Jeri Westerson

Stripped of his rank and honor for plotting against Richard II, disgraced knight Crispin Guest uses his wits to eke out a living in fourteenth-century London, taking on an investigation on behalf of a reclusive merchant that draws him into the middle of a complex conspiracy involving dark secrets, international plots, a missing religious relic, and murder. A first novel. 10,000 first printing.

A Medieval Noir

Veil of Lies

From the author of the critically acclaimed Crispin Guest books comes a brand-new urban fantasy series perfect for fans of Ilona Andrews and Faith Hunter.

The Booke of the Hidden

Known as a man who can find anything - for a price, Crispin Guest, once a Knight of the Realm, is hired by an absent-minded alchemist to save his wife from the clutches of those who want to get their hands on the Philosopher's Stone, which is rumored to turn lead into gold and create the elixir of life. 20,000 first printing.

Shadow of the Alchemist

Crispin Guest is summoned to a London priory to unmask a merciless killer. Can he discover who is committing the deadliest of sins? 1399, London. A drink at the Boar's Tusk takes an unexpected turn for Crispin Guest, Tracker of London, and his apprentice, Jack Tucker, when a messenger claims the prioress at St. Frideswide wants to hire him to investigate murders at the priory. Two of Prioress Drueta's nuns have been killed in a way that signifies two of the Seven Deadly Sins, and she's at her wits end. Meanwhile, trouble is brewing outside of London when the exiled Henry Bolingbroke, the new Duke of Lancaster, returns to England's shores with an army to take back his inheritance. Crispin is caught between solving the crimes at St. Frideswide's Priory, and making a choice once more whether to stand with King Richard or commit treason again.

The Deadliest Sin

Crispin awakens in a strange bed after a night of passion when he finds a woman murdered. Drunk, Crispin scarcely remembers the night before. Did he kill her? With Crispin imprisoned by the sheriffs who would just as soon see him hang than get to the real truth, Jack procures the help of a fresh young lawyer to help them solve the crime.

A Maiden Weeping

Crispin Guest must tackle a number of strange occurrences involving St Modwen’s Church and a missing relic in this latest medieval noir mystery. London, 1392. Strange mischief is afoot at St Modwen’s Church. Are corpses stalking the graveyard at night, disturbing graves, and dragging coffins? When a fearful Father Bulthius begs Crispin Guest for his help, he agrees to investigate with his apprentice, Jack Tucker, intrigued by the horrific tales. Meanwhile, an urgent summons arrives from Crispin’s former love, Philippa Walcote. Her seven-year-old son, Christopher, has been accused of murder and of attempting to steal a family relic – the missing relic of St Modwen. Who is behind the gruesome occurrences in the graveyard? Is Christopher guilty of murder? Crispin faces a desperate race against time to solve the strange goings-on at St Modwen’s and prove a child’s innocence.

The Deepest Grave

London, 1308. “All I need is a Plan!” So says Oswald of Harlech, a misplaced Welshman in the heart of London. Besides his trade as a tinker, he also robs houses, cuts purses, plays a crooked shell game, and has a way with the ladies. But this time, caught in the act of robbing a house, he is blackmailed by the scheming Keeper of the King’s Wardrobe into stealing the Crown Jewels from the impenetrable Tower of London. Gathering his gang of friends—his half-wit companion who is uncannily adept at picking locks, his greedy landlord, a mad alchemist, a desperate but beautiful alehouse owner, and a man-of-few-words blacksmith—Oswald must steal the jewels, avoid the gallows, skirt some unscrupulous moneylenders, get the girl, and escape the sheriffs’ clutches, all with sly wit and good humor. It’s Ocean’s 11 in the Middle Ages!

A Medieval Caper

Oswald the Thief

Introducing Will Somers, the king's jester but nobody's fool in this exuberant, intriguing and thoroughly entertaining mystery set in Tudor England – the first in a new series from the author of the critically acclaimed Crispin Guest Medieval Noir series. 1529, London. Jester Will Somers enjoys an enviable position at the court of Henry VIII. As the king's entertainer, chief gossip-monger, spy and loyal adviser, he knows all of the king's secrets – and almost everyone else's within the walls of Greenwich Palace. But when Will discovers the body of Spanish count Don Gonzalo while walking his trusted sidekick Nosewise in the courtyard gardens, and a blackmail note arrives soon after demanding information about the king, is one of his own closely guarded secrets about to be exposed? Trouble is afoot at the palace. Are the king's enemies plotting a move against him? Will must draw on all his wit and ingenuity to get to the bottom of the treacherous and deadly goings-on at the court before further tragedy strikes . . .

