In 1394 Crispin Guest, Tracker of London, is minding his own
business at a local tavern when a strange man hands him a
wrapped package and then disappears. The man tells Crispin
not to open the package in public and that he will know what
to do with it. Crispin hurries home, opens the package and
finds a very old book. The cover appears newer, but the
pages seem to be extremely old. Stranger still, the text is
written in a language Crispin does not recognize. Crispin
does have a love for books, so he makes his way to a
bookseller for help. The bookseller confirms what Crispin
already believes ... newer cover, very old pages made of
papyrus. The bookseller thinks the text is written in Coptic
and sends Crispin to another man for help. The second man
sends Crispin to a barber who is able to translate the book.
And what Crispin learns is terribly unsettling, both to him
and could also be to the doctrine of the Christian church if
this book falls into the wrong hands. It appears this is a
copy of the Gospel of Judas. Crispin soon finds himself in
the middle of three murders ... the three men he visited
with this disturbing book. Being a Tracker, he sets out to
find the murderer. But others are interested in this book as
well, and Crispin finds himself in peril more than once. Can
he track down the killers, and what is he to do with this
blasphemous book?
TRAITOR'S CODEX in the eleventh book in Jeri Westerson's
A
Crispin Guest Mystery series. Though I have not had
the pleasure of reading any of the other books in this
series, Ms. Westerson does an excellent job of relating the
backstory about Crispin and some of his adventures as a
Tracker (like a private investigator). There is non-stop
action and adventure in this thrilling mystery. Events move
in a rapid-fire manner for such a historical timeframe.
Crispin is a strong main character with a cadre of equally
strong and diverse supporting characters. Ms. Westerson ties
in just enough actual historical and Biblical reality with
this exciting story to keep you turning pages for more.
Crispin Guest, Tracker of London, is enjoying his ale in the
Boar’s Tusk tavern – until a stranger leaves a mysterious
wrapped bundle on his table, telling him, "You'll know what
to do." Inside is an ancient leather-bound book written in
an unrecognizable language. Accompanied by his apprentice,
Jack Tucker, Crispin takes the unknown codex to a hidden
rabbi, where they make a shocking discovery: it is the
Gospel of Judas from the Holy Land, and its contents
challenge the very doctrine of Christianity itself.
Crispin is soon drawn into a deadly maze involving murder,
living saints, and lethal henchmen. Why was he given the
blasphemous book, and what should he do with it? A series of
horrific events confirm his fears that there are powerful
men who want it – and who will stop at nothing to see it
destroyed.