Blood Lance

Crispin Guest has solved many mysteries since losing his knighthood and becoming "The Tracker", an investigator for hire in fourteenth century London. Yet when he witnesses a body fall from London bridge into the frigid waters of the Thames, he finds himself in the middle of a dangerous and complicated puzzle. The deceased was an armorer whose death officials rule to be a suicide, but Guest immediately sees evidence of foul play. During his investigation he runs into Sir Thomas Saunfayl, an old acquaintance from his knighthood days, frantically searching for the armorer. It seems the dead man was bargaining with Sir Thomas for the Spear of Longinus, the weapon used to pierce the side of Christ on the Cross, which grants invincibility to its owner. After his friend Geoffrey Chaucer arrives in London, all too eager to help find the spear and conduct clandestine meetings with powerful figures, Guest soon finds himself trying to solve a conundrum of many parts, all centered around the same dangerous and potent holy relic. With the spear now missing and more murders occurring, Guest, together with his loyal apprentice Jack, must use his sharp wiles to find it and piece together the truth in a world of political intrigue, treachery, and murder. With evocative period detail and an unforgettable cast of characters, Blood Lance is the exhilarating fifth volume in the Crispin Guest medieval noir mystery series. It was one of the "Top 10 Hot Crime Novels" for Fall 2012 selection at Kirkus Reviews.