My wife and I took turns reading this aloud to each other, and I think that we probably were unable to really dive deeply into the setting because of that. I think what I liked most about it, though, was the continual hinting about wider issues going on in the world, specifically the looming battle between Maud and Stephen over the rule of England. I know just enough about the era to not find any errors, and it definitely results in a sense of being hobbits down from the Shire, and troubling the councils of the Great and the Wise.

The story is well paced, with a good climax. Unfortunately, finding the identity of the murder is absolutely trivial - not because the clues are obvious, but because the story attempts to be a romance as well as a whodunit, and the direction the romance goes makes it clear which character must come to a bad end.

I'm sure the major characters are fleshed out through the course of the series. The transient characters were about as well painted as possible given the length of the book.

I'm sure you can pick most of this series up cheaply. I'll definitely be reading more. ( )

Kept me guessing till the last pages. ( )

It's 1139, pretty maiden, lovestruck swains, murderous plots, Benedictine Brother Cadfael in the thick of it. A good light read. ( )

A merchant is found dead the night after a protest march gets out of hand. Was the leader of the protest march to blame? Or are there deeper games afoot? Cadfael investigates as the nobility manoeuvre for power in the run-up to civil war.

Ellis Peters is a great storyteller, even though I still have my doubts about whether she's really caught the social setting quite right. ( )

Yet another enjoyable Brother Cadfael mystery. I am beginning to notice a pattern though How many times in a small medieval town can Brother Cadfael stumble into a murder mystery? How many times can a handsome young man and beautiful young woman be brought to their mutual destiny as a result of Cadfael solving the crime? I’ll keep reading and enjoying these books, but I’d like to see Cadfael use his mind to untangle a mystery other than a murder. ( )