msiduri's Full Review: Ellis Peters - A Morbid Taste for Bones
In 1136, some 475 years after her death, the relics of St. Gwenfrewy were “translated” (i.e. moved) from her grave site in Wales to a shrine in Shrewsbury Abbey. The tale of the removal was duly recorded by one Prior Robert of Shrewsbury.* Using this bit of history as her departure point, author Edith Pargeter (writing as Ellis Peters) weaves enjoyable little tale of an honest enough monk, Brother Cadfael, who is not above a little conniving when it serves the greater good and brings peace.
In this first book of the series, the reader is introduced to Cadfael as a middle-aged monk who has retired to the monastery after a life of some adventure. He walks with the rolling gait of a seaman. He has fought in the Crusades, and even now he recites fondly the names of women he has loved without regret. He tends the abbey's herb garden in contentment, growing vegetables, herbs for cooking and for healing. In chapter, the business meeting of the monastery, he positions himself next to a pillar where he can catch 40 winks undetected, but has also learned the trick of snapping to attention should there be a need.
One of the younger monks, Brother Columbanus, has been having what appear to be ecstatic fits or perhaps episodes of falling disease (epilepsy) which Brother Cadfael treats with a distillation of poppy juice that makes him sleep. Cadfael doesn't take these too seriously. At the same time, Prior Robert has been looking to find some saints' relics to grace their abbey with, and thinks that he may have found a winner in the long neglected grave site of St. Winifred (better known to the Welsh as St. Gwenfrewy). Brother Columbanus has another fit, and after sitting up with him all night, Brother Robert's toady, Brother Jerome, claims to have heard him say that St. Winifred is calling him. Once Brother Columbanus is “cured” at the saint's well, the brothers mount an expedition to bring her relics to Shrewsbury. Cadfael points out that they'll need someone who speaks Welsh, which he does.
Needless to say, the Welsh are not as enthusiastic about parting with their saint as the monks are about taking her off their hands. Harsh words are exchanged, but after tempers cool down, the leader of the opposition, Lord Rhisiart, agrees to talk again with the monks. He never shows, and is found later with an arrow in his belly, the colors of which show it belongs to his workman, who is also in love with his daughter. Many believe the workman killed his master because he refused him his daughter. Many more think the monks must have been involved, since they would gain from his death. Cadfael, working with the grieving daughter, sets up a number of tests that finally a shakes out the guilty party.
While the solution to the mystery was less obvious in the book that in the BBC show, it was still transparent simply by process of elimination. There weren't that many good suspects. But the best part of the book, as with the BBC show, was the mopping up. Reading didn't have the visual impact of watching the show, but it was just as satisfying and just as amusing.
The characters are fully formed. While characters like Prior Robert may be annoying in their arrogance and ambition, there is a basic honesty to them. They are not mere cartoons. There are also some star-crossed lovers that Cadfael manages to set up, a Cadfael staple. The book is great fun, if not great literature.
The ambitious head of Shrewsbury Abbey wants to acquire Saint Winifred's sacred remains for his Benedictine order. And when the ensuing controversy le...More at HotBookSale
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