Ellis Peters (1913–1995)
Author of A Morbid Taste for Bones
About the Author
Ellis Peters is the pseudonym for Edith Pargeter, who was born in Horsehay, Shropshire. She was a chemist's assistant from 1933 to 1940 and participated during World War II in the Women's Royal Navy Service. The name "Ellis Peters" was adopted by Edith Pargeter to clearly mark a division between show more her mystery stories and her other work. Her brother was Ellis and Petra was a friend from Czechoslovakia, thus the name. She came to writing mysteries, she says, "after half a lifetime of novel-writing." Her detective fiction features well-rounded, knowledgeable characters with whom the reader can empathize. Her most famous literary creation is the medieval monk Brother Cadfael. The blend of history and the formula of the detective story gives Peters's works their popular appeal. As detective hero, Brother Cadfael remains faithful to the requirements of the formula, yet the historical milieu in which he operates is both fully realized and well textured. Peters received the Mystery Writers of America's Edgar Award in 1963 and the Crime Writers Association's Silver Dagger Award in 1981. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Image credit: Edith Mary Pargeter ('Ellis Peters'), 1989
Series
Works by Ellis Peters
The Heaven Tree Trilogy: The Heaven Tree, The Green Branch, The Scarlet Seed (1993) 512 copies, 6 reviews
The Brother Cadfael Mysteries: Monk's Hood / The Leper of St. Giles / The Sanctuary Sparrow / One Corpse Too Many (1995) 166 copies, 3 reviews
The Dominic Felse Omnibus (The Piper on The Mountain, Mourning Raga, Death to the Landlords) (1991) 54 copies
Brother Cadfael Omnibus: Dead Man's Ransom | The Pilgrim of Hate | An Excellent Mystery (1999) 34 copies
The Detective Omnibus (City of Gold and Shadows / Flight of a Witch / Funeral of Figaro) (1992) 31 copies, 1 review
The George Felse Omnibus: Fallen Into the Pit; Death and the Joyful Woman; A Nice Derangement of Epitaphs (1994) 30 copies
The Brother Cadfael Mysteries: A Morbid Taste for Bones / The Raven in the Foregate / The Rose Rent (1999) 28 copies
Brother Cadfael Omnibus: The Rose Rent | The Hermit of Eyton Forest | The Raven in the Foregate (2001) 25 copies
The Devil's Novice / The Disappearance of the Saturnalia Silver / Blind Justice / He Came with the Rain (2000) 6 copies
By This Strange Fire 4 copies
Brother Cadfael: Monk's Hood, The Leper of St. Giles, The Sanctuary Sparrow, One Corpse Too Many [enhanced audiotrack] (1999) 4 copies
Let Nothing You Dismay! 2 copies
Cadfael: Series 3 (The Rose Rent | St. Peter's Fair | Raven in the Foregate) [1997 TV episodes] 1 copy
The Duchess and the Doll 1 copy
Monk's Hood [abridged] 1 copy
Historical Whodunnits 1 copy
Associated Works
The Mammoth Book of Historical Whodunits (1993) — Preface; Foreword & Contributor — 611 copies, 4 reviews
Cadfael Country: Shropshire and the Welsh Borders (1990) — Introduction, some editions — 80 copies, 1 review
Who Killed Father Christmas? and Other Seasonal Mysteries (2023) — Contributor — 76 copies, 2 reviews
Bodies from the Library 5: Forgotten Stories of Mystery and Suspense from the Golden Age of Detection (2022) — Contributor — 45 copies, 1 review
Once Upon a Crime: Historical Mysteries From Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine (1994) — Contributor — 29 copies
The Confession of Brother Haluin | Murder on Tour: A Rock'n'Roll Mystery | A Wicked Slice (1989) — Contributor — 2 copies
Cadfael: Series 3-4 — Original books — 2 copies
Cadfael: Series 1-2 — Original books — 1 copy
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Legal name
- Pargeter, Edith Mary
- Other names
- Redfern, John
Carr, Jolyon
Benedict, Peter
Peters, Ellis
Pargeter, Edith - Birthdate
- 1913-09-28
- Date of death
- 1995-10-14
- Gender
- female
- Education
- Dawley Church of England School
Coalbrookdale High School for Girls - Occupations
- author
chemist's assistant
Women's Royal Naval Service (WWII)
historical novelist
translator - Awards and honors
- British Empire Medal (1944)
Cartier Diamond Dagger (1993)
Order of the British Empire (Officer ∙ 1994)
Czechoslovak Society for International Relations, Gold Medal and ribbon (1968) - Short biography
- Edith Mary Pargeter, BEM (September 28, 1913 in Horsehay, Shropshire, England –October 14, 1995) 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, and/or have Welsh protagonists.
