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With one civil war on hold, Brother Cadfael returns home, only to stumble into another bloody conflict In the summer of 1144, a strange calm has settled over England. The armies of King Stephen and the Empress Maud, the two royal cousins contending for the throne, have temporarily exhausted each other. On the whole, Brother Cadfael considers peace a blessing. Still, a little excitement never comes amiss to a former soldier, and Cadfael is delighted to accompany a friend on a mission of show more diplomacy to his native Wales. But shortly after their arrival, the two monks are caught up in another royal feud. The Welsh prince Owain Gwynedd has banished his brother Cadwaladr, accusing him of the treacherous murder of an ally. The reckless Cadwaladr has retaliated by landing an army of Danish mercenaries, poised to invade Wales. As the two armies teeter on the brink of bloody civil war, Cadfael is captured by the Danes and must navigate the brotherly quarrel that threatens to plunge an entire kingdom into chaos. show lessTags
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Six-word review: Loyalty drives this unusual Cadfael adventure.
Extended review:
Brother Cadfael is even more of a bystander in this episode than he has been in other recent installments in the series. I can't even say that his role is to bear witness, much less advise, because far too great a portion of the action and interaction takes place outside his ken.
What's more, the mystery, to the extent that there is any, is so peripheral to the story that by the time the culprit is revealed, it's pretty much a matter of indifference.
Yet for all that, this is a Cadfael novel, and it has the delectable language, the atmosphere, and the vivid historicity that characterize the series. If our favorite twelfth-century monastic detective hasn't very show more much to do, that's all right. It's fine just to be in his company.
And what this eighteenth chronicle does have is the drama of contending brother princes, clashing warriors, marauding invaders, ambitious clerics, and a runaway bride. In the hands of a confident and accomplished author, the depiction of secular and ecclesiastical conflict and diplomacy in medieval Wales comes to life. Ties of blood and fealty work opposition between a pair of Welsh nobles and their followers, while a band of seagoing Danish mercenaries from Ireland show their code of honor as well as their raider skills. Loyalty and allegiance, deception and betrayal play out under Cadfael's observant eye. Despite peril and captivity, it's clear that the good Benedictine, once a man of arms and action himself, enjoys being a spectator close to the fray. show less
Extended review:
Brother Cadfael is even more of a bystander in this episode than he has been in other recent installments in the series. I can't even say that his role is to bear witness, much less advise, because far too great a portion of the action and interaction takes place outside his ken.
What's more, the mystery, to the extent that there is any, is so peripheral to the story that by the time the culprit is revealed, it's pretty much a matter of indifference.
Yet for all that, this is a Cadfael novel, and it has the delectable language, the atmosphere, and the vivid historicity that characterize the series. If our favorite twelfth-century monastic detective hasn't very show more much to do, that's all right. It's fine just to be in his company.
And what this eighteenth chronicle does have is the drama of contending brother princes, clashing warriors, marauding invaders, ambitious clerics, and a runaway bride. In the hands of a confident and accomplished author, the depiction of secular and ecclesiastical conflict and diplomacy in medieval Wales comes to life. Ties of blood and fealty work opposition between a pair of Welsh nobles and their followers, while a band of seagoing Danish mercenaries from Ireland show their code of honor as well as their raider skills. Loyalty and allegiance, deception and betrayal play out under Cadfael's observant eye. Despite peril and captivity, it's clear that the good Benedictine, once a man of arms and action himself, enjoys being a spectator close to the fray. show less
Although I strongly resent the idea that a woman can fall in love with a man who kidnaps her, no matter what the circumstances (see Victoria Holt rant), the story is great. Exciting, lots of twists and turns, and many suprising endings. I've found Ellis Peters Cadfael novels to be a mixed bag but this one I liked. It read as a mediaeval story, not as a modern story reset in the times of the Crusdaes. The only major grip was a guide to Welsh name pronounciation would have been very welcome.
Brothers Cadfael and Mark head into Wales on a diplomatic mission that escalates into conflict between Welsh royalty and Danish invaders. Not so much a mystery as an interesting story about 12th Century politics and relationships.
Sent as an interpreter on a diplomatic ecclesiastical mission from the Bishop of Coventry to the Bishops of St. Asaph and Bangor, Cadfael gets caught up in a dynastic feud between two Welsh princes and then gets kidnapped in an invasion by Danish mercenaries from the kingdom of Dublin.
This story was an exciting one with lots of tension and historical interest, but the actual murder wasn't really necessary. Cadfael found the body and happened to be present for the murderer's deathbed confession but otherwise the murder was irrelevant to the story.
This story was an exciting one with lots of tension and historical interest, but the actual murder wasn't really necessary. Cadfael found the body and happened to be present for the murderer's deathbed confession but otherwise the murder was irrelevant to the story.
Somehow this one missed the boat with me. The murder mystery of who killed Bledri was seconded by the invasion of the Danes from Dublin hired by Cadawaldr, brother of Owain to regain his usurped land. However, Owain is not easily intimidated and is not willing to go to war for no reason. I always enjoy the characters and storyline but this time, it seemed to ramble more than I would like.
