Crispin Guest is the Tracker of London, a medieval man who balances the politics of the era, which have resulted in the downturn of his financial fortunes, and his current role in finding murderers. In this story a grisly discovery is made in the home of his friend, Nigellus, when builders begin renovation work. The plot is twisted, with Crispin struggling to find out who is guilty, while also coming under attack himself. He is supported in his quest by his faithful apprentice Jack, as well as Christopher, the son he may not acknowledge.

An entertaining read, although in parts the dialogue strikes more modern than Medieval. The character of John Rykener is very interesting!

Thank you to NetGalley and Severn House Publishers for allowing me access to the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Crispin Guest (former nobleman accused of treason) is now the London Tracker in 1398, no murderer will escape him. He is called to the renovated home of his friends John Rykener and Nigellus (Mr & Mrs Cobmartin) where a skeleton has been discovered in the wall with a missing relic. With the help of his apprentice Jack he must find how a 20 year old murder connects to a second murder. He moves partners Eleanor (John) and Nigellus into the home of his lost love Philippa Walcote and son Christopher to protect them but who will protect Crispin’s family when a murderer calls. This is a fast paced story with likeable main characters. It would be worth reading previous stories in the series to see how Crispin’s life has changed.
I was given an arc of this book by Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Perhaps the penultimate novel in this series about Crispin Guest, the London Tracker. :(

An odd couple, a body interred in a wall, a precious relic, a murder and further threats all woven in together as Crispin attempts to discover the guilty party. His own life has both satisfactions and potential problems.

I've enjoyed this series since the first book, and I'm sorry that the author is planning to end it. I do understand her reasons, but I will miss the intriguing mysteries and the well-developed and evolving characters. Westerson plans to end the series with the next book.

Read in June; blog review scheduled for Aug. 16.

NetGalley/Severn House
Medieval Mystery. Sept. 1, 2020.

I hadn't know when I requested a review copy that Jeri Westerson's Spiteful Bones was part of an ongoing historical mystery series—but I was delighted to find out because that means I have lots of reading pleasure ahead of me as I go back to read the rest of the series.

Westerson's central character in this series, Crispin Guest, is the London Tracker, who investigates cases of murder and other crimes. A former nobleman who lost his rank and estates in a treason scandal, he has made an interesting life for himself which crosses class and social distances in ways that were uncommon during the series late-14th Century setting. Guest and the supporting cast have full back stories and are interesting as individuals, not at all the kind of "cardboard cutouts" that people some historical mysteries.

In this case, a lawyer finds a body interred in the walls of his home, which he is remodeling. His wife (who is a marvelous character—I'll say no more about them here) recommends that he ask Guest to investigate. The likely identity of the body is a former family servant, who disappeared twenty years ago, along with a valuable family reliquary.

I'm not an historian and can't speak to all the details, but I appreciated the moments when I could tell Westerson had gotten her period details right. For example, family and business records aren't kept in books; they're recorded on scrolls that are then piled on shelves, and each scroll has its own identifying leather label.

If you enjoy series mysteries, particularly those set in the Middle Ages, you're in for a treat with this series. The author warns that this title includes "spoilers" for some of the earlier titles, but I had no trouble following the characters and action despite it being my first experience with the series. Make your own decision about that. If you want to start at the beginning, the title you'll be looking for is Veil of Lies.

I received a free electronic review copy of this title from the publisher via NetGalley. The opin ions are my own.

I was excited to see a new Crispin Guest novel listed on NetGalley, and pleased to see that it featured John Rykener and his companion Nigellus Cobmartin. John, aka Eleanor, is depicted sympathetically, and is, frankly, one of my favorite recurring characters in this series . Nigellus' family home is being renovated, and a skeleton clutching a relic is found in a wall. Can Crispin and Jack solve a 20 year old murder?

This could be read this as a stand-alone, but you would be missing out on the depth of character development that has taken place over the course of now 14 novels. Crispin has progressed from a young and embittered attainted knight to an older, settled, and generally contented denizen of a very working class part of London. He has a relationship with his natural son, although circumstances require the relationship not be publicly claimed. The author kindly provides a brief introduction to some of the historical characters who are referenced in the series...very helpful, as how a person was known could change over time, with inheritance or the endowment of a new title and holdings. Overall, a very enjoyable addition to a successful series. Many thanks to NetGalley and Severn House for the opportunity to read the eARC.

Spiteful Bones is the 14th book in a series, but please don't let that put you off, as it works superbly as a standalone novel.
It's fast-paced, gripping and has extremely likeable characters that are easy to connect with. A very enjoyable read, which will have you wanting to back and read the whole series.

