jaseroque's Full Review: Ellis Peters - A Morbid Taste for Bones
A few weeks ago, I mentioned to a friend that I liked murder mysteries in medieval settings, like Umberto Eco’s Name of the Rose. He immediately recommended the Brother Cadfael series, and even checked out the first book, A Morbid Taste for Bones for me to listen to on tape. Listen to it I did! It was a little slow to start, but after the first tape I really got into it an thoroughly enjoyed it. I am on the second book in the series now.
BRIEF PLOT SUMMARY
This series is set in 12th century England, and the central character and primary detective is Brother Cadfael, a middle-aged man who led a varied and adventuresome life before settling down to religions devotion as a monk in an abbey in Shrewsbury, England. In this first book, the prior of the abbey sets his sights on obtaining the remains of a saint – the Welsh saint Winifred – for his abbey. A party sets out to the small town of Gwytherin where Winifred lies, but the local population is reluctant to give her up. The plot deepens when the man most opposed to Winifred’s removal is found murdered.
COMMENTS
I enjoyed this book a great deal. It was very readable and easy to follow, about the same reading difficulty as a mystery by Agatha Christie. I found this book perfect after a long, tiring day. It is definitely a light read.
The setting is delightful – I have read few murder mysteries set in such a wonderful, historic location and time. I enjoyed the descriptions and was glad to be transported back almost a thousand years. The book is in no way preachy, however – any historic detail comes out through the plot.
In spite of the time and setting, however, I found the book to have a distinctly modern flavor, which frequently felt anachronistic. Not for clothing or food or technology, but the kinds of values the people hold. The two main female characters are strong and independent, and answer to nobody – they are barely contained modern women. The book values the idea that a person should find the occupation that will make him the most happy. Somehow, I doubt that many young men in the 1100s had that kind of freedom. In terms of religion, Brother Cadfael has a more or less modern spirituality: he isn’t concerned with strict devotions or rules or confession or self-denial, but seems to believe in a just, easy-going god. Through Cadfael, the author pokes wry fun at the abbey’s search for saintly relics, excessive displays of piety, and strict dogma (which is amusing, but I doubt that people from the period would have laughed). I think the religion of the 1100s was much darker and more oppressive and more dominant than it was portrayed here. Lastly, ‘True Love’ is highly valued, which was probably not a big deal at that time period when arranged marriages were the norm. In fact, I don’t think the concept of romantic love really hit the scene until 200 years later with Petrarch. One last detail – when the body is found, Brother Cadfael orders nobody to touch it ‘until the bailiff comes,’ which is definitely a modern attitude towards a corpse. Replace ‘bailiff’ with ‘policeman,’ and you have Hercule Poirot or Miss Marple or Lord Peter Whimsey at the death scene. In a sense, Cadfael and company are essentially modern characters set in a medieval murder mystery.
So, I would not read this as historical fiction, though some of the historical events may actually have occurred. The trappings may be right, but the characters themselves feel quite modern. In spite of this, however, the book is a good light read, and I recommend it if you are looking for some good entertainment.
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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