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The Confession of Brother Haluin (Cadfael Chronicles)

Ellis Peters

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 14 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

More Romantic Than Mysterious 4 out of 5 stars.
4 of 4 people found this review helpful.

THE CONFESSION OF BROTHER HALUIN is the fifteenth installment in Ellis Peters' Cadfael series. These tales provide a romanticized vision of life in twelfth century England, making the times seem so pleasant that you almost want to live there. The countryside is lovely, there is generally a hint of romance in the air, and life moves at a measured, unrushed pace. No pavement, no pollution, and no hustle and bustle. Glossed over are the poverty, poor nutrition, disease, and general stench (people rarely bathed). Life, especially in the cloister, is peaceful and idyllic.

In this story, Brother Haluin is badly injured in a fall. Fearing for his life, Haluin makes a sickbed confession to Cadfael and Abbot Radulfus. He tells of a burden of guilt, carried since his youth, over a love affair that ended badly. Upon his recovery, Haluin pledges to embark on a pilgrimage to his old home. With Cadfael as his companion, he makes the hard journey only to meet with some surprises. A murder soon follows. Is there a connection between this new death and Haluin's troubled past? Trust Cadfael to uncover the truth.

This story poses some intriguing problems, but the answers are frequently quite transparent. Suspense and surprising twists aren't Peters' strong suit. Instead, she specializes in pleasant tales with happy endings, delivered in a beguiling prose style. She runs true to form in THE CONFESSION OF BROTHER HALUIN. The outcome is a happy one, if not hard to see coming, and the experience is a pleasing one.

Like most of the books in this series, THE CONFESSION OF BROTHER HALUIN is a very ordinary mystery. What makes this and the other Cadfael tales enjoyable is the pleasant world Peters creates and the charming, unhurried way in which she tells the tale. The Cadfael books are nice to read and, on the strength of that, I recommend them. You will find them especially enjoyable if you like a bit of history and some romance along with your whodunit.

Editorial Review:

In the winter of 1142, snow blankets the Benedictine Abbey of Saint Peter and Saint Paul causing damage to the guest hall, and the brothers must repair its roof before the danger worsens. The treacherously icy conditions are to prove nigh fatal for Brother Haluin when he slips from the roof in a terrible fall, sustaining such grave injuries that he makes his deathbed confession to the Abbot and Brother Cadfael. A startling story of trespasses hard for God or man to forgive emerges. But Haluin does not die. On his recovery, he sets out on a journey of expiation, with Cadfael as his sole companion. An arduous trip, it leads to horrifying discoveries. And to murder...

Rainbow's End (An Inspector George Felse Mystery)

Ellis Peters

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 2 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

The Last of Felse 4 out of 5 stars.
6 of 6 people found this review helpful.

Best known for her "Brother Cadfael" series, Ellis Peters (1913-1985) was also the author of thirteen novels featuring Inspector George Felse. Published in 1978, RAINBOW'S END is the last novel in that series.

Peters typically works with contrived plots, and this novel is in some ways typical; RAINBOW repeatedly asks the reader to accept the implausible as plausible. Even so, Peters has a knack for making such plots entertaining, and this brightly written story of an unlikeable antiques dealer who plunges from a church tower is lightly written and quite entertaining.

Felse makes his final appearance having been promoted to head of the Midshire C.I.D. and there are numerous brightly-written characters, most notably Barbara Rainbow and Willie-the-Twig, to round out the novel. It's all good fun.

GFT, Amazon Reviewer

Editorial Review:

When someone pushes a troublesome newcomer from the steeple of St. Eata's church, Superintendent George Felse is charged with sifting through a long list of suspects to catch the killer. Reprint.

Third Cadfael Omnibus: "Sanctuary Sparrow", "Devil's Novice" and "Dead Man's Ransom"

Ellis Peters

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 1 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

The Sanctuary Sparrow: Sudden drama strikes the Benadictine monastery at Shrewsbury when a young man, pursued by a lynching mob, claims sanctuary just in time to save his life. Cadfael senses the young man's innocence and sets out to solve yet another tangle of human passions where love plays its inevitable part. The Devil's Novice: The Benedictine monastery at Shrewsbury finds its new novice Meriet Aspley a disturbing presence. Meek and bidable by day, his sleep is rent with nightmares so violent as to earn him the nickname of Devil's Novice. Can Meriet be involved in the nearby disappearance of a superior prelate? As events take a sinister turn, it falls to Brother Cadfael to detect the truth behind the young man's predicament. Dead Man's Ransom: In the battle of Lincoln, the sherrif of Shropshire is captured and the King himself taken prisoner by his enemies. Nothing more natural than that an exchange of prisoners should take place. But before this can be completed, one captive is murdered. And to Brother Cadfael, who notices the evidence of unnatural death, falls the task of gathering enough clues to prove it.

