Brother Cadfael medieval mysteries

On an expedition to acquire a saint's remains, Brother Cadfael instead finds intrigue and murder It is 1137, and the ambitious head of Shrewsbury Abbey wishes to acquire the remains of Saint Winifred for the glory of his Benedictine order. Brother Cadfael is part of the expedition sent to the saint's final resting place in Wales, where he finds the villagers divided over the Benedictines' quest.   When the leading opponent to moving the grave is...

Brother Cadfael is confounded when his own potion is used to kill his former love's new husband Gervase Bonel is a guest of Shrewsbury Abbey of Saint Peter and Saint Paul when he suddenly takes ill. Luckily, the abbey boasts the services of the clever and kindly Brother Cadfael, a skilled herbalist. Cadfael hurries to the man's bedside, only to be confronted with two surprises: In Master Bonel's wife, the good monk recognizes Richildis, whom he loved...

Brother Cadfael must travel to the heart of a leper colony to root out the secret to a savage murder Setting out for the Saint Giles leper colony outside Shrewsbury, Brother Cadfael has more pressing matters on his mind than the grand wedding coming to his abbey. But as fate would have it, Cadfael arrives at Saint Giles just as the nuptial party passes the colony's gates.   He sees the fragile bride looking like a prisoner between her two stern guardians...

Brother Cadfael races to save a young man he believes is falsely accused of robbery-before the protection of sanctuary expires In the gentle Shrewsbury spring of 1140, the midnight matins at the Benedictine abbey suddenly reverberate with an unholy sound-a hunt in full cry. Pursued by a drunken mob, the quarry is running for its life. When the frantic creature bursts into the nave to claim sanctuary, Brother Cadfael finds himself fighting off armed...

Brother Cadfael must intervene when a prisoner exchange is interrupted by love and murder In February of 1141, men march home from war to Shrewsbury, but the captured sheriff Gilbert Prestcote is not among them. Elis, a young Welsh prisoner, is delivered to the Abbey of Saint Peter and Saint Paul to begin a tale that will test Brother Cadfael's sense of justice-and his heart.   By good fortune, it seems, the prisoner can be exchanged as Sheriff Prestcote's...

Two monks seeking refuge bring with them a troubling mystery that will test Brother Cadfael's beliefs In the year of our Lord 1141, August comes in golden as a lion, and two monks ride into the Benedictine Abbey of Saint Peter and Saint Paul bringing with them disturbing news of war-and a mystery.   The strangers tell how the strife between the Empress Maud and King Stephen has destroyed the town of Winchester and their priory. Now Brother Humilis,...

A young widow's gain could be the abbey's loss if Brother Cadfael can't unravel a thorny case of murder A late spring in 1142 brings dismay to the Abbey of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, for there may be no roses by June 22. On that day the young widow Perle must receive one white rose as rent for the house she has given to benefit the abbey, or the contract is void. When nature finally complies, a pious monk is sent to pay the rent-and is found murdered...

When a monk survives a tragic injury, he enlists Brother Cadfael to help him right the wrongs revealed in his deathbed confession Winter arrived early in 1142, bringing with it a heavy snowfall. The safety of the guest-hall roof at the Benedictine Abbey of St. Peter and St. Paul comes into jeopardy, and the brothers are called upon to effect repairs. But the icy and treacherous conditions are to prove near fatal for Brother Haluin. He slips from the...

When a newly plowed field recently given to the Benedictine Abbey of Saint Peter and Saint Paul yields the body of a young woman, Brother Cadfael is quickly thrown into a delicate situation. The field was once owned by a local potter named Ruald, who had abandoned his beautiful wife, Generys, to take monastic vows. Generys was said to have gone away with a lover, but now it seems as if she had been murdered. With the arrival at the abbey of young...

Two groups seek refuge from the rain at Brother Cadfael's abbey, bringing with them mystery and mayhem In the chill, rainy autumn of 1144, two groups of visitors seek the hospitality of the Abbey of St. Peter and St. Paul, and Brother Cadfael fears trouble has come in with them. Among the first arrivals is Brother Tutilo, a young Benedictine with a guileless face and-to Brother Cadfael's shrewd eyes-a mischievous intelligence. The second group, a...

Three vintage tales reveal how a former crusader became literature's greatest mystery-solving monk "Brother Cadfael sprang to life suddenly and unexpectedly when he was already approaching sixty, mature, experienced, fully armed and seventeen years tonsured." So writes Ellis Peters in her introduction to A Rare Benedictine-three vintage tales of intrigue and treachery featuring the monastic sleuth who has become the best-loved ecclesiastical detective...