Scan barcode
debraeve's review against another edition
5.0
Blood Lance represents the fifth outing of Crispin Guest, disgraced medieval knight. He was stripped of his title and lands for his part in a plot to overthrow the king so his mentor, John of Gaunt, could rule.
Crispin now roams the mean streets of 14th century London, eking out a living as the “Tracker” – finding goods and people who’ve gone missing. Sometimes, the odd murder and holy relic come his way.
This time he witnesses a body plummet from London Bridge. Crispin fishes the man from the river, but he’s already suspiciously dead. The rest of the plot involves a knight from Crispin’s past, a beautiful armorer’s daughter, the poet Geoffrey Chaucer, and the legendary Spear of Longinus (said to have pierced the side of Jesus).
The action culminates in a cinematic joust on London Bridge.
Rather than give away too much, here’s what I love about Blood Lance and all the Crispin Guest novels (beyond Crispin himself, who's the classic man's man and woman's man):
1. The creative melding of detective noir and medieval lore.
This may not seem like an obvious pairing at first, but consider the elements of a noir tale like Dashiell Hammett’s The Maltese Falcon – the scrupulous, down-on-his luck detective, the lady in trouble, the search for a murderer and/or missing item.
Where did these come from? On some level, the Arthurian cycle and the quest for the Holy Grail – knight, damsel in distress, search for a person and/or a sacred object. Jeri Westerson has just put them back where they began.
2. The descriptions of medieval London.
I feel I’m right there, walking those urchin and offal-strewn streets with Crispin. The journey's half the fun.
3. The damsel in distress.
She’s not always blond, but I always think, “Crispin, not again. You know she’ll break your heart or your thick skull.” He never learns (once a knight, always a knight) and the damsels are never what you think.
Jeri Westerson knows Los Angeles and its detective noir tradition well. She cleverly ports the genre to medieval London and takes you on a rare adventure. If you like knights in shining armor, mysticism, mayhem, and the occasional dead body, you’ll love Blood Lance and the whole series.
(Disclosure: I won an advanced reading copy of Blood Lance by entering a contest on Jeri Westerson's blog. I'm desperately hoping for the same good fortune on Crispin's next outing!)
Crispin now roams the mean streets of 14th century London, eking out a living as the “Tracker” – finding goods and people who’ve gone missing. Sometimes, the odd murder and holy relic come his way.
This time he witnesses a body plummet from London Bridge. Crispin fishes the man from the river, but he’s already suspiciously dead. The rest of the plot involves a knight from Crispin’s past, a beautiful armorer’s daughter, the poet Geoffrey Chaucer, and the legendary Spear of Longinus (said to have pierced the side of Jesus).
The action culminates in a cinematic joust on London Bridge.
Rather than give away too much, here’s what I love about Blood Lance and all the Crispin Guest novels (beyond Crispin himself, who's the classic man's man and woman's man):
1. The creative melding of detective noir and medieval lore.
This may not seem like an obvious pairing at first, but consider the elements of a noir tale like Dashiell Hammett’s The Maltese Falcon – the scrupulous, down-on-his luck detective, the lady in trouble, the search for a murderer and/or missing item.
Where did these come from? On some level, the Arthurian cycle and the quest for the Holy Grail – knight, damsel in distress, search for a person and/or a sacred object. Jeri Westerson has just put them back where they began.
2. The descriptions of medieval London.
I feel I’m right there, walking those urchin and offal-strewn streets with Crispin. The journey's half the fun.
3. The damsel in distress.
She’s not always blond, but I always think, “Crispin, not again. You know she’ll break your heart or your thick skull.” He never learns (once a knight, always a knight) and the damsels are never what you think.
Jeri Westerson knows Los Angeles and its detective noir tradition well. She cleverly ports the genre to medieval London and takes you on a rare adventure. If you like knights in shining armor, mysticism, mayhem, and the occasional dead body, you’ll love Blood Lance and the whole series.
(Disclosure: I won an advanced reading copy of Blood Lance by entering a contest on Jeri Westerson's blog. I'm desperately hoping for the same good fortune on Crispin's next outing!)
mbp's review
4.0
This series grows more interesting with every installment. Love the ongoing, and completely believable, relationship between Crispin and Jack, and Crispin's encounters with his "frenemy" Geoffrey Chaucer. The books are obviously well researched, and the history is seamlessly integrated into the story. (Kudos to the author for the afterward and glossary.) I can't wait for the the next book, Shadow of the Alchemist.
skjam's review
4.0
Disclosure: I received this book through a Goodreads giveaway on the premise that I would review it. Also, I read an Advanced Reading Copy, and there may be small changes between it and the final product.
This is the fifth Crispin Guest novel, featuring a disgraced knight of the Fourteenth Century who takes up a career of detection, earning the nickname "Tracker." I have not read the previous volumes.
Guest happens to witness a man falling from a bridge into the Thames. By the time he reaches the man, the fallen person is already dead--and he didn't drown. The dead man was an armourer, who it would appear owned a piece of the Lance of Longinius, a relic that supposedly pierced the side of Jesus Christ, and grants victory in battle. The lance has since gone missing, and multiple parties are working at crosspurposes to find it. Two of these are old friends of Crispin's, but are they his friends now?
All this is set against political maneuverings in the English court, as soon-to-be adult King Richard's favorite is losing his grip on power. The climax of the novel is an exciting trial by combat, with the actual solution of the mystery for a coda.
The noir elements are quite obvious; the morally ambiguous but still upright protagonist, everyone having secrets and many of those unpleasant, miserable weather and darkness (at least at the beginning), authorities who can't be trusted and the detective's falling for a woman too close to the case.
One tricky element of the story is the Spear. This is, apparently, not the first time Crispin Guest has come into contact with a supposed holy object. And while it's left ambiguous whether or not the Spear actually has any powers, (Guest himself is a skeptic) the coincidences keep piling up. Towards the end, at least one character believes that these are not coincidences, and that artifacts seek out Crispin for a purpose as yet unknown.
It's a good read by itself, and I would certainly be willing to look up other volumes in the series.
For more mystery reviews, see http://www.skjam.com/tag/mystery/
This is the fifth Crispin Guest novel, featuring a disgraced knight of the Fourteenth Century who takes up a career of detection, earning the nickname "Tracker." I have not read the previous volumes.
Guest happens to witness a man falling from a bridge into the Thames. By the time he reaches the man, the fallen person is already dead--and he didn't drown. The dead man was an armourer, who it would appear owned a piece of the Lance of Longinius, a relic that supposedly pierced the side of Jesus Christ, and grants victory in battle. The lance has since gone missing, and multiple parties are working at crosspurposes to find it. Two of these are old friends of Crispin's, but are they his friends now?
All this is set against political maneuverings in the English court, as soon-to-be adult King Richard's favorite is losing his grip on power. The climax of the novel is an exciting trial by combat, with the actual solution of the mystery for a coda.
The noir elements are quite obvious; the morally ambiguous but still upright protagonist, everyone having secrets and many of those unpleasant, miserable weather and darkness (at least at the beginning), authorities who can't be trusted and the detective's falling for a woman too close to the case.
One tricky element of the story is the Spear. This is, apparently, not the first time Crispin Guest has come into contact with a supposed holy object. And while it's left ambiguous whether or not the Spear actually has any powers, (Guest himself is a skeptic) the coincidences keep piling up. Towards the end, at least one character believes that these are not coincidences, and that artifacts seek out Crispin for a purpose as yet unknown.
It's a good read by itself, and I would certainly be willing to look up other volumes in the series.
For more mystery reviews, see http://www.skjam.com/tag/mystery/
More...