the tail just as explosive. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

Gun-runners, spies, and a mutilated corpse in Lichfield Cathedral. Can thief taker Samuel Kinsman uncover the truth?Set in 1789 Lichfield, The Reward of Delay is a gripping new historical detective story, now serialised on Substack. France is on the brink of Revolution. The Midlands Enlightenment and Industrial Revolution are reshaping society. When a respected lawyer is found murdered in Lichfield Cathedral, thief-taker Samuel Kinsman teams up with Francis Barber – Dr Johnson’s former manservant, and stolid watchman Dudley Netherford to untangle a web of corruption, espionage, and political intrigue.As danger mounts, can truth survive, when honour and family are at stake? This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

The Reward of Delay – stylish historical detective fiction by John Davies.There’ll be no reward of delay for the publisher who doesn’t pick up this little beauty, writes Lorraine Gilmour, from London, for here is historical detective fiction right in tune with the concerns and fascinations of today’s readers. It’s a simple idea and a niche in time and place - and in the market - that no other detective or writer yet occupies, the late eighteenth century in the English Midlands. A world power is disseminating its culture. The industrial revolution is in its ascendant, dynamic phase. A paradigm shift has taken place in science. The thrust of Romanticism is driving through the arts. As modern society and consciousness are forged in the furnace of technology, politics and feeling, every aspect of life comes into question. Ancient traditions begin to fade but ancient problems – of gender, race, religion and class – remain.Introduce into this maelstrom a modern policeman working at a time just before the first police force in Britain had been established and you have a formula for a highly successful series. As he investigates murder in a cathedral, you can see both how far we’ve come, yet how close we are. He’s working at a time, the 1780’s, when no true police force existed in Britain, although the whole subject was being avidly debated. Like now, the role of a police force was a constant concern.Reliant on his wife Susannah for support and insights beyond his ken, Kinsman tempers his own intuition with rationality. In his research, he is assisted by his watchman, Dudley Netherford, and by Dr Johnson’s former manservant (and manumitted slave) Francis Barber.But what makes this work so compelling isn’t just the portrayal of character and the evocation of place and time: it’s also the excellent ensemble playing of the cast as the story moves to its denouement. You gain a real feeling of intimacy with the people involved at a time when many of today’s great issues and problems first took root.Every aspect of life comes into question, yet innovation brings new threats as well as benefits. As ancient traditions begin to fade, ancient problems – of gender, class, race and religion - are exacerbated. As Kinsman investigates the murder he must battle patronage, corruption and prejudice. As he struggles with his own responsibilities and fallibility, Kinsman’s enquiries make for a rewarding read, introducing a believable cast of characters, a wealth of historical detail and a complex plot with plenty of twists and turns, that leads to a climax as taut as the hydrogen balloon about which it takes place, and to a twist in the tail just as explosive. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

The Reward of Delay – stylish historical detective fiction by John Davies.There’ll be no reward of delay for the publisher who doesn’t pick up this little beauty, writes Lorraine Gilmour, from London, for here is historical detective fiction right in tune with the concerns and fascinations of today’s readers. It’s a simple idea and a niche in time and place - and in the market - that no other detective or writer yet occupies, the late eighteenth century in the English Midlands. A world power is disseminating its culture. The industrial revolution is in its ascendant, dynamic phase. A paradigm shift has taken place in science. The thrust of Romanticism is driving through the arts. As modern society and consciousness are forged in the furnace of technology, politics and feeling, every aspect of life comes into question. Ancient traditions begin to fade but ancient problems – of gender, race, religion and class – remain. Introduce into this maelstrom a modern policeman working at a time just before the first police force in Britain had been established and you have a formula for a highly successful series. As he investigates murder in a cathedral, you can see both how far we’ve come, yet how close we are. He’s working at a time, the 1780’s, when no true police force existed in Britain, although the whole subject was being avidly debated. Like now, the role of a police force was a constant concern. Reliant on his wife Susannah for support and insights beyond his ken, Kinsman tempers his own intuition with rationality. In his research, he is assisted by his watchman, Dudley Netherford, and by Dr Johnson’s former manservant (and manumitted slave) Francis Barber. But what makes this work so compelling isn’t just the portrayal of character and the evocation of place and time: it’s also the excellent ensemble playing of the cast as the story moves to its denouement. You gain a real feeling of intimacy with the people involved at a time when many of today’s great issues and problems first took root.Every aspect of life comes into question, yet innovation brings new threats as well as benefits. As ancient traditions begin to fade, ancient problems – of gender, class, race and religion - are exacerbated. As Kinsman investigates the murder he must battle patronage, corruption and prejudice. His own family may be in jeopardy as he struggles with his own responsibilities and fallibility. Kinsman’s enquiries make for a rewarding and entertaining read, introducing a believable cast of characters, a wealth of historical detail and a complex plot with plenty of twists and turns, that leads to a climax as taut as the hydrogen balloon about which it takes place, and to a twist in the tail just as explosive. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