Courting Dragons

Season of Blood

a medieval noir

Troubled bones

Former knight and nobleman Crispin Guest, now surviving as a detective in 14th century London, agrees to track down stolen parchments possibly connected with a series of brutal murders for a Jewish physician attending the Queen.

a Crispin Guest medieval noir

The demon's parchment

An ancient and mysterious book leads Crispin Guest into a deadly maze in this latest medieval noir mystery. Crispin Guest, Tracker of London, is enjoying his ale in the Boar’s Tusk tavern – until a stranger leaves a mysterious wrapped bundle on his table, telling him, "You'll know what to do." Inside is an ancient leather-bound book written in an unrecognizable language. Accompanied by his apprentice, Jack Tucker, Crispin takes the unknown codex to a hidden rabbi, where they make a shocking discovery: it is the Gospel of Judas from the Holy Land, and its contents challenge the very doctrine of Christianity itself. Crispin is soon drawn into a deadly maze involving murder, living saints, and lethal henchmen. Why was he given the blasphemous book, and what should he do with it? A series of horrific events confirm his fears that there are powerful men who want it – and who will stop at nothing to see it destroyed.

Traitor's Codex

Restoring his recently inherited family home is proving a daunting task for young lawyer Nigellus Cobmartin. When workmen uncover a skeleton bound, tied and hidden in the wall - and holding the precious relic that went missing from his father's estate nearly twenty years ago - Nigellus immediately calls on London tracker Crispin Guest for help.

Spiteful Bones

Convicted of treason, Crispin Guest was stripped of his title, his land, his money and his friends. Now with only his considerable wits to sustain him, Guest works the mean streets of 14th century London, building a small reputation for his skill. In 1383, a simple-minded tavern girl comes to his door—a body was found where she works and she’s the only person who could have killed him. Except for the fact that the man was killed in place by a precisely aimed crossbow bolt. Making matters worse, the murdered man was one of three couriers from the French king, transporting a relic intended to smooth the troubled relations between France and England. Events quickly spin out of control and Guest now finds himself the prime suspect in the murder, one with terrible diplomatic implications. As the drumbeat of war between the two countries grow, Guest must unravel the con spiracy behind the murder to save not only his country, but himself as well.

Serpent in the Thorns

"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.

Troubled Bones

A quest to find the ancient sword Excalibur quickly turns into a hunt for a determined killer for Crispin Guest. London, 1396. A trip to the swordsmith shop for Crispin Guest, Tracker of London, and his apprentice Jack Tucker takes an unexpected turn when Crispin crosses paths with Carantok Teague, a Cornish treasure hunter. Carantok has a map he is convinced will lead him to the sword of Excalibur – a magnificent relic dating back to King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table – and he wants Crispin to help him find it. Travelling to Tintagel Castle in Cornwall with Carantok and Jack, Crispin is soon reunited with an old flame as he attempts to locate the legendary sword. But does Excalibur really exist, or is he on an impossible quest? When a body is discovered, Crispin’s search for treasure suddenly turns into a hunt for a dangerous killer.

Sword of Shadows

London, 1540 Will Somers, Henry VIII's court jester, is adept with a joke, a jape, a rhyme...and with discovering murderers. He also has a love life almost as complicated as the king's, what with a wife not quite enamored of the idea of his male lovers. He must now reconsider his two-year romance with one of Henry's courtiers, thinking it best to keep his distance from the newly wedded lord...if only circumstances would allow him to do so! And then, as if that weren't enough, King Henry, a widower for the last three years after Queen Jane Seymour's death, suddenly agrees to strengthen ties with Protestant kingdoms by marrying a gentlewoman from the German court, Anne of Cleves. Not only does it begin unfavorably with Henry displeased with this new match, but the young Maid of Honor Queen Anne was allowed to bring with her from Germany has a secret, and soon it manifests itself into a murder that Will Somers is obliged to solve. And Will does quietly investigate, even as he tries his mightiest to keep this noblewoman from scandal. But farce compounds upon farce when the body of the murdered nobleman keeps Will frustrated as it disappears, reappears, only to disappear once again from court! This is BOOK FOUR in the King's Fool Mysteries

Devil's Gambit

London, 1540 King Henry VIII has been a widower for three years and agrees to strengthen ties with Protestant kingdoms by marrying a gentlewoman from the German court, Anne of Cleves. Not only does it begin unfavourably with Henry displeased with this new match, but the younger Maid of Honour the new queen was allowed to bring with her from Germany has a secret, and soon it manifests itself into a murder that Will Somers, Henry's bawdy jester, must solve. But why the devil does the body keep disappearing and reappearing around the court? This is BOOK FOUR in the King's Fool Mysteries

A King's Fool Mystery Book 4

After the French king's courier is killed by a crossbow in a tavern, a barmaid seeks the assistance of fourteenth-century detective Crispin Guest, who soon finds himself the prime suspect in the murder, one that could draw France and England into war.

The restoration of a crumbling manor house leaves Crispin Guest grappling with a troubling discovery in this entertaining medieval noir mystery. Restoring his recently inherited family home is a daunting enough task for young lawyer Nigellus Cobmartin without the addition of any unwelcome discoveries. But when workmen turning the crumbling manor house into a grand home for Nigellus and his companion, John Rykener, uncover a skeleton bound, tied and hidden in the wall - and holding the precious relic that went missing from his father's estate nearly twenty years ago - Nigellus immediately calls on London tracker Crispin Guest for help. Whose bones are they, and why was the valuable relic buried with the thief? Crispin and Jack are drawn into a mystery of dark secrets, family scandal and old grudges as they attempt to find the truth behind a load of old bones.

Jeri Westerson

Books

Your next favorite book is out there