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. - Nationality
- UK
- Birthplace
- Horsehay, Shropshire, England, UK
- Places of residence
- Horsehay, Shropshire, England, UK
Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England, UK - Place of death
- Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England, UK
- Burial location
- cremated, ashes scattered
- Map Location
- England, UK
Members
Reviews
Rating: 3.25* of five
Not precisely as expected. The first murder, one which I'd been *panting* after happening since the instant I met the Kraut Eddie Haskell character who is, disappointingly, not boiled in oil after being flayed alive and rolled in finely ground salt, was but the first salvo in war.
The War. Mm, yeah, best to put this into its time and place. England in 1951 was still under rationing. The scars of German bombing were everywhere, and the shift from staunchly capitalist to show more resolutely socialist government had not yet taken hold. The veterans of the fighting were, then as now, seen off with a wave and a pusillanimous "good luck!" from their erstwhile "superiors."
One of those veterans figures in the book as suspect, as well as one point on a love triangle, and strangely enough the schoolmaster-cum-confidant to the peculiarly prominent son of the nominal sleuth. He's got PTSD, as we'd now call it, after half a decade of being a murder machine in order to survive in the wilds of Croatia. And the second murder, of his love-rival, cements his place in the town's mind as The Killer.
But the sleuths? Not so sure. Neither father nor son Felse is at all convinced of Doolally Veteran Dude's desire to murder either victim. Son goes on an extended...more on this anon...search for physical evidence while Father does...does...um. Yeah.
Anyway, the two Felse men end up on the same track in the end and they discover the real murderer's identity due to the same strangely silent clue. They arrive in the same place at the same time, luckily, and they jointly score one for the forces of Right and Justice. But they do so in very different ways, and we only see Son's PoV! What?!
So this is why I'm not giving the book four or more stars. Policeman Felse is largely Father Felse in this book. He's not absent, he's just in a secondary crime-solving position, and that's not quite as satisfying as one might have imagined it to be when plotting out the book, Mme Pargeter/Peters (deceased). Oh, and that third murder? Not quite so sure it was well handled plot and position-wise.
But it was your first mystery, so I shall be kind and not fling it against the wall with panther-screeches of outraged fury. show less
Not precisely as expected. The first murder, one which I'd been *panting* after happening since the instant I met the Kraut Eddie Haskell character who is, disappointingly, not boiled in oil after being flayed alive and rolled in finely ground salt, was but the first salvo in war.
The War. Mm, yeah, best to put this into its time and place. England in 1951 was still under rationing. The scars of German bombing were everywhere, and the shift from staunchly capitalist to show more resolutely socialist government had not yet taken hold. The veterans of the fighting were, then as now, seen off with a wave and a pusillanimous "good luck!" from their erstwhile "superiors."
One of those veterans figures in the book as suspect, as well as one point on a love triangle, and strangely enough the schoolmaster-cum-confidant to the peculiarly prominent son of the nominal sleuth. He's got PTSD, as we'd now call it, after half a decade of being a murder machine in order to survive in the wilds of Croatia. And the second murder, of his love-rival, cements his place in the town's mind as The Killer.
But the sleuths? Not so sure. Neither father nor son Felse is at all convinced of Doolally Veteran Dude's desire to murder either victim. Son goes on an extended...more on this anon...search for physical evidence while Father does...does...um. Yeah.