Lichfield, England, 1789. Enter Samuel Kinsman, former theology student, now a thieftaker. Formerly one of Mr Fielding’s Men in London (aka a Bow Street Runner) Samuel has moved to Lichfield to escape the gang violence in the capital that threatened him, his wife Susannah and their children.Lichfield was then both a city and a county with its courts and its own constabulary known as ‘dozeners’, answerable to the High Constable, the post to which Samuel was appointed on his move from London.  However, an error of judgement leads to Samuel’s resignation and his corrupt rival, Elford Rigby, takes over leaving Samuel reliant on him for work.When respected local lawyer Thomas Newton is found dead in Lichfield’s ancient cathedral, Rigby asks Kinsman to investigate. Newton’s widow is the daughter of a successful Huguenot gunmaker in Birmingham, and Kinsman tangles with the efforts of French royalist spies trying to trace the origin of weapons being shipped to insurrectionists in Rouen. At the same time former army officers want to involve Kinsman in their plans for a league to protect England from foreigners.To assist his investigation, Samuel calls on his friend Frank Barber, Dr Johnson’s former manservant, who inherited Johnson’s house in Lichfield and has himself been appointed a dozener. And the stolid, Dudley Netherford, Lichfield born and bred, is Samuel’s reliable watchman, happy to do much of the plodding and grunt work of day to day policing.“Very intriguing indeed…You have a classic murder mystery at the novel’s heart. I can’t think of another novel which deals with the plight of the Huguenot refugees who fled to this country and settled here, so your choice of subject matter is both interesting and original. Added to that the novel’s other theme, namely the initiation of and ideology behind the notion of a ‘police force’. Samuel’s training and his duties are a precursor to our idea of what ‘detection’ is and, as such, this provides another fascinating backdrop for the novel.” Richard Skinner, now Director of the Fiction Programme at Faber Academy. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

Lichfield, England, 1789. Enter Samuel Kinsman, former theology student, now a thieftaker. Formerly one of Mr Fielding’s Men in London (aka a Bow Street Runner). Samuel has moved to Lichfield to escape the gang violence in the capital that threatened him, his wife Susannah and their children.Lichfield is both a city and a county with its courts and its own constabulary known as ‘dozeners’, answerable to the High Constable, the post to which Samuel was appointed on his move from London.  However, an error of judgement leads to Samuel’s resignation and his corrupt rival, Elford Rigby, takes over, leaving Samuel reliant on him for work.When respected local lawyer Thomas Newton is found dead in Lichfield’s ancient cathedral, Rigby asks Kinsman to investigate. Newton’s widow is the daughter of a successful Huguenot businessman in Birmingham, and Kinsman tangles with the efforts of French royalist spies trying to trace the origin of weapons being shipped to insurrectionists in Rouen. At the same time former army officers want to involve Kinsman in their plans for a league to protect England from foreigners.To assist his investigation, Samuel calls on his friend Frank Barber, Dr Johnson’s former manservant, who inherited Johnson’s house in Lichfield and has himself been appointed a dozener. And the stolid, Dudley Netherford, Lichfield born and bred, is Samuel’s reliable watchman, happy to do much of the plodding and grunt work of day to day policing.“Very intriguing indeed…You have a classic murder mystery at the novel’s heart. I can’t think of another novel which deals with the plight of the Huguenot refugees who fled to this country and settled here, so your choice of subject matter is both interesting and original. Added to that the novel’s other theme, namely the initiation of and ideology behind the notion of a ‘police force’. Samuel’s training and his duties are a precursor to our idea of what ‘detection’ is and, as such, this provides another fascinating backdrop for the novel.” Richard Skinner, now Director of the Fiction Programme at Faber Academy.I’d be very grateful to receive your comments on the story, characters, setting, period or any other aspect of The Reward of Delay. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

