The Leper of Saint Giles by Ellis Peters (Cadfael Chronicles Book 5)

 

Publication Date: 

January 1, 1996

Length:

217 pages

Summary:

Brother Cadfael, resident herbalist of Shrewsbury Abbey is helping to prepare for an upcoming wedding to be held there. Nobleman Baron Huon de Domville and Lady Iveta de Massard are hardly a young couple in love though. The groom is many decades older and is unattractive and harsh. The bride, innocent and used for an advantageous match between families, is desperate and dreading her future life. In love with another, Joscelin Lucy, a squire of Domville's, she hopes something will save her from her fate. 

As the time draws near, it seems her wish is granted when Domville is found strangled in the woods, apparently headed to an unknown destination, suspiciously alone and not in the company of any of his servants. Lucy, who was previously accused of theft by his employer when Domville suspected a romantic entanglement with Iveta, is accused of murdering Domville to save himself and goes on the run to avoid the gallows. 

Aided by his friends Simon and Guy, he is able to remain free for a time and is taken in by the Saint Giles leper colony, disguised in a location that no one, not even the Sheriff's men want to go. Biding his time while trying to figure out what to do, Lucy becomes attached to a mysterious leper and a young boy, Bran, who give him hope and compassion. 

Meanwhile, Brother Cadfael is on the case and investigating the mysterious death of Domville, not  willing to believe Lucy is guilty. His sleuthing leads him to mysterious plants, a previously unknown hunting lodge, and another woman in the mix. He has precious little time to figure out how these things all tie together if he is to save Lucy. 

My Thoughts: 

The story was well written as always in Peters's eloquent style, with lots of description and at least a few vocabulary words I had to look up. That makes her stories top notch as cozy mysteries go and Cadfael is always entertaining. There wasn't a whole lot of twists and turns until the last two chapters but they more than made up for the slower pace. Iveta's evil Aunt and Uncle are convincing villains, using her for their gain and Domville is given a back story that I didn't see coming. 

I had wanted to read this particular Cadfael mystery for awhile simply because the title intrigued me. I am reading the stories in order but really wanted to get to this one. While I enjoyed the mystery and ending a lot, I was a bit disappointed that Peters didn't include a little more history and insight into the actual disease of leprosy and the colony in the story. I realize the focus is on the crime and solving it but I thought she could have included more about the time and treatment of the disease then. 

I will continue with these mysteries as they are set in a time period I love, The Anarchy between King Stephen and the Empress Matilda. Shrewsbury is a great setting for the story and Cadfael is a solid character, always getting his man (or woman) in the end.