I thought this was the best book of the series. There were several interesting plot lines going: the murder of a disliked military leader who had double-crossed his unit, Brother's Cadfael's son had been kidnapped and the kidnapper wasn't interested in ransoming him, the son's friend Yves charged with murder and then kidnapped, and Brother Cadfael leaving his Benedictine order. All of these were interesting on their own but, woven together, made for a very interesting story. I could do without the author's penchant for describing how beautiful so many of the characters are (over and over again) but thought the story moved at a good pace and held my interest. This isn't an in-depth murder mystery but more of a cozy little mystery set in 11th century England with appropriate sleuthing techniques for the period. Having read the entire series, I am sad to see it end.

The penultimate Brother Cadfael - the last of the series and the most satisfying, completed near Partager's own death.