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Chronicles of Brother Cadfael #8
The Devil's Novice
In the autumn of 1140 the Benedictine monastery at Shrewsbury finds its new novice Meriet Aspley a bit disturbing. The younger son of a prominent family, Meriet is meek and biddable by day, but his sleep is rife with nightmares so violent that they earn him the name of "Devil's Novice". Shunned by the other monks, Aspley attracts the concern of Brother Cadfael. Then a body appears, that of a young priest last seen at the Aspley estate. Can Meriet be involved in the death? As events take a sinister turn, it falls to Brother Cadfael to detect the truth.
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First published August 1, 1983
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About the author
Ellis Peters
199 books1,153 followersA pseudonym used by Edith Pargeter.
Edith Mary Pargeter, OBE, BEM was a prolific author of works in many categories, especially history and historical fiction, and was also honoured for her translations of Czech classics; she is probably best known for her murder mysteries, both historical and modern. Born in the village of Horsehay (Shropshire, England), she had Welsh ancestry, and many of her short stories and books (both fictional and non-fictional) were set in Wales and its borderlands.
During World War II, she worked in an administrative role in the Women's Royal Naval Service, and received the British Empire Medal - BEM.
Pargeter wrote under a number of pseudonyms; it was under the name Ellis Peters that she wrote the highly popular series of Brother Cadfael medieval mysteries, many of which were made into films for television.
Edith Mary Pargeter, OBE, BEM was a prolific author of works in many categories, especially history and historical fiction, and was also honoured for her translations of Czech classics; she is probably best known for her murder mysteries, both historical and modern. Born in the village of Horsehay (Shropshire, England), she had Welsh ancestry, and many of her short stories and books (both fictional and non-fictional) were set in Wales and its borderlands.
During World War II, she worked in an administrative role in the Women's Royal Naval Service, and received the British Empire Medal - BEM.
Pargeter wrote under a number of pseudonyms; it was under the name Ellis Peters that she wrote the highly popular series of Brother Cadfael medieval mysteries, many of which were made into films for television.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 430 reviews
February 9, 2015
Best of the Cadfael novels I have read thus far. One of the reasons is the absence of foolish, impetuous youngsters who get themselves into trouble. All characters in this book, particularly the youngsters, are thinking people. The lawman is a thinking bloke too. Meriet is a very interesting character, and so is Isouda.
Now, about the series. I began reading Ellis Peters after I was told that her work was similar to Agatha Christie's. Having read eight Cadfael books on the trot, I think I now have a measure of this author.
She is NOT similar to Christie, but that is not to say that her work is not interesting. Her eleventh century Shrewsbury is a wonderful world to escape into, and Cadfael is a great protagonist to tag along with.
Christie's plots are deeper, and she offers clues that a reader can use to guess. You can play detective alongside Poirot. But that is not the case in Cadfael books. There are very few clues to speak of, and the mystery is not particularly deep.
Peters creates suspense for sure, as you keep wondering what would happen next. But the characterisation is such that you can guess the killer pretty easily and early on. Then, your mission to guess the motive and the modus operandi.
When it comes to language and style, I think Ellis Peters writes extraordinarily well. The setting, the dialogue and the writing are quaint and riveting. Christie's writing is functional.
When it comes to the lead protagonist, both Cadfael and Poirot are great and unique. I wouldn't compare them. Both authors are outstanding, but dissimilar.
I will certainly go on to finish the Cadfael series after a break. Highly recommended series. If you want furious action from the very beginning, or believe that crime fiction must have foul language to be realistic, you won't like it. This is good, solid stuff where the author takes time to build up the story, which she does very well.
Now, about the series. I began reading Ellis Peters after I was told that her work was similar to Agatha Christie's. Having read eight Cadfael books on the trot, I think I now have a measure of this author.
She is NOT similar to Christie, but that is not to say that her work is not interesting. Her eleventh century Shrewsbury is a wonderful world to escape into, and Cadfael is a great protagonist to tag along with.
Christie's plots are deeper, and she offers clues that a reader can use to guess. You can play detective alongside Poirot. But that is not the case in Cadfael books. There are very few clues to speak of, and the mystery is not particularly deep.
Peters creates suspense for sure, as you keep wondering what would happen next. But the characterisation is such that you can guess the killer pretty easily and early on. Then, your mission to guess the motive and the modus operandi.
When it comes to language and style, I think Ellis Peters writes extraordinarily well. The setting, the dialogue and the writing are quaint and riveting. Christie's writing is functional.
When it comes to the lead protagonist, both Cadfael and Poirot are great and unique. I wouldn't compare them. Both authors are outstanding, but dissimilar.
I will certainly go on to finish the Cadfael series after a break. Highly recommended series. If you want furious action from the very beginning, or believe that crime fiction must have foul language to be realistic, you won't like it. This is good, solid stuff where the author takes time to build up the story, which she does very well.
November 5, 2025
The Devil's Novice is a solid story with a weak mystery. In the novel, a second son of a lord enters the cloister as a novice. The young novice, Meriet Aspley, shows too much zeal in his wish to take vows, arousing grave doubt in the minds of Brother Cadfael and the Lord Abbott. They suspect that some mystery surrounds Meriet Aspley than that meet the eye.
The story grabbed my attention from the start. I liked Meriet Aspley. He is a spirited young man with good principles and considerable loyalty towards those he loves. Brother Cadfael forms a closer bond akin to a paternal-filial relationship with the young man. Cadfael's relationship to Hugh Beringar and Meriet, both as a father figure and adviser, brings weight and warmth to the story. I loved his role, particularly in this chronicle.