Anyway, the two Felse men end up on the same track in the end and they discover the real murderer's identity due to the same strangely silent clue. They arrive in the same place at the same time, luckily, and they jointly score one for the forces of Right and Justice. But they do so in very different ways, and we only see Son's PoV! What?!
So this is why I'm not giving the book four or more stars. Policeman Felse is largely Father Felse in this book. He's not absent, he's just in a secondary crime-solving position, and that's not quite as satisfying as one might have imagined it to be when plotting out the book, Mme Pargeter/Peters (deceased). Oh, and that third murder? Not quite so sure it was well handled plot and position-wise.
But it was your first mystery, so I shall be kind and not fling it against the wall with panther-screeches of outraged fury. show less
Warning: this review contains spoilers (albeit for events that are part of the historical record).
This book broke my heart. Edward I should have been ashamed of himself for his appalling treatment of the Welsh. His weaselling with words and dicking around with delay tactics were irritating; his callous breaking up of the princes and princesses of Wales and his grossly disproportionate death sentence for David left me fuming.
Edith Pargeter writes very well to fill matters of historical show more record with suspense and tension, and to bring the personalities to life as characters with whom readers can identify. I especially liked Eleanor and Elizabeth -- Elizabeth's defiant retort to Edward of "YOU were the one who told me to marry David and love and obey him, so anything I do on that score is YOUR fault" was breathtakingly awesome. In your face, Longshanks!
The quartet as a whole is recommended. It's even better to read if you know the area of Gwynedd or can look up pictures as you read. Seeing the landscape will bring home just how much Llywelyn valued the defence of his homeland. show less
This book broke my heart. Edward I should have been ashamed of himself for his appalling treatment of the Welsh. His weaselling with words and dicking around with delay tactics were irritating; his callous breaking up of the princes and princesses of Wales and his grossly disproportionate death sentence for David left me fuming.
Edith Pargeter writes very well to fill matters of historical show more record with suspense and tension, and to bring the personalities to life as characters with whom readers can identify. I especially liked Eleanor and Elizabeth -- Elizabeth's defiant retort to Edward of "YOU were the one who told me to marry David and love and obey him, so anything I do on that score is YOUR fault" was breathtakingly awesome. In your face, Longshanks!
The quartet as a whole is recommended. It's even better to read if you know the area of Gwynedd or can look up pictures as you read. Seeing the landscape will bring home just how much Llywelyn valued the defence of his homeland. show less
For slower paced, traditional mysteries that are very skilfully written, you can't go wrong with Brother Cadfael. When Peters created a crusader turned monk, she gave herself a large canvas on which to paint a variety of clever, interesting crimes.
The Leper of St. Giles takes place largely in and around St. Giles, the hospice for lepers that lies just outside Shrewsbury, but it's largely about the wedding of an 18 year old girl, sold off by her guardians for a large portion of her own show more inheritance, to a cold, unfeeling 60-something land baron who only bought her lands and is taking her on sufferance. Of course she's fragile and innocent and lovely and of course his squire is around the bend in love with her and incandescent over the injustice of her treatment. And of course the baron ends up murdered.
There's a plot twist in this book; a rather major one, but it's telegraphed early on, so that I knew long before it was revealed. It's a good one, but if Peters hadn't split the difference, the early guess would have ruined the story. As it is, Peters seems to have covered her bets and kept that reveal from being absolutely pivotal to the plot, making the ultimate solution a surprise, and a tragic one at that.
A few of the series characters readers enjoy aren't here in this book, but there are other characters that endear themselves to the reader. There's a bit of humor here and there too, making this a much more enjoyable read than the last, St. Peters' Fair, which was a good story but dragged. I'd be best pleased if we saw Bran and Joscelin again, though I'm not counting on it. show less
The Leper of St. Giles takes place largely in and around St. Giles, the hospice for lepers that lies just outside Shrewsbury, but it's largely about the wedding of an 18 year old girl, sold off by her guardians for a large portion of her own show more inheritance, to a cold, unfeeling 60-something land baron who only bought her lands and is taking her on sufferance. Of course she's fragile and innocent and lovely and of course his squire is around the bend in love with her and incandescent over the injustice of her treatment. And of course the baron ends up murdered.