Thanks for reading The Reward of Delay! This post is public so feel free to share it.The warmth of Lichfield’s ruddy brick buildings a little way off to his left glows against the greyness of the day as Samuel strides along New Walk at the side of Minster Pool, en route via Cock Lane to Jeb Brougham’s offices in Bird Street. The trees are almost in full leaf on the limes, elms, birches and oaks that overlook his progress.Samuel finds himself longing for the clear blue skies and warm sunshine of the kind of Spring day that seemed to fill weeks of his childhood and had an especially English character in his mind. His own children would be taking part in the Bower Procession on Whit Monday and they had been talking about their costumes and garlands for days. But, after a week or more of wet weather, he wonders if there will be enough flowers in blossom to satisfy the needs of the children, or whether the blossoms will be half rotten with the damp or besmirched with mud.On his way he is stopped by people who are all as shocked at the news of the discovery of Newton’s body as they are avid for additional detail to whet the appetite of gossip. Samuel uses these brief meetings to make people aware that he is responsible for investigating the matter with the full authority of the High Constable and that he is anxious to talk to anyone who might be able to throw light on the circumstances of Mr Newton’s tragic death.Arriving at the Midland Carrier Company, Samuel is greeted by a gruff, elderly clerk behind the counter. He is surrounded by piles of papers and various torn or broken packages. Peering through a pair of wire rimmed spectacles, he is writing in a thick ink-blotched ledger with a large moth-eaten quill. With an ill-tempered wave of what remains of the feather and the word ‘George’, he directs Samuel to the coaching inn, across the street. As the man looks up, Samuel notices that one of the lenses of his spectacles is cracked with a small piece of glass missing from the lens.The yard of the George is quiet.The steaming horses hauling the mail coaches will not arrive until later, when the yard becomes a sea of activity, ringing with voices and the sound of iron on stone. In a quiet corner, Jeb is now busy, sorting through a pile of packages. He looks at one and makes a mark on a sheet of paper he is holding in his hand, before moving on to check the next in the pile.‘Good day, Jeb,’ says Samuel.‘Is it?’ says Brougham, frowning.‘Are you harassed?’‘Nothing more than the usual.’ He waves the sheet of paper without looking at Samuel. ‘Goods gone missing, goods misdirected, goods or promises broken. All in a morning’s work for a shipper, I can assure you. But, come on, why am I honoured with your company today? Business bad?’‘Are my motives so transparent?’ Samuel retorts with an attempt at a laugh. ‘I wanted to ask you about Thomas Newton.’Jeb puts down the package he is holding and turns to another stack of parcels.‘Appalling business. Appalling.’ Jeb sucks his teeth, looking grave. ‘Terrible thing for the children to have to deal with.’‘You said he was a social acquaintance, but how well did you know him, Jeb?’‘Ah-ha. It’s a proper enquiry, is it?’ Jeb stops checking the packages and turns to Samuel. ‘You and Rigby in league again, eh?’Samuel shrugs. He’s surprised Brougham knows about his arrangement.‘I knew him, Samuel, indeed I did. In fact, on occasion he had acted for me. To look over a contract, conveyancing, that sort of thing – he advised me when we bought the premises.’‘What kind of man was he, Jeb?’‘A man one could trust, Sam. A very good man. He was known for showing kindness to people who were down on their luck. If he felt the cause deserving, he would act without taking a fee. Unusual for a lawyer, eh?’‘What about his business affairs? Had he crossed anyone? Was there any reason someone might want to harm him?’‘Now here we’re approaching a delicate issue Samuel. There were mutterings, that’s what I’ll call them. Rumours. Concerning the Trust.’‘Trust?’ Samuel only knows of one. ‘The Conduit Lands Trust?’‘Yes – but not exactly,’ says Jeb, leaning on another stack of packages and holding up his hand. ‘Let me explain. The Conduit Lands Trust was set up when Edward VI abolished the Guild of St Mary and gave Lichfield its Royal Charter. It was a cunning move designed to bring the lands owned by the Guild into royal possession. But a certain Mr Bean was a little faster away from the stalls than the young Tudor’s ministers. Bean arranged that a great deal of land and property passed to the Trust for safe keeping for the benefit of the citizenry. That’s you and me, Samuel. Quite a little commonwealth, Lichfield, ain’t it?‘Now that’s the Trust most people know about. Some people refer to it as the Greater Conduit. But at the same time another Trust was set up by Bean and his colleagues, the Lesser Conduit as it’s called. It had the same purpose, but its terms of administration were different. It gave greater scope for the involvement of merchants in good works and the support of the poor.’‘So, Mr Newton was acting on behalf of this Lesser Trust?’Jeb nods.‘And some people didn’t like what he was doing.’ Jeb nods again.‘Merchants are men like me, aren’t they Samuel? People involved in commerce and industry. Individuals able to negotiate freely according to their needs and abilities, without fear or favour. The architects and builders of our nation’s prosperity. Nothing should stand in the way of commercial progress, surely?’ Jeb leans forward and lowers his voice. ‘But that’s not the way of it, Sam. Today, for merchants, read freemasons.’‘Do you mean that Mr Newton was a freemason?’Jeb raises his eyebrows. ‘You have it, but in a smaller volume if you will,’ he warns, looking about him. ‘Now the charitable works of freemasons are well known. That is why every man on the Council of the Lesser Trust is a freemason. Newton was one of them. As I understand it from my good friend Major Morgan – you know, the printer – there was a plan afoot for the disposal of some of the Lesser Conduit’s properties at a preferential rate to other members of the Lodge.’‘Lodge?’‘The Lodge of Knowledge. It meets at the Scales Inn. Once a month. Usually on a Tuesday evening.’‘The day Mr Newton disappeared.’ Samuel muses. ‘How many people belong to this Lodge?’‘I’m not sure – twenty, thirty. But I guarantee you it represents the lion’s share of this city’s trade.’‘I’m surprised you’re not a member of it yourself, Jeb?’ laughs Samuel.‘I’m surprised I’m not,’ says Jeb dourly, then laughs. ‘Knowledge is power, as Bacon said.’Samuel takes his handkerchief from his pocket and positions the small piece of stone within it so that only its cleaner side is visible. ‘What do you make of this, Jeb? Do you know what stone this is?’Brougham leans forward to look more closely. He frowns and blinks.‘Haven’t a clue, Sam. But you’re going to tell me, aren’t you?’‘No. I know nothing about it.’‘Significant in the matter of Mr Newton, is it?’ Brougham asks. Samuel makes no reply.‘Well, time and tide wait for no one, Sam, especially carriers. This lot need to catch the Birmingham Mail at four.’Thanks for reading The Reward of Delay! This post is public so feel free to share it.Thanks for reading The Reward of Delay! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