The story is slow-paced, leaving action to be built up near the end, where the mystery is resolved. I wasn't too pleased with the murder-mystery. The final revelation felt too fantastic. The murder and the motive made little sense to me. I felt committing murder was not necessary for the culprit to attain his goal. Besides, not anywhere a political motive was hinted at. Ellis Peters deliberately weaves her threads around a possible strained father-son relationship and an unrequited love. The bombshell revelation incensed me rather than gratified me.
However, my displeasure about the mystery didn't diminish my enjoyment of the novel as a whole. My interest in the characters (both new and old), the active presence of Brother Cadfael, the low-key romance, background political climate, and Peters' brilliant, atmospheric prose contributed towards a spellbinding reading journey. This series is most certainly becoming another comfort read.
P.S. I watched the episode of this novel in the Cadfael TV series. I liked its ending better than in the book.
More of my reviews can be found at http://piyangiejay.com/
The story grabbed my attention from the start. I liked Meriet Aspley. He is a spirited young man with good principles and considerable loyalty towards those he loves. Brother Cadfael forms a closer bond akin to a paternal-filial relationship with the young man. Cadfael's relationship to Hugh Beringar and Meriet, both as a father figure and adviser, brings weight and warmth to the story. I loved his role, particularly in this chronicle.
The story is slow-paced, leaving action to be built up near the end, where the mystery is resolved. I wasn't too pleased with the murder-mystery. The final revelation felt too fantastic. The murder and the motive made little sense to me. I felt committing murder was not necessary for the culprit to attain his goal. Besides, not anywhere a political motive was hinted at. Ellis Peters deliberately weaves her threads around a possible strained father-son relationship and an unrequited love. The bombshell revelation incensed me rather than gratified me.
However, my displeasure about the mystery didn't diminish my enjoyment of the novel as a whole. My interest in the characters (both new and old), the active presence of Brother Cadfael, the low-key romance, background political climate, and Peters' brilliant, atmospheric prose contributed towards a spellbinding reading journey. This series is most certainly becoming another comfort read.
P.S. I watched the episode of this novel in the Cadfael TV series. I liked its ending better than in the book.
More of my reviews can be found at http://piyangiejay.com/
January 14, 2020
4 stars
It’s been a few years since I’d read the previous book in this series but it’s so well written and I love the characters so much it was easy to pick up where I’d left off. The great thing about the Cadfael series is that most historical mysteries just take place in a historical setting. The mysteries in Cadfael are often as was the case in this book actually driven by history. The murder
Cozies Reading Challenge
It’s been a few years since I’d read the previous book in this series but it’s so well written and I love the characters so much it was easy to pick up where I’d left off. The great thing about the Cadfael series is that most historical mysteries just take place in a historical setting. The mysteries in Cadfael are often as was the case in this book actually driven by history. The murder
Cozies Reading Challenge
March 25, 2022
Free for Audible-UK-Plus members.
OK, I like this and so I rate it three stars. A three-star book is good, but not exceptional.
The reader has a mystery to solve. The mystery concerns how a son relates to his father and elder brother. Why does a person admit to a crime, a murder, he has not done? We discover who the real murderer is, but this is mot the essential. The central focus is instead familial relationships.
We meet up with figures met before in earlier books. Each remains true to their character as they were drawn before. Meeting them is like meeting old friends. Brother Cadfael and Hugh Beringar are two I might here mention.
Ellis Peters’ writing is descriptive and atmospheric. It is autumn 1140. The Civil War is raging and there is fear and insecurity in the air. Winter is approaching. The leaves crackle in the cold.
Vanessa Benjamin narrates the autdiobook. Her narration did not win me over. It was merely OK, so two stars for the narration. I often had to to listen several times to understand what was said. Her intonations for the characters were not to my liking.
I like the story because the mystery circles around familial relationships. I like meeting up with old friends, and I like the atmospheric prose. I rarely like series or mysteries, but Ellis Peters’ Cadfael nooks are the exception.
*****************************
In Book Order and availability:
*A Morbid Taste for Bones 3 stars
*One Corpse Too Many 5 stars
*Monk's Hood 4 stars
*St. Peter's Fair 4 stars
*The Leper of St. Giles 5 stars
*The Virgin in the Ice 3 stars
*The Sanctuary Sparrow 4 stars
*The Devil's Novice 3 stars
*Dead Man's Ransom TBR
*The Pilgrim of Hate
*An Excellent Mystery
*The Raven in the Foregate (12) TBR
*The Rose Rent
*The Hermit of Eyton Forest
*The Confession of Brother Haluin
*The Heretic's Apprentice (16) TBR
*The Potter's Field (17) TBR
*Brother Cadfael's Penance (20) TBR
OK, I like this and so I rate it three stars. A three-star book is good, but not exceptional.
The reader has a mystery to solve. The mystery concerns how a son relates to his father and elder brother. Why does a person admit to a crime, a murder, he has not done? We discover who the real murderer is, but this is mot the essential. The central focus is instead familial relationships.
We meet up with figures met before in earlier books. Each remains true to their character as they were drawn before. Meeting them is like meeting old friends. Brother Cadfael and Hugh Beringar are two I might here mention.
Ellis Peters’ writing is descriptive and atmospheric. It is autumn 1140. The Civil War is raging and there is fear and insecurity in the air. Winter is approaching. The leaves crackle in the cold.
Vanessa Benjamin narrates the autdiobook. Her narration did not win me over. It was merely OK, so two stars for the narration. I often had to to listen several times to understand what was said. Her intonations for the characters were not to my liking.
I like the story because the mystery circles around familial relationships. I like meeting up with old friends, and I like the atmospheric prose. I rarely like series or mysteries, but Ellis Peters’ Cadfael nooks are the exception.