There's a plot twist in this book; a rather major one, but it's telegraphed early on, so that I knew long before it was revealed. It's a good one, but if Peters hadn't split the difference, the early guess would have ruined the story. As it is, Peters seems to have covered her bets and kept that reveal from being absolutely pivotal to the plot, making the ultimate solution a surprise, and a tragic one at that.
A few of the series characters readers enjoy aren't here in this book, but there are other characters that endear themselves to the reader. There's a bit of humor here and there too, making this a much more enjoyable read than the last, St. Peters' Fair, which was a good story but dragged. I'd be best pleased if we saw Bran and Joscelin again, though I'm not counting on it. show less
A Morbid Taste for Bones (The Chronicles of Brother Cadfael) by Peters, Ellis(November 25, 2014) Paperback by Ellis Peters
Summary: Cadfael is part of a group commissioned to retrieve the bones of a Welsh saint. When the one leading landowner who opposes the removal is murdered, Cadfael helps his daughter find the murder, avenging his death.
There was a time in the 1980’s and 1990’s when a number of friends went on about the Brother Cadfael stories and television adaptations. Somehow, I missed all that. Perhaps I was reading other things at the time (I was pursuing graduate studies). So I apologize if all show more this is old news to you. I’m just now discovering these wonderful stories. But for those who are like me….
Ellis Peters (Edith Mary Pargeter) wrote twenty stories (and one collection of short stories) in this series between 1977 and 1994, the last published shortly before her death in 1995. The central character is Brother Cadfael, as you might have suspected, a Welsh Benedictine monk who is a gardener, herbalist and sometime doctor, as well as translator and medical examiner. He came to the Abbey at Shrewsbury later in life after service as a crusader and sea captain. His wide experience made him a shrewd observer of human nature, a skill he draws on to solve deaths by mysterious means in this series.
In this first in the series, Cadfael is part of a delegation sent to Gwytherin to retrieve the remains of St. Winifred, after a vision by Brother Columbanus, who has “fits” and sees visions, speaking of her grave being neglected. This is important to the standing of the Abbey at Shrewsbury, which has no relics. The bishop and the prince of Gwynedd (who later comes off as a very sensible chap as do all the Welsh), consent. Prior Robert, ambitious for the abbey, leads the delegation with Cadfael along to translate. They are also accompanied by Brother Columbanus, Brother John, whose fitness for the celibate life is quesionable, as well as Sub-Prior Richard and Prior Roberts clerk Jerome.
The delegation is received warmly but Father Huw, the local priest, advises a meeting with the free men of the parish to gain there consent. One of the most influential, Risiart, is resistant. In a private meeting Prior Robert attempts to bribe him and discovers he has run up against a man of true integrity. Risiart breaks off all talks and the others follow his lead. Father Huw attempts to patch things up and Risiart agrees to another meeting with Prior Robert the next day–but he never shows up–unusual for this man. A search finds him lying dead on a forest path along the way, apparently from an arrow through the heart.
The leading suspect is Engelard, an Englishman who works for Risiart and who has fallen in love with Risiart’s daughter, Sioned. So far, although they get along, Risiart has refused to give her hand in marriage. The hope is that she will marry Peredur, the son of a neighboring landowner and friend of Sioned since childhood. He loves her but she has only the affection of a friend.
Cadfael investigates. The arrow bears Engelard’s mark, but the angle is all wrong. The pattern of dampness is all wrong. Closer examination of the body shows his assailant stabbed him in the back with a downward blow, and then after death, the arrow was inserted angling upward from the front, following the wound pathway.
In Welsh tradition, it falls to the family to see that a murder is avenged. Risiart’s family is Sioned. Some of the best passages in the book are those in which Cadfael communicates understanding of this need and then works withi Sioned to find the killer, all the while walking a delicate balance with Prior Robert’s ambitions, the amorous feelings of Brother John and the further commanding visions of Brother Columbanus.