Interesting variation in this series. Cadfael is more of an observer than a mystery solver. His role is more passive than active. But still a very engaging story and a deeper look into his character as he ages.
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Title: The Summer of the Danes
Series: Brother Cadfael #18
Author: Ellis Peters
Rating: 2.5 of 5 Stars
Genre: Mystery
Pages: 288
Format: Digital Edition
Synopsis:
A new Bishop/Prelate/Priest/Authority Figure has been invested in an area long neglected along the Welsh border. Brother Mark has been sent with gifts from his boss to let the new guys know he fully supports them. Since Mark doesn't speak Welsh, Cadfael goes along for the ride.
There are politics show more galore, as the New Boss isn't Welsh and there are Welsh issues. Two brothers are fighting and one comes back with a bunch of Danes to take what he wants. The Danes end up with Mark, Cadfael and a young woman named Hellend as hostages. Thngs happen, some people die, money, power, blah, blah, blah.
The hostages are released, the Danes go back to Ireland and Hellend, who was to marry one of the men of the Good Brother, skips out of town to hook up with a big brawny Dane. Cadfael returns to his Abbey and realizes that he hasn't really left the world behind. He still wants to travel.
My Thoughts:
It wasn't that this was any worse than any of the previous books, but my goodness, I am getting thoroughly tired of these non-Cadfael adventures. Thank goodness there are only 3 more to go.
This book did convince me to NOT start another medieval mystery series when I finish up this one. I was contemplating the Sister Frevisse series but after barely making it through this book, I've realized I've reached my limit.
This was not bad by any means. It was just more of the same. Cadfael is a witness to the events, not an active participant. I am wondering about trying a completely different genre to replace these when I'm done. I'm already reading “Western” with L'Amours Sackets and I've got the SFF side of things more than adequately covered. Crime/Noir is not a genre I enjoy and while I'd like to get into some long running Action/Adventure/Thriller series, I'm not sure where to go. Eh, whatever. I'll find something.
★★☆☆½ show less
Title: The Summer of the Danes
Series: Brother Cadfael #18
Author: Ellis Peters
Rating: 2.5 of 5 Stars
Genre: Mystery
Pages: 288
Format: Digital Edition
Synopsis:
A new Bishop/Prelate/Priest/Authority Figure has been invested in an area long neglected along the Welsh border. Brother Mark has been sent with gifts from his boss to let the new guys know he fully supports them. Since Mark doesn't speak Welsh, Cadfael goes along for the ride.
There are politics show more galore, as the New Boss isn't Welsh and there are Welsh issues. Two brothers are fighting and one comes back with a bunch of Danes to take what he wants. The Danes end up with Mark, Cadfael and a young woman named Hellend as hostages. Thngs happen, some people die, money, power, blah, blah, blah.
The hostages are released, the Danes go back to Ireland and Hellend, who was to marry one of the men of the Good Brother, skips out of town to hook up with a big brawny Dane. Cadfael returns to his Abbey and realizes that he hasn't really left the world behind. He still wants to travel.
My Thoughts:
It wasn't that this was any worse than any of the previous books, but my goodness, I am getting thoroughly tired of these non-Cadfael adventures. Thank goodness there are only 3 more to go.
This book did convince me to NOT start another medieval mystery series when I finish up this one. I was contemplating the Sister Frevisse series but after barely making it through this book, I've realized I've reached my limit.
This was not bad by any means. It was just more of the same. Cadfael is a witness to the events, not an active participant. I am wondering about trying a completely different genre to replace these when I'm done. I'm already reading “Western” with L'Amours Sackets and I've got the SFF side of things more than adequately covered. Crime/Noir is not a genre I enjoy and while I'd like to get into some long running Action/Adventure/Thriller series, I'm not sure where to go. Eh, whatever. I'll find something.
★★☆☆½ show less
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Author Information
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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 her mystery stories and her other work. Her brother show more 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
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Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- The Summer of the Danes
- Original title
- The Summer of the Danes
- Original publication date
- 1991
- People/Characters
- Brother Cadfael; Brother Mark; Heledd; Bledri ap Rhys; Canon Meirion; Gwion (show all 8); Hywel ap Owain Gwynedd; Owain Gwynedd
- Important places
- Gwynedd, Wales, UK; Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England, UK
- Important events
- Nineteen Year Winter (1135 | 1154)
- Related movies
- Cadfael (1994 | IMDb)
- Epigraph
- [None]
- Dedication
- [None]
- First words
- The extraordinary events of that summer of 1144 may properly be said to have begun the previous year, in a tangle of threads both ecclesiastical and secular, a net in which any number of diverse people became enmeshed, cleric... (show all)s, from the archbishops down to Bishop Roger de Clinton's lowliest deacon, and the laity from the princes of North Wales down to the humblest cottager in the trefs of Arfon.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)'But when it comes down to it,' said Cadfael, with profound content, 'as roads go, the road home is as good as any.'
- Original language*
- Inglese
*Some information comes from Common Knowledge in other languages. Click "Edit" for more information.
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