*****************************
In Book Order and availability:
*A Morbid Taste for Bones 3 stars
*One Corpse Too Many 5 stars
*Monk's Hood 4 stars
*St. Peter's Fair 4 stars
*The Leper of St. Giles 5 stars
*The Virgin in the Ice 3 stars
*The Sanctuary Sparrow 4 stars
*The Devil's Novice 3 stars
*Dead Man's Ransom TBR
*The Pilgrim of Hate
*An Excellent Mystery
*The Raven in the Foregate (12) TBR
*The Rose Rent
*The Hermit of Eyton Forest
*The Confession of Brother Haluin
*The Heretic's Apprentice (16) TBR
*The Potter's Field (17) TBR
*Brother Cadfael's Penance (20) TBR
August 17, 2019
“We, old friend! I want you with me, and I think Abbot Radulfus will give me leave to take you. You’re better skilled than I in dead men, in how long they may have been dead, and how they died. Moreover, he’ll want a watching eye on all that affects Saint Giles, and who better than you? You’re waist-deep in the whole matter already, you must either sink or haul clear.”
This is not an unusual situation for our Brother Cadfael whose adventures began several years ago in Shrewsbury, England. Winter is coming to the abbey of Saint Peter and Saint Paul where Brother Cadfael, an ex-soldier has spent most of the past two decades. It is 1140 and there is civil war going on and, fortunately for its location, the abbey has avoided incident.
"…and the abbey had good cause to be grateful to them, for many of its sister houses along the Welsh marches had been sacked, pillaged, evacuated, turned into fortresses for war, some more than once, and no remedy offered. Worse than the armies of King Stephen on the one hand and his cousin the empress on the other—and in all conscience they were bad enough—the land was crawling with private armies, predators large and small, devouring everything, wherever they were safe from any force of law strong enough to contain them. In Shropshire the law had been strong enough, thus far, and loyal enough to care for its own."
The church has a large role to play and King Stephen has sent a church emissary north on a special mission. He never arrives. His body is missing and the focus is on the last place he stayed (close to Shrewsbury) before disappearing. Is it coincidence that the younger son of the host has just come the abbey of Saint Peter and Saint Paul with a plea to join the brotherhood?
"In a country racked by civil war, and therefore hampered in keeping ordinary law and order, everything unaccountable was being put down to outlaws living wild; but for all that, now and then the simplest explanation turns out to be the true one."
There is a bit more action is this Cadfael than in many of the others, but this doesn’t mean that Peters neglects her wonderful details of the necessities of life. These details just flow along with the story but I find myself totally immersed in them, such as: "There was no one more tireless in collecting the stouter boughs of fallen wood, no one so agile in binding and loading them."
Even a minor character gets a full personality: "Brother Mark sat down obediently, sighing away the burden of his knowledge. Grateful for the humblest of hospitality, he was equally unawed by the noblest, and having no pride, he did not know how to be servile. When Aline herself brought him meat and drink, and the same for Cadfael, he received it gladly and simply, as saints accept alms, perpetually astonished and pleased, perpetually serene."
No newspapers, no internet, no texting….everything is local and word of mouth. Peters captures this so well.
"The news went round, as news does, from gossip to gossip, those within the town parading their superior knowledge to those without, those who came to market in town or Foregate carrying their news to outer villages and manors. As the word of Peter Clemence’s disappearance had been blown on the wind, and after it news of the discovery of his body in the forest, so did every breeze spread abroad the word that his killer was already taken and in prison in the castle, found in possession of the dead man’s dagger, and charged with his murder. No more mystery to be mulled over in taverns and on street-corners, no further sensations to be hoped for. The town made do with what it had, and made the most of it. More distant and isolated manors had to wait a week or more for the news to reach them."
Another nice difference from some of the series is the appearance of powerful women. "“Girl,” said Cadfael, breathing in deeply, “you terrify me like an act of God. And I do believe you will pull down the thunderbolt.”"
But Brother Cadfael is the constant. He is able to read character and draw out information from almost all.
"He went up through the town to the castle that same afternoon, bespoken by Hugh from the abbot as healer even to prisoners and criminals. He found the prisoner Harald in a cell at least dry, with a stone bench to lie on, and blankets to soften it and wrap him from the cold, and that was surely Hugh’s doing. The opening of the door upon his solitude occasioned instant mute alarm, but the appearance of a Benedictine habit both astonished and soothed him, and to be asked to show his hurts was still deeper bewilderment, but softened into wonder and hope. After long loneliness, where the sound of a voice could mean nothing but threat, the fugitive recovered his tongue rustily but gratefully, and ended in a flood of words like floods of tears, draining and exhausting him."
One of Peters’ best and most satisfying.
4.5*
This is not an unusual situation for our Brother Cadfael whose adventures began several years ago in Shrewsbury, England. Winter is coming to the abbey of Saint Peter and Saint Paul where Brother Cadfael, an ex-soldier has spent most of the past two decades. It is 1140 and there is civil war going on and, fortunately for its location, the abbey has avoided incident.
"…and the abbey had good cause to be grateful to them, for many of its sister houses along the Welsh marches had been sacked, pillaged, evacuated, turned into fortresses for war, some more than once, and no remedy offered. Worse than the armies of King Stephen on the one hand and his cousin the empress on the other—and in all conscience they were bad enough—the land was crawling with private armies, predators large and small, devouring everything, wherever they were safe from any force of law strong enough to contain them. In Shropshire the law had been strong enough, thus far, and loyal enough to care for its own."
The church has a large role to play and King Stephen has sent a church emissary north on a special mission. He never arrives. His body is missing and the focus is on the last place he stayed (close to Shrewsbury) before disappearing. Is it coincidence that the younger son of the host has just come the abbey of Saint Peter and Saint Paul with a plea to join the brotherhood?