The Fourth Cadfael Omnibus

Ellis Peters

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Editorial Review:

The Pilgrim of Hate: As the pilgrims gather at Shrewsbury, in distant Winchester a knight has been murdered. Among the throng of pilgrims, some strange customers indeed begin to puzzle Brother Cadfael, and as events unfold it becomes clear that the murder is a much less remote affair that it first seemed. An Excellent Mystery: In 1141 England is still torn by civic strife. Among the victims of the carnage is the Abbey of Hyde Meade, totally destroyed. But as its brothers attempt to rebuild their lives, old wounds are re-opened, painfully relived and harsh deeds committed. Only Brother Cadfael can ultimately distinguish between victim, innocent and guilty party. The Raven in the Foregate: Abbot Radulfus returns from London, bringing with him a priest for the vacant living of the Holy Cross (known as the Foregate)- a man of scholarship and discipline, but not humility. When he is found drowned in the millpond, suspicion is cast in many directions...and only the perseverance of Brother Cadfael can unravel the threads that lead to the murderer.

Death and the Joyful Woman

Ellis Peters

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 3 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

"Death and the Joyful Woman": Rediscovering the Felses 5 out of 5 stars.
25 of 25 people found this review helpful.

Is vulgarity grounds for murder? Alfred Armiger had antagonized many with his greed and crass acquisitiveness. So when the ruthless beer baron is discovered dead, his head beaten in by a magnum of champagne, there is no shortage of suspects. But all of Comerford is shocked with Detective George Felse arrests Kitty Norris, the daughter of a rival beer baron, the last person to see Armiger alive, and the main beneficiary of his will! But Kitty, charming and popular, has an unexpected advocate in Felse's young son, Dominic, who secretly adores her. Passionately convinced of Kitty's innocence, Dominic sets out to find the true culprit, a hazardous undertaking that might well cost him his life!

Best known for the Brother Cadfael mysteries, Ellis Peters actually wrote the Felse series first, but until recent years, these appealing books have been out of print in the United States. "Death and the Joyful Woman," which received an Edgar Award, deserves a warm welcome from American readers. Peters has told not only an engaging mystery but a sensitive coming-of-age story as well. Characters and relationships are sharply delineated--Dominic is a highly likable teen sleuth and his interactions with his parents, especially his father, are both amusing and touching. And a subplot concerning a struggling young couple and an unusual painting--the Joyful Woman of the title--proves just as involving as the main storyline. Readers of "Fallen into the Pit," Peters' first Felse mystery, may notice that the method Dominic uses to flush out the murderer is similar to the one he employs here, but this is a minor quibble in an otherwise excellent novel. Highly recommended.

Editorial Review:

Sixteen-year-old Dominic Felse is horrified when his heiress girlfriend, Kitty Norris, is charged with murder by his father, Inspector George Felse of the Comerford Police, and his quest for the truth has deadly consequences. Reprint. PW.

The Fifth Cadfael Omnibus: "Rose Rent", "Hermit of Eyton Forest", "Confession of Brother Haluin"

Ellis Peters

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Editorial Review:

THE ROSE RENT: A young woman, recently widowed bestows one of her properties on the Abbey of Shrewsbury. In return she expects an annual rent of a single rose. But such a beautfiul and wealthy woman is an attractive proposition for suitors. Someone it seems will stop at nothing to prevent the payment of the rose- not even murder. THE HERMIT OF EYTON FOREST: Ten year old Richard Ludel has become the new Lord of Eaton following the death of his father and is expected to make a marriage of convenience. But Richard befriends the young companion of Cuthred the Hermit who has recently taken up residence at Eyton Forest; a place of peace. But its tranquility is shattered by the discovery of a corpse. THE CONFESSION OF BROTHER HAULIN: Brother Haulin slips from the roof of the Abbey and makes his deathbed confession to the Abbot and Brother Cadfael. When Haulin recovers he sets on an arduous journey of expiation, with Cadfael as his sole companion. It is a journey which leads to some shocking revelations, and eventually to murder.

