November, 1194. Appointed by Richard the Lionheart as the first coroner for the county of Devon, Sir John de Wolfe, an ex-Crusader, rides out to the lonely moorland village of Widecombe to hold an inquest on an unidentified body. On his return to Exeter, the coroner is incense to find that his own brother-in-law, Sheriff Richard de Revelle, is intent on thwarting the murder investigation, particularly when it emerges that the dead man is a Crusader and a member of one of Devon's finest and most honourable families.