"In a country racked by civil war, and therefore hampered in keeping ordinary law and order, everything unaccountable was being put down to outlaws living wild; but for all that, now and then the simplest explanation turns out to be the true one."
There is a bit more action is this Cadfael than in many of the others, but this doesn’t mean that Peters neglects her wonderful details of the necessities of life. These details just flow along with the story but I find myself totally immersed in them, such as: "There was no one more tireless in collecting the stouter boughs of fallen wood, no one so agile in binding and loading them."
Even a minor character gets a full personality: "Brother Mark sat down obediently, sighing away the burden of his knowledge. Grateful for the humblest of hospitality, he was equally unawed by the noblest, and having no pride, he did not know how to be servile. When Aline herself brought him meat and drink, and the same for Cadfael, he received it gladly and simply, as saints accept alms, perpetually astonished and pleased, perpetually serene."
No newspapers, no internet, no texting….everything is local and word of mouth. Peters captures this so well.
"The news went round, as news does, from gossip to gossip, those within the town parading their superior knowledge to those without, those who came to market in town or Foregate carrying their news to outer villages and manors. As the word of Peter Clemence’s disappearance had been blown on the wind, and after it news of the discovery of his body in the forest, so did every breeze spread abroad the word that his killer was already taken and in prison in the castle, found in possession of the dead man’s dagger, and charged with his murder. No more mystery to be mulled over in taverns and on street-corners, no further sensations to be hoped for. The town made do with what it had, and made the most of it. More distant and isolated manors had to wait a week or more for the news to reach them."
Another nice difference from some of the series is the appearance of powerful women. "“Girl,” said Cadfael, breathing in deeply, “you terrify me like an act of God. And I do believe you will pull down the thunderbolt.”"
But Brother Cadfael is the constant. He is able to read character and draw out information from almost all.
"He went up through the town to the castle that same afternoon, bespoken by Hugh from the abbot as healer even to prisoners and criminals. He found the prisoner Harald in a cell at least dry, with a stone bench to lie on, and blankets to soften it and wrap him from the cold, and that was surely Hugh’s doing. The opening of the door upon his solitude occasioned instant mute alarm, but the appearance of a Benedictine habit both astonished and soothed him, and to be asked to show his hurts was still deeper bewilderment, but softened into wonder and hope. After long loneliness, where the sound of a voice could mean nothing but threat, the fugitive recovered his tongue rustily but gratefully, and ended in a flood of words like floods of tears, draining and exhausting him."
One of Peters’ best and most satisfying.
4.5*
August 22, 2025
I enjoyed this novel in the Brother Cadfael series. it stays mostly close to home, around the Abbey and town of Shrewsbury, with occasional forays out, but generally within day trip (on horse or foot) range.
it opens with two envoys who've been sent by their fathers to the Abbey, for admittance of their younger sons - one is rejected (a boy of 4), one accepted (a young man of 19, who comes of his own wish).
and here starts an interesting discussion of the rights and wrongs of children being committed to the cloister when very young. brother Edmund, the infirmerer is consulted as a monk committed young, and brother Cadfael as someone coming after a long life outside the cloister. Brother Paul, master of the boys and novices, gives a balanced view too, tho in favour of an age of 15 or so. Prior Robert, and Brother Richard the sub-prior, who are responsible for the day to day running of the Abbey, are present too.
Abbott Rudolfus thinks it is time to change the rules, and to only accept those who are old enough to choose.
this theme of choice and/or pressure to join a monastery is threaded throughout the novel, and a nice focus and exploration I thought 🙂
🌳🌿⛪🎚📖🎚⛪🌿🌳
the accepted new novice, young Meriot's nightmare wakes the Abbey, tho not himself. the next morning they discuss the state of his mind/soul.
we get to revisit Brother Mark at St Giles hospice 😃 Cadfael thinks it might do Meriot (and his dortoir mates 😉) some good if he were to stay there a while, instead of at the Abbey 🙂
the story continues from there, the murder-mystery bit as thick with deceptions and misdirections, as with clues and answers 😉😁
🌳🌿⛪🎚📖🎚⛪🌿🌳
🖤 there's a nice detour into charcoal making, while Mark and Meriot and some of the patients of St Giles are wood in the nearby woods 🙂😁
💚💖 I was happy to hear a mention of Houndstongue! not much used, nor much favoured in gardens I believe... but a plant I've been slowly growing this past couple years 😃😍😁😊
🌀 there's a nicely convoluted and circuitous route to the truth 😉🙂
👩🏽❤👨🏽 and a nice complexity of family ties shaped and reshaped over the course of the book.
💙💜 a special mention too, of Brother Mark 😃😁 he's always a welcome presence in the novels, and constantly, consistently and unassumingly comes into himself and his roles 😍😊
🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟
accessed as an RNIB talking book, read by Tony Chambers.
it opens with two envoys who've been sent by their fathers to the Abbey, for admittance of their younger sons - one is rejected (a boy of 4), one accepted (a young man of 19, who comes of his own wish).
and here starts an interesting discussion of the rights and wrongs of children being committed to the cloister when very young. brother Edmund, the infirmerer is consulted as a monk committed young, and brother Cadfael as someone coming after a long life outside the cloister. Brother Paul, master of the boys and novices, gives a balanced view too, tho in favour of an age of 15 or so. Prior Robert, and Brother Richard the sub-prior, who are responsible for the day to day running of the Abbey, are present too.
