What is Jeri Westerson reading?

Today's featured contributor at Writers Read: Jeri Westerson, author of Veil of Lies, Serpent in the Thorns, The Demon's Parchment.

Her entry begins:

Very often I find myself escaping from fiction by reading nonfiction. Of course, I read a lot of nonfiction anyway to research for my own fiction, but to escape even that, I’ll look for an interesting alternative. Usually, I don’t care for memoirs (I think of them as waaah texts: “Oh look at my poor tragic life.”). But in this case, I was drawn to Julia Child’s book My Life in France, as part of it was used for the delightful movie Julie and Julia. In the movie, I craved more of Julia and less of Julie and here it was in spades.

The fun part about reading the book is that you can hear her strident voice throughout and it’s a very charming read. I like to do my own fair share of gourmet cooking, though with a writer’s time constraints I don’t get to do as much as I used to. And let me tell you, the...[read on]

Among the early praise for The Demon's Parchment:

“Westerson skillfully lulls her sleuth and the reader into a sense of ‘I know what is going on,’ then zings them with the truth. Absolutely first-class; highly recommended for fans of medieval mysteries.”
-–Library Journal, starred review

“The best yet in the series!”
-–Publisher’s Weekly

TOP PICK! ****1/2 “The writing is wonderful and the history vividly presented. Not to be missed by fans of real historical mysteries.”
-–Romantic Times Magazine, four and a half stars

“There’s no shortage of mysteries set in the medieval period, but since the era lasted about a thousand years, there’s always room for more. Especially when they’re this good: a solid plot and cast of characters, a feel for the story’s place and time, and an appealing noirish air. A welcome addition to the medieval-mystery landscape.”
-–Booklist

Learn more about the author and her work at Jeri Westerson's website, her "Getting Medieval" blog, and the Crispin Guest Medieval Noir blog.

Westerson wrote about Crispin Guest's place among fictional detectives for The Rap Sheet.

The Page 69 Test: Veil of Lies.

The Page 69 Test: Serpent in the Thorns.

The Page 69 Test: The Demon's Parchment.

Writers Read: Jeri Westerson.

--Marshal Zeringue