Brother Cadfael is one of the best known characters in historical fiction. But that’s no doubt at least in part a result of the British television adaptation that ran on ITV from 1994 to 1998. Television exposure will do wonders for book sales. However, book sales are a poor guide to literary quality. And, even though Peters gained accolades for the historical detail in the novels—a great many of the incidental characters included were real-life figures—it’s difficult to see why critics might be enthusiastic about her writing. I’ve found it long on incidental detail (such as descriptions of flowers and trees) and short on narrative about the civil war underway in the background. And it’s unlikely fans of suspense fiction would find the novels exciting today. What’s at stake seems trivial, and I often wonder after reading these books what all the fuss was about.
Who is the “pilgrim of hate?”
In The Pilgrim of Hate, the tenth in Ellis Peters’s series of 21 novels featuring Brother Cadfael in the guise of a detective, the story does indeed climax in violence. There’s enough action in that climactic scene to satisfy any thriller fan. But it’s a long time coming, filled with enough inconsequential detail to bore most readers. And in the end, when you might expect the “pilgrim of hate” to be unmasked, you’d be disappointed. That occurs nowhere in this novel.
The Pilgrim of Hate (Cadfael Chronicles #10) by Ellis Peters (1984) 267 pages ★★★☆☆
Pilgrims galore, a stolen bishop’s ring, and a saint’s missing bones
Oh, there is an abundance of pilgrims. And the “mystery” revolves around the theft of a ring worn by one of them. Cadfael and the sheriff spend an inordinate amount of time investigating the theft. Which to my mind is a lame excuse for a mystery novel. But there is indeed a mystery in the background. The story unfolds during a religious festival celebrating the arrival of the remains of a Welsh saint. Or, at least, that’s what they think they’re celebrating.
In fact, the saint’s bones never arrived in Shrewsbury, where Brother Cadfael is one among several dozen monks in a Benedictine monastery. Because Cadfael himself had removed the bones before their move to the monastery and reburied them in Wales, where the martyred young woman had lived. Ho, hum. Only a credulous 12th-century Catholic who worships saints rather than God could care about this. And, sadly, that seems to be the case with everybody in the region, the educated monks included. Cadfael is among them in believing the saint’s power to heal.
All this silliness aside, the most interesting elements in the book involve the long-running civil war between two contenders for the English throne. The book opens when one of them, the crowned king of the realm, has been made a prisoner by the other. And she has entered the City of London in expectation of her own coronation. Reports of these events cause consternation among several of the characters. But we learn little more than the bare bones reports they receive.
Farewell to Brother Cadfael
The Pilgrim of Hate is the tenth consecutive novel I have read in the Brother Cadfael series. With each successive title, my frustration has grown. And I have finally reached the limit of my tolerance for these books.
- I have no patience to spare for the long, uncritical passages about the superstition that passed for religion in 12th century England. It’s hard not to walk away with the impression that the author shares those views. For example, the veneration of saints that can only be termed worship when neither Jesus Christ nor God is nowhere mentioned.
- For the seemingly endless back-and-forth of the civil war between King Stephen and Empress Maud.
- For the adolescent love stories in which lust must pass for lifelong respect and shared values.
- And for the failure to recognize that 12th-century England was trilingual, with nobles speaking French, clerics using Latin, and peasants—90 percent or more of the population—speaking what today we call Middle English. In other words, many of the characters in these novels might have difficulty communicating with one another. They simply didn’t speak the same language.
Apropos of that last point, you might note that virtually none of the characters in the Cadfael novels are peasants. Peters limits herself to stories about the monks and priests, the nobles who were the ruling class, and the people of the towns.
About the author
Ellis Peters, born Edith Mary Pargeter (1913-95), was a prolific and successful writer who produced historical fiction, mystery novels, nonfiction books about Shrewsbury (where the Cadfael novels are set), and translations from Czech to English. She wrote 55 novels under several names in addition to the 21 of the Chronicles of Brother Cadfael, as well as scores of short stories. (All 21 of the Cadfael novels appeared in print from 1977 to 1994, and author Ellis Peters died in 1995.)
Peters was born in Shropshire of Welsh ancestry a year before World War I erupted. Educated at a school for girls, she became a dedicated socialist throughout her lifetime. She turned to writing full-time in 1949.
For related reading
I’ve read and reviewed all nine of the previous novels in this series, starting with the first: A Morbid Taste for Bones (Introducing the delightful Brother Cadfael series).
For similar mysteries, see:
- 26 mysteries to keep you reading at night
- Top 10 mystery and thriller series
- 20 excellent standalone mysteries and thrillers
- 30 outstanding detective series from around the world
- Top 20 suspenseful detective novels
- Top 10 historical mysteries and thrillers
And you can always find my most popular reviews, and the most recent ones, on the Home Page.