Abbott Rudolfus thinks it is time to change the rules, and to only accept those who are old enough to choose.
this theme of choice and/or pressure to join a monastery is threaded throughout the novel, and a nice focus and exploration I thought 🙂
🌳🌿⛪🎚📖🎚⛪🌿🌳
the accepted new novice, young Meriot's nightmare wakes the Abbey, tho not himself. the next morning they discuss the state of his mind/soul.
we get to revisit Brother Mark at St Giles hospice 😃 Cadfael thinks it might do Meriot (and his dortoir mates 😉) some good if he were to stay there a while, instead of at the Abbey 🙂
the story continues from there, the murder-mystery bit as thick with deceptions and misdirections, as with clues and answers 😉😁
🌳🌿⛪🎚📖🎚⛪🌿🌳
🖤 there's a nice detour into charcoal making, while Mark and Meriot and some of the patients of St Giles are wood in the nearby woods 🙂😁
💚💖 I was happy to hear a mention of Houndstongue! not much used, nor much favoured in gardens I believe... but a plant I've been slowly growing this past couple years 😃😍😁😊
🌀 there's a nicely convoluted and circuitous route to the truth 😉🙂
👩🏽❤👨🏽 and a nice complexity of family ties shaped and reshaped over the course of the book.
💙💜 a special mention too, of Brother Mark 😃😁 he's always a welcome presence in the novels, and constantly, consistently and unassumingly comes into himself and his roles 😍😊
🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟
accessed as an RNIB talking book, read by Tony Chambers.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 12, 2024
It took a long while for me to become engaged in this tale. The first half seemed to have little momentum. Then, just before the half-way point, my interest was piqued when our protagonist, Brother Merriot, begins to serve at the Hospice of Saint Giles. My favorite passage is from this part of the book:
"The last he [Brother Cadfael] saw of them they were in the little orchard where the children ran to play, four who could run, one who hobbled on a single crutch and one who at nine years old scuttled on all fours like a small dog having lost the toes of both feet through gangrene after being exposed to hard frost in a bad winter."
"He [Merriot] was stooping to reach a hand to the dog-boy winding round his feet and finding him unable to rise and therefore unwilling to attempt it he didn't hoist the child willy nilly but suddenly dropped to his own nimble haunches to bring himself to a comparable level and squatted there distressed, intent, listening." What a fantastic example of empathy and understanding.
Finally, here is an example of a great description of emotional expression and a reason for me to enjoy Ellis Peter's writing so much:
"He raised his head and saw his father. The strangest contortion of astonishment, pain and reluctant and grudging affection twisted his face."
"The last he [Brother Cadfael] saw of them they were in the little orchard where the children ran to play, four who could run, one who hobbled on a single crutch and one who at nine years old scuttled on all fours like a small dog having lost the toes of both feet through gangrene after being exposed to hard frost in a bad winter."
"He [Merriot] was stooping to reach a hand to the dog-boy winding round his feet and finding him unable to rise and therefore unwilling to attempt it he didn't hoist the child willy nilly but suddenly dropped to his own nimble haunches to bring himself to a comparable level and squatted there distressed, intent, listening." What a fantastic example of empathy and understanding.
Finally, here is an example of a great description of emotional expression and a reason for me to enjoy Ellis Peter's writing so much:
"He raised his head and saw his father. The strangest contortion of astonishment, pain and reluctant and grudging affection twisted his face."
September 8, 2024
Updated from 2016:
“Suspicion drapes itself round him like cobwebs on the autumn bush.”
Another excellent excursion into medieval England. Ellis’ world building is worthy the best of fantasy—simultaneously delivering verisimilitude and a sense of other.
“Cadfael … had considerable sympathy with the ardent young, who overdo everything, and take wing at a line of verse of a snatch of music.”
This chronicle explores the matter of love. Not just romantic, but familial and patriotic. What might a man or woman do for someone (or some cause) they truly love. Die for it? Kill for it? Take the blame for another? For a change Ellis keeps the reader in the dark as long as our protagonist. Yet without Cadfael’s snooping, several grave injustices might have gone to the grave. Literally.
“I never knew a postulant to pursue his novitiate with so much passion, and so little joy.”
Moderns, of course, cannot imagine a young person willing exiting life to the discipline and rule of monastic orders. Yet the reader may identify with the motives of at least five of these characters.
“It’s high time that you remembered you have two sons. Will you let one of them die uncomforted?”
This story compares well with other historical fiction. In addition to the murder mystery, this tale brings to the reader an understanding of a historical setting which borders on the mythic, an introduction to a medieval craft (in this case, making charcoal), reflections on life then and now, a love story, and the fun of a tale well told.
“He’s innocent enough, God knows, to believe that other men are as honest as he.”
Cadfael series: “Ellis Peters” draws the reader into the twelfth century with modern story telling but holds us there with a richness of detail which evokes a time and place which might as well be fictional. Though the foreground of each chronicle is a murder mystery, behind it people and culture are woven in a wondrous tapestry. Readers seeking a story closer to fact than epic fantasy—where horses run forever, swords never dull, clerics invoke lightning bolts, all steeped in nihilism—should value Edith Pargeter’s series on the life and times of this erstwhile crusader and now monastic.
“Suspicion drapes itself round him like cobwebs on the autumn bush.”
Another excellent excursion into medieval England. Ellis’ world building is worthy the best of fantasy—simultaneously delivering verisimilitude and a sense of other.
“Cadfael … had considerable sympathy with the ardent young, who overdo everything, and take wing at a line of verse of a snatch of music.”
This chronicle explores the matter of love. Not just romantic, but familial and patriotic. What might a man or woman do for someone (or some cause) they truly love. Die for it? Kill for it? Take the blame for another? For a change Ellis keeps the reader in the dark as long as our protagonist. Yet without Cadfael’s snooping, several grave injustices might have gone to the grave. Literally.
“I never knew a postulant to pursue his novitiate with so much passion, and so little joy.”
Moderns, of course, cannot imagine a young person willing exiting life to the discipline and rule of monastic orders. Yet the reader may identify with the motives of at least five of these characters.
