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A review by samphope
A Rare Benedictine: The Advent of Brother Cadfael by Ellis Peters
4.0
The Chronicles of Brother Cadfael is a beloved series of historical mysteries where we follow the investigations of a Benedictine monk, ex-crusader and well-versed herbologist. This collection of three short stories is a good introduction to the series.
The first story happens before Cadfael joins the order and is the only story that does so to my knowledge, whereas the second and third stories are more in the bent of the traditional lines providing very well written short mysteries set around Shrewsbury abbey with the lovingly applied historic detail that marks the rest of the series.
The first story is also the one that deviates the most from the standard narrative, and it can hardly be classed as a whodunnit or even a whydunnit it. It is more a short introduction to Cadfael's reasoning behind joining the order and provides a glimpse into the mind of our monk-to-be.
The two other stories are well-crafted mysteries that pack quite a punch.
Ellis Peters has a style that I personally adore when she describes the life and times of 12th century England and Wales, the prose is in perfect adequation with the world that it is describing.
The plot is well crafted as always, though if your enjoyment from crime novels is guessing who did it then you might find it lacking in that department, as in these stories as with the full-length novels the psychology and reasoning of the culprits are often more of interest than the pure mystery itself (not that they are badly written and easy to guess, however, it's just other factors tend to be in the foreground rather than pure investigation).
It's an excellent introduction to the Cadfael series, and a quick read, for those that want to dip their toes in and see if they like the style and epoch. For those that are already fans, well you probably don't need an excuse to read more about our sleuthing monk, though if you're looking for a book that dives deeply into his past before the Rule then I'm afraid you're out of luck.
The first story happens before Cadfael joins the order and is the only story that does so to my knowledge, whereas the second and third stories are more in the bent of the traditional lines providing very well written short mysteries set around Shrewsbury abbey with the lovingly applied historic detail that marks the rest of the series.
The first story is also the one that deviates the most from the standard narrative, and it can hardly be classed as a whodunnit or even a whydunnit it. It is more a short introduction to Cadfael's reasoning behind joining the order and provides a glimpse into the mind of our monk-to-be.
The two other stories are well-crafted mysteries that pack quite a punch.
Ellis Peters has a style that I personally adore when she describes the life and times of 12th century England and Wales, the prose is in perfect adequation with the world that it is describing.
The plot is well crafted as always, though if your enjoyment from crime novels is guessing who did it then you might find it lacking in that department, as in these stories as with the full-length novels the psychology and reasoning of the culprits are often more of interest than the pure mystery itself (not that they are badly written and easy to guess, however, it's just other factors tend to be in the foreground rather than pure investigation).
It's an excellent introduction to the Cadfael series, and a quick read, for those that want to dip their toes in and see if they like the style and epoch. For those that are already fans, well you probably don't need an excuse to read more about our sleuthing monk, though if you're looking for a book that dives deeply into his past before the Rule then I'm afraid you're out of luck.