The Sanctuary Sparrow

View other editions of The Sanctuary Sparrow.
View books by Ellis Peters.

pleased with order - Rated
i ordered this item and it was delivered in good condition as discribed three days after i ordered it, i would order from this supplier again.

Very pleasing listening - Rated
Sudden drama strikes the Bennedictine monastery at Shrewsbury when a young man, pursued by a lynching mob claims sanctuary just in time to save his own life. The accusation is robbery and murder, yet Brother Cadfael senses his innocence and sets out to untangle yet another tangle of human passions where love, both in it's brighter and darker aspects, plays it's inevitable part.

That's the premise of this murder mystery by famed author Ellis Peters. In Brother Cadfael she has a perfect vehicle for not only exploring the conventional mystery novel but drawing the reader into another bygone age. Indeed, it could be said that the mystery element is of second importance in this aspect, as it is in her other novels. However, this is not to say it is weak-far from it-just that you learn so much about ancient Britain and the workings of religious orders that the mystery (almost), becomes secondary.

This interesting combination is why this novel works so well. Peters paints a totally believable picture of a world we only normally know through dry history books. In the Sanctuary Sparrow, the characters come alive and hold our interest throughout. I found their motives and actions quite believable and was fascinated by the background information. A medieval Sherlock Holmes, Cadfael uses his knowledge of plants and herbs and the workings of human nature to get to the bottom of things. In the process we are treated to a tightly written story that never drags and is very enjoyable. Perhaps the ending is not totally unexpected but this does not detract from the book's undeniable quality.

Another pleasing element in Peters work is the sub plots and ongoing continuity. She never forgets Cadfael is part of a series and we have Bennedictine internal politics to chew on, as well as the uncertain future of the throne to keep us diverted. Obviously a lot of research was required to achieve this and it shows in the picture that Peters draws.

This audio version is read by Sir Deek Jacobi who portrayed Cadfael on the small screen. He has a fantastic reading voice and brings the novel to life.

Engossing Historical Murder Mystery - Rated
Sudden drama strikes the Bennedictine monastery at Shrewsbury when a young man, pursued by a lynching mob claims sanctuary just in time to save his own life. The accusation is robbery and murder, yet Brother Cadfael senses his innocence and sets out to untangle yet another tangle of human passions where love, both in it's brighter and darker aspects, plays it's inevitable part.

That's the premise of this murder mystery by famed author Ellis Peters. In Brother Cadfael she has a perfect vehicle for not only exploring the conventional mystery novel but drawing the reader into another bygone age. Indeed, it could be said that the mystery element is of second importance in this aspect, as it is in her other novels. However, this is not to say it is weak-far from it-just that you learn so much about ancient Britain and the workings of religious orders that the mystery (almost), becomes secondary.

This interesting combination is why this novel works so well. Peters paints a totally believable picture of a world we only normally know through dry history books. In the Sanctuary Sparrow, the characters come alive and hold our interest throughout. I found their motives and actions quite believable and was fascinated by the background information. A medieval Sherlock Holmes, Cadfael uses his knowledge of plants and herbs and the workings of human nature to get to the bottom of things. In the process we are treated to a tightly written story that never drags and is very enjoyable. Perhaps the ending is not totally unexpected but this does not detract from the book's undeniable quality.

Another pleasing element in Peters work is the sub plots and ongoing continuity. She never forgets Cadfael is part of a series and we have Bennedictine internal politics to chew on, as well as the uncertain future of the throne to keep us diverted. Obviously a lot of research was required to achieve this and it shows in the picture that Peters draws.

This is the large print version of this book and it is good to see an accomplished writer like Peters being made available in this format.

A finely honed tale of mediaeval intrigue - Rated
Barely four weeks past Easter of the Year of Our Lord 1140, with Shrewsbury and all its region secure within the King's peace, the conventual peace of Matins within the great Abbey church of St Peter and St Paul is suddenly and most rudely shattered. Hunted and hounded by an angry mob into the comparative safety of sanctuary within the House of God, a terrified young man, accused of robbery and murder, and closely followed by his accusers and would-be executioners, disturbs the midnight office of the good monks of Shrewsbury. And so starts the seventh Chronicle of Brother Cadfael, in which the mediaeval sleuth finds himself with yet another wrong to right, by once more putting his mind to the solving of one of Shrewsbury's small mysteries.

In this particular case, the mystery is no greatly complex affair but it is, in any case, largely subsidiary to Ellis Peters' painting of a finely detailed picture of life in twelfth century England, and more especially here, within a moderately wealthy family household. There are some unexpected twists and developments along the way, though, and there is certainly nothing predictable about the way the story works itself out, although the ending is no particular surprise either.

In some respects, this is one of the best of the Cadfael books. Its opening pages contain some of Ellis Peters' finest writing, with her descriptions of the running to ground of young Liliwin and the reactions of Abbot Radulfus being quite hair-raising in their potency. The tale unfolds at a sure and steady pace thereafter, too, ensuring that it is always difficult to put the book down, right up until the final exciting, and rather tear-jerking, denouement.