“It’s high time that you remembered you have two sons. Will you let one of them die uncomforted?”
This story compares well with other historical fiction. In addition to the murder mystery, this tale brings to the reader an understanding of a historical setting which borders on the mythic, an introduction to a medieval craft (in this case, making charcoal), reflections on life then and now, a love story, and the fun of a tale well told.
“He’s innocent enough, God knows, to believe that other men are as honest as he.”
Cadfael series: “Ellis Peters” draws the reader into the twelfth century with modern story telling but holds us there with a richness of detail which evokes a time and place which might as well be fictional. Though the foreground of each chronicle is a murder mystery, behind it people and culture are woven in a wondrous tapestry. Readers seeking a story closer to fact than epic fantasy—where horses run forever, swords never dull, clerics invoke lightning bolts, all steeped in nihilism—should value Edith Pargeter’s series on the life and times of this erstwhile crusader and now monastic.
July 24, 2021
"Adverbs in dialogue attribution should be illegal," said Jason cheekily.
"Who's Cheekily?" asked the anonymous reader perplexedly.
"I am right now, A.R., I am," said Jason vexedly.
"Well, now you sound more like Mr. Vexedly to me..."
Every one of the many times Peters employed this silly technique, a tiny dad joke slipped out of me. Other than that, this was another enjoyable addition to the series!
"Who's Cheekily?" asked the anonymous reader perplexedly.
"I am right now, A.R., I am," said Jason vexedly.
"Well, now you sound more like Mr. Vexedly to me..."
Every one of the many times Peters employed this silly technique, a tiny dad joke slipped out of me. Other than that, this was another enjoyable addition to the series!
August 7, 2022
Вот этот чтец слишком кряхтит, в моем воображении Кадфаэль пободрее будет!
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August 15, 2022Treba pohvaliti ovu knjigu jer je prva u kojoj nisam pogodila ko je ubica istog momenta kad se pojavio na stranici. Ok, romane o bratu Kadfaelu i ne čitamo zarad zapleta nego zarad opšte utešnosti, ali ovo je bio dobar bonus.
August 20, 2018
I don't love thrillers and, although I love mysteries, would prefer the PG versions. Too much suspense, too many dead bodies, and I back away even if, like Goliath, like The Sopranos, I love them. I prefer my mysteries to be cozies.
I don't think a mystery set in 12th century English abbey can really be a cozy; nonetheless, Ellis Peters' Cadfael series hits the same spot. Cadfael, a Welsh monk, called to a vocation late in a very full life, was accomplished with herbs, medicines, and other kinds of healing. He was adept at studying people while seeming to have no interest in them beyond a serene acceptance that they were in the same world with him (p. 29). His best friend, Hugh Beringar, was deputy-sheriff of Shropshire: They sharpened minds, one upon the other, for the better protection of values and institutions that needed defence with every passing day in a land so shaken and disrupted (p. 17).
The Devil's Novice is the 8th in the Cadfael series. In it, the second son of a manor was unexpectedly sent to the abbey: an inappropriate choice of vocation. About the same time, a promising cleric disappeared. As Cadfael observed, "And yet… you know and I know that because one event follows another, it is not necessary the one should have caused the other. And yet the mind is so constructed, it cannot break the bond between the two.... There is no sensible connection, and I cannot reeve the two apart” (pp. 117-118).
No fingerprints, DNA evidence, facial recognition software, the internet traces, or video evidence – and despite one or two false arrests and confessions – Brother Cadfael and Hugh Beringar solved this crime and set at least this one small part of the world right again.
The Devil's Novice includes a series of three maps (each more focused than the next), as well as a glossary. I wish more books set in different times and places included both.
I don't think a mystery set in 12th century English abbey can really be a cozy; nonetheless, Ellis Peters' Cadfael series hits the same spot. Cadfael, a Welsh monk, called to a vocation late in a very full life, was accomplished with herbs, medicines, and other kinds of healing. He was adept at studying people while seeming to have no interest in them beyond a serene acceptance that they were in the same world with him (p. 29). His best friend, Hugh Beringar, was deputy-sheriff of Shropshire: They sharpened minds, one upon the other, for the better protection of values and institutions that needed defence with every passing day in a land so shaken and disrupted (p. 17).
The Devil's Novice is the 8th in the Cadfael series. In it, the second son of a manor was unexpectedly sent to the abbey: an inappropriate choice of vocation. About the same time, a promising cleric disappeared. As Cadfael observed, "And yet… you know and I know that because one event follows another, it is not necessary the one should have caused the other. And yet the mind is so constructed, it cannot break the bond between the two.... There is no sensible connection, and I cannot reeve the two apart” (pp. 117-118).
No fingerprints, DNA evidence, facial recognition software, the internet traces, or video evidence – and despite one or two false arrests and confessions – Brother Cadfael and Hugh Beringar solved this crime and set at least this one small part of the world right again.
The Devil's Novice includes a series of three maps (each more focused than the next), as well as a glossary. I wish more books set in different times and places included both.
April 4, 2019
Another enjoyable outing into medieval Shrewsbury.
A new novice who doesn't fit in and who carries a dark secret, and the half-charred body of a missing - and murdered - courier. We have the usual mix of likeable and really well-drawn characters around Brother Cadfael I've come to love. And another low-key but beautiful romance.
To my recollection, I've never read any other mysteries set in the middle ages, but I boldly declare Ellis Peters's Cadfael stories to be the best.
(Finished it this morning while my train to work was stuck at Stuttgart-Nordbahnhof. Again. Aargh.)
A new novice who doesn't fit in and who carries a dark secret, and the half-charred body of a missing - and murdered - courier. We have the usual mix of likeable and really well-drawn characters around Brother Cadfael I've come to love. And another low-key but beautiful romance.