As a fan of “cozy mysteries” this book was a genuinely enjoyable read. Though the series is expansive, this was my first book by this author. It was also my first non-contemporary cozy and it definitely has me hooked on the genre and the series.

While I suspect I might have enjoyed this more with other books to fill out the backstory, this novel is a solid stand-alone. Like most books in this genre, the mystery wasn’t super in depth. This was not a thriller or procedural, but a mystery that happens to be the binding event bringing together a solid set of characters. The mystery provides just enough plot drivers to keep you reading, but the real value here is the world building.

The deep, and enlightening, research is clear in every page. As a reader you are just as interested in the characters, clothing and historical events as you are in the mystery itself. That the characters are loosely based on people that exist in the historical record is especially enriching. In particular, the exploration of those who would have been erased from history by virtue of their “otherness” lends this historical a unique and informative aspect.

I look forward to reading this author’s back catalog. Almost all the history I know has been taught, or inspired by, novels. I definitely sense a medieval history deep dive in my future!

Spiteful Bones by Jeri Westerson – 3 Stars
Publisher: Severn House
ISBN: 9781448304592

There is another missing relic and another strange murder. This is the third book I have read in the series and it is very similar to the other two. It begins interestingly, when hidden in a wall, bones are found clutching a relic that has been missing for twenty years. The story slows as interviews with people who might know the identity of the body are conducted and romantic entanglements evolve, especially those between Nigellus and his gay transvestite “wife”. The action picks up near the end when, with a stretch of believably, the killer in revealed.


Reviewer: Nancy

Thank you to NetGalley and Severn House for the arc of Spiteful bones by Jeri Westerson.

This is the 14th in her series. Nigellus, inherited his family home he is restoring it from crumbled to a high end manor, until unwanted discoveries show up.... as the workmen were starting construction they found something in the walls... it was no other than a skeleton,,, which was holding a relic from his dad which disappeared a mere 2 decades ago. The skeleton was found bound and tied inside a wall... then then decides to phone London's tracker Crispin Guest for help with this.

Whose bones really are they, why was the relic buried with the thief? They are drawn into a mystery of extremely dark secrets, family scandals and even old grudges in the mix as they attempt to find and reveal the truth behind a skeleton within the walls...

Recommend
4 Stars⭐⭐⭐⭐

Murder and mayhem in 1300s England! When a long-hidden body clutching a missing family relic is uncovered in a wall during a home remodel, so many questions arise. Who is it and how did he get in there? Respected (sort of) Tracker Crispin Guest is hired by the home's unconventional owners to get to the bottom of the mystery.

Really liked this historical mystery set during a time period that I really do not know much about. I also thoroughly enjoyed getting to know the main characters. This book was fine as a stand-alone but take note that it is one in a growing series.

5 stars

Thaddeus Cobmartin and his “wife” Eleanor are inspecting the work done on Thaddeus' inherited house. The workmen discover a body hidden in a wall. Eleanor contacts Tracker Crispin Guest and his sidekick Jack to investigate.

Crispin immediately notes the ropes and gag on the skeleton. They deduce that the bones are those of Wilfrid Roke, a varlet of Thaddeus' now-deceased father. He supposedly made off with a valuable relic some twenty years earlier.

Crispin, Jack and Christopher begin to interview the servants in the Cobmartin household. Some have been there for the twenty year gap between the murder and the present. The hunt is on and when another man is murdered; the tension in the story increases.

Crispin runs into trouble and begin to feel his age and to come to terms with it. Thaddeus and Eleanor receive unwelcome news.

Once Crispin figures out who the murderer is, he and Jack must race to capture them before more damage is done.

There are some surprises in this story. It has some interesting twists and turns. I am grateful that Ms. Westerson keeps true to the actual history of the time in which the story is set. She also captures the disparity between the have and the have nots very well. We learn more about Crispin's relationship with his former paramour and his son. Ms. Westerson even intersperses some real players of the time period to add spice and authenticity to the tale. She is a superb writer and I certainly enjoy her Crispin Guest series. I anxiously await the next installment.

I want to thank NetGalley and Severn House/Severn House Publishers for forwarding to me a copy of this very good book for me to read, enjoy and review.

***This book is not yet available to review on GoodReads, BookBub or Amazon.

I thoroughly enjoyed this medieval mystery even having never read any of the previous books in the series. It was a great standalone read, although I would now like to go back and read the books that came before. When a twenty year old skeleton, thought to be a runaway thieving servant, is discovered tied up in the wall of the home of a lawyer and his partner, they call on their friend, Crispin Guest, the London tracker, to solve the case. With the help of his apprentice, Jack, they race to discover the identity of a murderer who has returned from the past to kill again. This was a fun read with compelling characters!

Thank you so much to Severn House and NetGalley for allowing me to read this advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review.