Seventh Cadfael Omnibus

Ellis Peters

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Editorial Review:

THE HOLY THIEF: At the height of the hot summer of 1144, the abbey at Ramsey is in danger. When heavy rain brings the threat of floods to Shrewsbury and the holy relics must be removed to a place of safety, the subsiding waters reveal a robbery has been committed. The master sleuthing of Brother Cadfael is put to the test once more, but to the crime of theft is soon added a murder...BROTHER CADFAEL'S PENANCE: In the year of our Lord 1145, the bitter rift between King Stephen and Empress Maud at last has a chance of reconciliation, particularly the question of the prisoners of war. Brother Cadfael learns that amongst the prisoner is Olivier de Bretagne; his son. His determination to come to his son's aid prompts a perplexing investigation of a uniquely personal nature. A RARE BENEDICTINE: In these three vintage tales of intrigue and treachery: 'A Light on the Road to Woodstock,' 'The Price of Light' and 'Eye Witness,' emerges the events that have turned Cadfael from a crusading and seafaring past to the momentous decision of entering the Benedictine Order of the Abbey of St Peter and St Paul.

The Trinity Cat: And Other Mysteries

Ellis Peters

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 1 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Recommended 5 out of 5 stars.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.

This is a charming collection of short contemporary mysteries by Ellis Peters, best known for her medieval Brother Cadfael stories. All of the selections (which range from the 1950s to 1990s) are extremely good and display a command of the English language, a sense of plot and style, and a delicate touch in characterization that is far too rare today. Some are straight British country procedurals, some romance-mysteries, and there are also a few experimental pieces. Influences include Conan Doyle and Dorothy Sayers, but the stories are uniquely Peter's own.

Fallen Into the Pit (An Inspector George Felse Mystery)

Ellis Peters

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 5 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

A great modern English mystery, best she's written. 5 out of 5 stars.
12 of 13 people found this review helpful.

This was one of the best mysteries I have ever read. I came upon it by accident, not even knowing if it were a mystery or not. It is a wonderful successor to the great writers of the original English mystery. George Felse ranks up there with Poirot and Holmes, but shows a bit more humanity. The other characters, also, show qualities that make you forget that you're reading. The plot, I'm sure, will perplex you and will have you back for more Ellis Peters. I will say that after reading most of the Felse mysteries and a few Cadfael that Felse is better, but this one is the best in the lot.

Deep, insightful, and brilliant 5 out of 5 stars.
5 of 5 people found this review helpful.

After reading almost all of Ellis Peters' Cadfael mysteries, I decided to give her other works a try, just to see if they could possibly compare. Well, to say I was surprised at what a fantastic novel this is can only be appreciated by those who have read and marveled at the brilliant Cadfael series.

Peters has created not only a very suspenseful and intriguing whodunnit, but a work of great depth, warmth, humor, and tragedy, full of complex character studies and profound insights into human nature, the effects of war, and how the murder of a man whom everyone hated anyway still rips apart the fabric of a small, close-knit community. And above it all emerges a playful, lighthearted banter between a precocious 13-year-old and his loving parents which is absolutely delightful to read. Somewhere around the middle of the book, after she has painted a vivid picture for us of the people, place, and times, young Dominic becomes central as the book's primary protagonist, and I cannot think of a more well-suited character to carry this novel.

As for the mystery itself, it was simply ingenious, better than many of the Cadfael mysteries, some of which are fairly easy to solve. This one had me on my toes until the very end, and threw some whopping surprises in along the way.

This is truly a work of genius, many-layered, lovingly crafted, and brilliantly well-told. Good luck finding another modern author who can come close to this level of accomplishment. Peters' work deserves much more acclaim than it has received.

Editorial Review:

A World War II Resistance hero and popular modern-day anti-violence speaker is accused of murdering a former German prisoner of war, and policeman George Felse must stop his son from getting too close to the investigation. Reprint. PW.

Brother Cadfael's Book of Days: The Material and Spiritual Wisdom of a Medieval Crusader-monk

Ellis Peters

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Editorial Review:

From the Brother Cadfael oeuvre comes a book of quotations for each day of the year. These words of wisdom are extracted from Ellis Peters' popular novels and are divided into the four seasons, each illustrated with illuminated letters.