To my recollection, I've never read any other mysteries set in the middle ages, but I boldly declare Ellis Peters's Cadfael stories to be the best.
(Finished it this morning while my train to work was stuck at Stuttgart-Nordbahnhof. Again. Aargh.)
January 21, 2023
Too many lies. Not enough truths. Cadfael sat on the side lines
January 2, 2024
It's been thirty-five years since I read a Cadfael book. I started with 'The Leper Of Saint Giles' in 1985, then read 'The Virgin in the Ice' in 1987 and finished with 'The Rose Rent' in 1989. Now that Cadfael and I are of an age, I thought it might be interesting to see whether the books still appeal to me.
The wise thing to have dones would have been to ask friends to recommend the best book and the best narrator to use to re-enter the series.
Unfortunately, I was not wise. I picked the first Cadfael audiobook that Audible offered me for free as part of my membership and found myself listening to an audiobook version of 'The Devil's Novice' that was released in 2000.
It was a disappointing listen. The first shock was how poor the production standards were. The sound level kept dropping every time the narrator moved from dialogue to prose, making it hard to listen without constantly adjusting the volume. The choice of narrator was also a problem. Vanessa Benjamin was fine at the prose parts (once I turned up the volume so that I could hear her) but she had a very limited number of male voices available and a few of them were quite shouty. As all but two of the characters who get to say anything were male, this became annoying. Hugh Beringar was given a deep and loud voice that allowed for no subtlety and it was sometimes difficult to tell him and Cadfael apart.
The narration also made me more critical of the text. I became aware that much of the dialogue seemed to be people making 'this is what we know so far' speaches at each other that went on, often repeated themselves and were full of 'olde-worlde' English that didn't ring true. which was suprising given that Ellis Peters was a linguist.
Some of the plot worked quite well but the pacing was uneven and the wrap-up after the big reveal seemed to go on forever.
So, I definitely picked the wrong audiobook.
Still, it did whet my appetite for Cadfael so I took advice and bought an omnibus of six Cadfael novels narrated by Derek Jacobi. I'll be dipping into throughout 2024.
The wise thing to have dones would have been to ask friends to recommend the best book and the best narrator to use to re-enter the series.
Unfortunately, I was not wise. I picked the first Cadfael audiobook that Audible offered me for free as part of my membership and found myself listening to an audiobook version of 'The Devil's Novice' that was released in 2000.
It was a disappointing listen. The first shock was how poor the production standards were. The sound level kept dropping every time the narrator moved from dialogue to prose, making it hard to listen without constantly adjusting the volume. The choice of narrator was also a problem. Vanessa Benjamin was fine at the prose parts (once I turned up the volume so that I could hear her) but she had a very limited number of male voices available and a few of them were quite shouty. As all but two of the characters who get to say anything were male, this became annoying. Hugh Beringar was given a deep and loud voice that allowed for no subtlety and it was sometimes difficult to tell him and Cadfael apart.
The narration also made me more critical of the text. I became aware that much of the dialogue seemed to be people making 'this is what we know so far' speaches at each other that went on, often repeated themselves and were full of 'olde-worlde' English that didn't ring true. which was suprising given that Ellis Peters was a linguist.
Some of the plot worked quite well but the pacing was uneven and the wrap-up after the big reveal seemed to go on forever.
So, I definitely picked the wrong audiobook.
Still, it did whet my appetite for Cadfael so I took advice and bought an omnibus of six Cadfael novels narrated by Derek Jacobi. I'll be dipping into throughout 2024.
April 28, 2022
Да, как только выяснилось, что новые аудиокниги про Кадфаэля продолжают выкладывать на сторител, я бросила их читать и снова стала слушать — включая и те, что уже прочла!
August 5, 2021
This was a quick book once I found the time to listen to Patrick Tull's marvelous narration. I was leery of the beginning, with the haunted novice at the monastery. However, once Cadfael went to talk to his father and family my interest was caught because this was clearly a mystery with twists and turns. As with most of the mysteries so far, I had a solid sense of the underlying motivation and culprit. Nonetheless I enjoyed this a lot. It had a good section with Brother Mark which I found very rewarding.
September 5, 2021
9/2021: Still four stars for me, I love Cadfael, and especially enjoy listening to the audiobooks for rereads.
2018: Another enjoyable outing with the character who got me hooked on historical mysteries, Brother Cadfael. I reread this book, set in Autumn, to fulfill the Book For All Seasons challenge to read a book set in that season.
I love Cadfael, and I love Ellis Peters’ writing; she portrays the season with lovely descriptions at the beginning of the book, set in early Autumn, of still-warm days, hazy sunshine, apple harvesting, and by the end of the book, winding up in December, there are frosty nights closing in.
The action centers around a young novice, determined to take vows, but haunted by nightmares; Young Meriet screams in the night, terrifying his fellow novices and worrying Abbott Radulfus. With the ongoing civil war between King Stephen and Empress Maud, times are hard and novices harder to come by, but can this young man become a monk when he is clearly troubled? Cadfael must get to the bottom of this puzzle; meanwhile, Hugh Beringar, under-sheriff, must find out what has become of a bishop’s emissary who has disappeared after passing through the family lands of Meriet, the “devil novice” - does his disappearance have anything to do with the boy’s night terrors?
A wonderful, evocative tale, great characters, satisfying puzzle, beautifully told as always!
2018: Another enjoyable outing with the character who got me hooked on historical mysteries, Brother Cadfael. I reread this book, set in Autumn, to fulfill the Book For All Seasons challenge to read a book set in that season.
I love Cadfael, and I love Ellis Peters’ writing; she portrays the season with lovely descriptions at the beginning of the book, set in early Autumn, of still-warm days, hazy sunshine, apple harvesting, and by the end of the book, winding up in December, there are frosty nights closing in.