In the gathering storm before the French Revolution, a quiet English city is beset by intrigue, corruption and violence. Local lawyer Thomas Newton is found murdered in Lichfield’s ancient cathedral. With help from his watchman, Dudley Netherford, and from his friend and researcher, Frank Barber – Dr Johnson’s former manservant and a manumitted slave – down at heel thief-taker Samuel Kinsman must untangle the threads of conspiracy, patronage and prejudice if he is to avoid humiliation, or worse, and save his family from the threats that confront them. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

Britain’s first black policeman?A long, long time ago, in the English Midlands, in the ancient cathedral city of Lichfield – once also a county – a competition was held every couple of years for a novel set in the city. With a view to entering the competition, I travelled to Lichfield to see what ideas might be inspired there. It was a place to which I had always been drawn for some reason. I remember my father taking my mother, me and my two older brothers there when he was filming a programme called ‘Know Your Midlands’ for the newly established ATV channel.I had read about Samuel Johnson and the curious rag-tag family he gathered about himself in London. He was a character to whom I felt drawn. He reminded me of a kind and gentle tutor I once had, a heavily built maths teacher with a double first from Balliol who would finish The Times crossword by simply going through each clue and writing down the answer without a pause. I was also drawn to Francis Barber, the black slave child Samuel Johnson inherited who became his manservant. More importantly he was like a son to Johnson, so much so that Johnson left Frank a considerable inheritance and the advice that he should leave London and go to Lichfield.My initial wander around Lichfield led me to consider a modern police procedural as the kind of novel I might write. But on a visit to Lichfield’s Record Office, quite by luck I happened across an index card with the name Barber, directing me to a court record book. There I discovered that, just for one year, Frank Barber had been a ‘dozener’, the name for a kind of local constable in Lichfield based on the Saxon tradition of appointing a guardian for every twelve dwellings. In many ways, Frank could be considered Britain’s first black policeman.That simple discovery led me to write an historical detective story set in Lichfield in the late eighteenth century, a story that begins with the discovery of a mutilated dead body in the cathedral during its rebuilding. Frank Barber is a key character in the story, a researcher helping freelance thief-taker, Samuel Kinsman. In many ways, Frank is the brains behind the investigation.If historical detective fiction takes your fancy, I think you will find much to enjoy here. There’s a complex plot involving English loyalists, Huguenot insurrectionists and French government spies. There are strong, memorable characters, plenty of action and lots of clues and signposts to intrigue you on your way. I hope you enjoy reading The Reward of Delay.  This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lichfieldmysteries.substack.com