The Deepest Grave

November 15, 2017
The latest Crispin Guest medieval mystery is set at the end of the fourteenth century. Guest, a former knight who's now the medieval version of a private investigator, is hired to find out whether a young woman's disappearance is the result of foul playshe was being pursued by an unsuitable man, says the girl's auntor whether she's simply off having some fun. When Guest finds out who the unsuitable man is (a former lord sheriff of London and a rather despicable fellow), he's pretty sure that the girl's disappearance is a very bad thing. When a monk is murdered right in front of Guest, and the girl's aunt vanishes into thin air, he determines to figure out who's behind the dastardly goings-on. Series fans will be on familiar ground, and, because the author makes sure to provide some background on Crispin Guest, newcomers can jump right in.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)

July 1, 2018
In the latest Crispin Guest historical mystery, the year is 1392, and there are some strange goings-on at St. Modwen's Church in London. If reports are to be believed, the dead are rising up and causing mayhem in the graveyard. Guest, a sort of Middle Ages private detective (he's known as the Tracker of London), is asked to look into the unsettling events; skeptical but always in need of funds, he agrees to take the case. But he's soon distracted by a more pressing investigation: the young son of Crispin's former lover has been accused of murder, and, as it turns out, that might not be the most shocking thing about the boy. As always, Westerson does a fine job of bringing the sounds, sights, and smells (don't forget the smells!) of fourteenth-century England to life, giving readers a really good sense of what daily life might have been like for Crispin and his contemporaries. Typical of the series, the story is well plotted and comes with a deeply satisfying resolution. Another winner.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)