She applied the Page 69 Test to the latest book in the series, Blood Lance, and reported the following:Blood Lance has a murder, a relic, and all the medieval goodness of every Crispin Guest novel. But this one also features London Bridge in a starring role. Not only does the action begin there with a body hurtling off the bridge into the churning Thames below and Crispin diving in to dramatically save the hapless fellow--to no avail--but it also features a knight with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (which, of course, wasn't called that then), Spanish spies, the first appearance of John of Gaunt's son Henry Bolingbroke, the reappearance of Geoffrey Chaucer after last year's Troubled Bones, and then ends in a deadly joust on--have you guessed it?--London Bridge, where such things did indeed happen. Crispin soul-searches as he is wont to do, not only the choices he made to have put him in the position of being the Tracker, but decisions he's made since. This Page 69 excerpt is very short because it ends the chapter. It's cryptic but perhaps not too much for those who remember the first Crispin adventure, Veil of Lies.Learn more about the author and her work at Jeri Westerson's website and her "Getting Medieval" blog.
From page 69:The portrait weighed heavy in his hand. His fingers rubbed over the surface, loosening as he held it poised over the fire. A knock at the door startled him and, instinctively, he clutched the little frame. Hastily he stuffed it back under the mattress, went to the door, and opened it. Crispin took a staggering step back. In the doorway stood his old friend, Geoffrey Chaucer.
The Page 69 Test: Veil of Lies.
The Page 69 Test: Serpent in the Thorns.
The Page 69 Test: The Demon's Parchment.
My Book, The Movie: The Demon's Parchment.
The Page 69 Test: Troubled Bones.
--Marshal Zeringue
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