First of all, spoilers. If you haven't read Ellis Peters' "The Leper of St. Giles," don't watch the video. I'll try to keep spoilers in the text to a minimum.
It was YouTube and Derek Jacobi who introduced me to Brother Cadfael. I think I've watched them all. Then I started finding the books at local thrift stores. I read all I could find. Then last Christmas I asked for more books.
They're enchanting.
Mysteries, by design, tend to be character- and place-driven, and this one certainly checks the boxes. I love that with nothing more than a keen eye and a wealth of experience, Brother Cadfael can suss out any mystery. Yet even as he does, he remains askance at times of human behavoir.
And Peters' writing is perfect. She's not pretentious, nor too ornate, nor is she too spare. She doesn't weigh the text down with accents, or jargon, or what have you -- though in the books I've got, she does offer a glossary at the back. I've read a few period pieces where accents would be involved and they can be heavy-handed. Peters recognizes that nothing should get in the way of the story, and thus generally avoids patois.
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