by Lorie Lewis Ham

Details at the end of this post on how to enter to win an ebook copy of Traitor’s Codex. You will also find a link to purchase the book from Amazon, and an indie bookstore where a portion of the sale goes to help support KRL.

Traitor’s Codex is the latest Medieval Noir Crispin Guest mystery by Jeri Westerson. Crispin is a disgraced knight who turned his talent for finding things into a profession as a Tracker (basically a private detective) to make a living. Over the years he has become quite good at it and developed a reputation for getting the job done.

Crispin’s life is in a much better place in the last couple of books. He has a nicer home and a family of sorts now that his apprentice Jack Tucker, who is a grown man now, has a wife and children. He drinks less, and is far more content with his life. He also has learned that he has a son of his own that he didn’t know about, and while he refuses to tell the boy who he is he does find himself with opportunities to get to know him. When a strange man hands Crispin a wrapped package and disappears, this better life gets turned upside down.

The man tells Crispin not to open the package in public and says that he will know what to do with it. When he returns home and opens it, he finds that it is a very old book. While the cover is newer, the pages seem to be extremely old, and it is written in a language that Crispin does not recognize. He learns from a bookseller that it is written in Coptic. The bookseller sends Crispin to another man to learn more, and that man then sends him to a barber for help in translating it. The book turns out to be the Gospel of Judas, which he is told could be extremely dangerous in the wrong hands. Soon those three men are murdered and Crispin sets out to find the killer. Along the way, he learns there are very dangerous people after the book. Not only must he solve the murders, he must figure out what to do with this mysterious book. As if that wasn’t enough for him to deal with, there is someone running around pretending to be Crispin.

This is one of my favorite series and I feel like it keeps getting better with each book. I like how the characters have grown and changed over the course of the series and I really enjoy the Medieval setting. Every character is well developed and interesting. The mystery is complex and the book is filled with action, and a bunch of surprise twists. The historical background is fascinating and adds even more to the story.

If you love a good mystery, with great characters and an unusual setting don’t miss this book, and this series!

In case you missed it, an earlier episode of Mysteryrat’s Maze Podcast features the Crispin Guest book before this one, Deepest Grave. If you would like to listen to the first chapter you can find it here.

To enter to win an ebook copy of Traitor’s Codex (be aware that for this one you must join NetGalley to get your copy-but NetGalley doesn’t cost anything), simply email KRL at krlcontests@gmail[dot]com by replacing the [dot] with a period, and with the subject line “codex,” or comment on this article. A winner will be chosen June 29, 2019. U.S. residents only. If entering via comment please include your email address. You can read our privacy statement here if you like.

Check out other mystery articles, reviews, book giveaways & mystery short stories in our mystery section. And join our mystery Facebook group to keep up with everything mystery we post, and have a chance at some extra giveaways. Be sure to check out our new mystery podcast too with mystery short stories, and first chapters read by local actors. A new episode goes up next week.

Use this link to purchase the book & a portion goes to help support KRL & indie bookstore Mysterious Galaxy:

Traitor’s Codex

You can also use this link to purchase the book on Amazon. If you have ad blocker on you may not see the link:

Lorie Lewis Ham is our Editor-in-Chief and a contributor to various sections, coupling her journalism experience with her connection to the literary and entertainment worlds. Explore Lorie’s mystery writing at Mysteryrat’s Closet.

Disclosure: This post contains links to an affiliate program, for which we receive a few cents if you make purchases using those links. KRL also receives free copies of most of the books that it reviews, that are provided in exchange for an honest review of the book.