The action centers around a young novice, determined to take vows, but haunted by nightmares; Young Meriet screams in the night, terrifying his fellow novices and worrying Abbott Radulfus. With the ongoing civil war between King Stephen and Empress Maud, times are hard and novices harder to come by, but can this young man become a monk when he is clearly troubled? Cadfael must get to the bottom of this puzzle; meanwhile, Hugh Beringar, under-sheriff, must find out what has become of a bishop’s emissary who has disappeared after passing through the family lands of Meriet, the “devil novice” - does his disappearance have anything to do with the boy’s night terrors?
A wonderful, evocative tale, great characters, satisfying puzzle, beautifully told as always!
March 11, 2019
First published in 1983, this is the eighth novel in the Chronicles of Brother Cadfael. For a great story it's hard to beat a novel written by Ellis Peters. In this one a younger son is presented to the abbey of Saint Peter and Saint Paul of Shrewsbury as a new entrant into the order, nineteen year old Meriet Aspley, by his father. From the beginning Meriet is a study in contradictions with an unrestful spirit which has an unfortunate way of manifesting itself during times when the abbey should be sleeping. Cadfael knows he must earn the trust of this young man before his year of service is up even though Meriet seem to desperately want to take his vows as quickly as possible.
This is such a good story that it was a real pleasure to read it. A main focus of each of the stories in this series is a mystery that Cadfael solves using skills he learned before he joined the order of the Benedictines. In this one, at least for me, the mystery was almost a background note playing out while the complications in the life of Meriet were discovered. The characters came vividly to life for me and the historical time period was well presented to form the reason this crime and this life changing experience meshed so well together. This is one of my favorite Brother Cadfael stories.
This is such a good story that it was a real pleasure to read it. A main focus of each of the stories in this series is a mystery that Cadfael solves using skills he learned before he joined the order of the Benedictines. In this one, at least for me, the mystery was almost a background note playing out while the complications in the life of Meriet were discovered. The characters came vividly to life for me and the historical time period was well presented to form the reason this crime and this life changing experience meshed so well together. This is one of my favorite Brother Cadfael stories.
August 29, 2022
Another enjoyable visit to the Abbey in 12th century Shropshire. Brother Cadfael and Brother Mark are troubled about the new novice, Meriet of Aspley. It isn’t just his night terrors and incoherent shouts not even his catatonic-like state when he sees blood, but they can’t help but wonder . . . But working at the hospital seems to calm Meriet, especially with the children.
Meanwhile, a priest on a political mission to Shropshire is missing and the deputy sheriff, Hugh Beringar, has all his men searching for him. Of course, Brother Cadfael and Hugh team up to solve both mysteries which are, also of course, connected. All ends happily, except for the villains.
Meanwhile, a priest on a political mission to Shropshire is missing and the deputy sheriff, Hugh Beringar, has all his men searching for him. Of course, Brother Cadfael and Hugh team up to solve both mysteries which are, also of course, connected. All ends happily, except for the villains.
April 30, 2023
Thank goodness for Cadfael to bring some moments of sweet peace. Along the way a bit more history and, of course, plenty of coincidences.
January 21, 2024
Brother Mark is husband material.
October 3, 2017
Plot was mediocre compared to the previous two novels in the series. I had a hard time maintaining interest and often found my attention focusing on other sources of reading material. Still, you can’t help but love Cadfael, so I’ll go for one more.
December 7, 2019
Meriet came to the abbey asking for admittance and acceptance into the order. Cadfael and the other monks weren't completely convinced that he was suitable for the vocation. For one thing Meriet was prone to nightmares and screaming out in sleep, making the other novices afraid of him. Something was obviously preying on the boy's mind.
Few days before Meriet arrived at the abbey, a priest had visited his father's house. After the visitor left, he turned up missing. Later it was discovered that he was murdered. Cadfael is suspicious that Meriet knows something about the murder. What is his connection and whom is he trying to protect? I enjoyed every minute of this book.
Few days before Meriet arrived at the abbey, a priest had visited his father's house. After the visitor left, he turned up missing. Later it was discovered that he was murdered. Cadfael is suspicious that Meriet knows something about the murder. What is his connection and whom is he trying to protect? I enjoyed every minute of this book.
April 30, 2015
This is the third one under my belt now and I am primed for finding some clean paperbacks at my library tomorrow as the series is, of course, old as are the books. This was read out of order because it was brand new condition. This was my favorite of the three, and the true humanity of the character Cadfael shines through. I was glad to meet up with Hugh and his wife, introduced in the second book, and hope their presence continues throughout the series. Time will tell.
October 26, 2024
Ellis Peters per me ha la stessa funzione di Agatha Christie: quando le cose non girano, i loro libri sono il mio "tiramisù". Mi distraggono dai pensieri, mi rilassano, mi tirano su di morale. Avendoli già letti e riletti, non è il "who-dunit" che mi interessa scoprire. Ma proprio immergermi in un mondo diverso ed evadere dalla realtà.
Perciò continuo con la rilettura della serie di fratello Cadfael, rilettura iniziata l'anno scorso, e mi gusto la Shrewsbury medievale.
Perciò continuo con la rilettura della serie di fratello Cadfael, rilettura iniziata l'anno scorso, e mi gusto la Shrewsbury medievale.
March 5, 2011
Another great book. I was glad to see Brother Mark again; he is one of my favorite supporting characters.
December 17, 2018
I have decided that my (somewhat early) New Year's Resolution is to read all of the Cadfael books. There's a lot to like here, certainly.
September 20, 2021
Liked the psychological factor, but the mystery was a bit weak.
December 5, 2019
3.5 stars
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