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"Westerson has mastered her subject and has used that knowledge to create erudite entertainment." —Richmond Times Dispatch on Veil of Lies
Disgraced knight Crispin Guest gets himself into some serious trouble in London and as a result is forced to accept an assignment far out of town. The Archbishop of Canterbury has specifically requested Guest to investigate a threat against the bones of saint and martyr Thomas a Beckett, which are on display in the cathedral in Canterbury. The archbishop has received letters threatening the safety of the artifacts, and he wants Guest to protect them and uncover whoever is after them.
When he arrives at Canterbury, Guest is accosted by an old acquaintance from court – one Geoffrey Chaucer – and is surrounded by a group in town on a pilgrimage. Trapped amongst the pilgrims (who were, quite possibly, the model for Chaucer’s famous story cycle), looking for a murderer, a hidden heretic and a solution to the riddle that will allow him to go back home, Crispin Guest finds his considerable wit and intellect taxed to its very limit.
—RT Book Reviews (Top Pick!) "Westerson’s latest medieval noir is a very readable combination of historical fact and mystery."
—Kirkus Reviews "The Agatha Christie–like solution will please puzzle buffs."
—Publishers Weekly
A murderous spin on The Canterbury Tales.
Disgraced knight Crispin Guest has gained such a reputation as a tracker of criminals (The Demon's Parchment, 2010, etc.) that the Archbishop of Canterbury calls on him to investigate a threat against the bones of Saint Thomas Becket. The archbishop suspects a plot by the Lollards, whose attack on papal authority and church doctrines has the veiled approval of some of the highest in the land, including Guest's former lord, the Duke of Lancaster. Guest and his servant Jack are staying at an inn that also houses Geoffrey Chaucer, a friend of Guest from the days when Guest was still a favorite of Lancaster, and many of the characters who are due to be immortalized in his Canterbury Tales. When the prioress is murdered and Becket's bones go missing, Guest has his work cut out for him. A second murder only confuses his task. The archbishop wants the murders solved, the bones returned, and the Lollards rooted out. When Chaucer's dagger is used as a murder weapon, Guest has to look deep into the past and the death of Becket in order to save his old friend from the hangman's rope.
Westerson's latest medieval noir is a very readable combination of historical fact and mystery even though it telegraphs the killer's identity early on.
I am a fan of the Crispin Guest series and was anxiously awaiting the release of Troubled Bones. The books just keep getting better and better. Crispin Guest is back with his side kick Jack Tucker, the little thief that Crispin takes under his wing in Veil of Lies. Crispin has been summoned to Canterbury by the Archbishop. He is told that there is a Lollard plot a foot to steal the bones of St. Thomas and the Archbishop wants to protect the bones and to also root out any Lollards in their community. But when murder comes to the great Cathedral, Crispin feels he has failed in his duty. But do the murders have anything to do with the bones? Or are the pilgrim's secrets the motive?
Jeri Westerson has been a lifelong fan of Chaucer, and it is really very clever how she has worked the characters from the Canterbury tales into the story line. Crispin's friend Chaucer is soon in deep trouble and the vindictive Archbishop of Canterbury sees a way to strike out at his enemy the Duke of Lancaster through his friend and servant Geoffrey Chaucer. Crispin knows his friend could not have done this and is compelled to help; and in so doing more of his story is revealed, also his responsibility to a growing Jack becomes more defined.
Jeri Westerson is a gifted story teller and her love of the time period makes for a thoroughly enjoyable light mystery novel.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.BobbieG
Posted December 12, 2011
Jeri Westerson's Crispin Guest series just gets better and better. As one of her loyal readers, I especially appreciate seeing the abundantly likable young sidekick, Jack Taylor, and his friendship with Guest, the to-die-for disgraced knight, grow in such a natural and subtle way that it was almost a surprise to realize that Jack has become a man in his own right.
The mysterious elements of the book kept me guessing right to the end. One surprise, then another.
This particular era has never been of much interest to me before, but owing to Ms. Westerson's books I've become quite a fan of the Middle Ages. (As long as I can read about them, not live in that period. <g>) I've read many more books set in that era since I got hooked on the Crispin Guest series but nowhere have I encountered a protagonist nor a mood like this series.
Anonymous
Posted October 28, 2011
No text was provided for this review.
Overview
"Westerson has mastered her subject and has used that knowledge to create erudite entertainment." —Richmond Times Dispatch on Veil of Lies
Disgraced knight Crispin Guest gets himself into some serious trouble in London and as a result is forced to accept an assignment far out of town. The Archbishop of Canterbury has specifically requested Guest to investigate a threat against the bones of saint and martyr Thomas a Beckett, which are on display in the ...