I see what people like about Cadfael. While a monk, he is no prude, nor is he naive. He understands both sexuality and ambition, acknowledging that were he a younger man, he would have been one of Sioned’s suitors! He works quietly toward resolution while Prior Robert gains the fame, though we discover that he might not have gained what he thought! Cadfael shows a marvelous degree of self-possession that enables him to care for others and to pursue justice, to act with shrewdness that mends both personal wounds and the social fabric. show less
There was a time in the 1980’s and 1990’s when a number of friends went on about the Brother Cadfael stories and television adaptations. Somehow, I missed all that. Perhaps I was reading other things at the time (I was pursuing graduate studies). So I apologize if all show more this is old news to you. I’m just now discovering these wonderful stories. But for those who are like me….
Ellis Peters (Edith Mary Pargeter) wrote twenty stories (and one collection of short stories) in this series between 1977 and 1994, the last published shortly before her death in 1995. The central character is Brother Cadfael, as you might have suspected, a Welsh Benedictine monk who is a gardener, herbalist and sometime doctor, as well as translator and medical examiner. He came to the Abbey at Shrewsbury later in life after service as a crusader and sea captain. His wide experience made him a shrewd observer of human nature, a skill he draws on to solve deaths by mysterious means in this series.
In this first in the series, Cadfael is part of a delegation sent to Gwytherin to retrieve the remains of St. Winifred, after a vision by Brother Columbanus, who has “fits” and sees visions, speaking of her grave being neglected. This is important to the standing of the Abbey at Shrewsbury, which has no relics. The bishop and the prince of Gwynedd (who later comes off as a very sensible chap as do all the Welsh), consent. Prior Robert, ambitious for the abbey, leads the delegation with Cadfael along to translate. They are also accompanied by Brother Columbanus, Brother John, whose fitness for the celibate life is quesionable, as well as Sub-Prior Richard and Prior Roberts clerk Jerome.
The delegation is received warmly but Father Huw, the local priest, advises a meeting with the free men of the parish to gain there consent. One of the most influential, Risiart, is resistant. In a private meeting Prior Robert attempts to bribe him and discovers he has run up against a man of true integrity. Risiart breaks off all talks and the others follow his lead. Father Huw attempts to patch things up and Risiart agrees to another meeting with Prior Robert the next day–but he never shows up–unusual for this man. A search finds him lying dead on a forest path along the way, apparently from an arrow through the heart.
The leading suspect is Engelard, an Englishman who works for Risiart and who has fallen in love with Risiart’s daughter, Sioned. So far, although they get along, Risiart has refused to give her hand in marriage. The hope is that she will marry Peredur, the son of a neighboring landowner and friend of Sioned since childhood. He loves her but she has only the affection of a friend.
Cadfael investigates. The arrow bears Engelard’s mark, but the angle is all wrong. The pattern of dampness is all wrong. Closer examination of the body shows his assailant stabbed him in the back with a downward blow, and then after death, the arrow was inserted angling upward from the front, following the wound pathway.
In Welsh tradition, it falls to the family to see that a murder is avenged. Risiart’s family is Sioned. Some of the best passages in the book are those in which Cadfael communicates understanding of this need and then works withi Sioned to find the killer, all the while walking a delicate balance with Prior Robert’s ambitions, the amorous feelings of Brother John and the further commanding visions of Brother Columbanus.
I see what people like about Cadfael. While a monk, he is no prude, nor is he naive. He understands both sexuality and ambition, acknowledging that were he a younger man, he would have been one of Sioned’s suitors! He works quietly toward resolution while Prior Robert gains the fame, though we discover that he might not have gained what he thought! Cadfael shows a marvelous degree of self-possession that enables him to care for others and to pursue justice, to act with shrewdness that mends both personal wounds and the social fabric. show less
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You May Also Like
Associated Authors
Statistics
- Works
- 149
- Also by
- 65
- Members
- 58,398
- Popularity
- #247
- Rating
- 3.9
- Reviews
- 1,062
- ISBNs
- 1,757
- Languages
- 25
- Favorited
- 171
