When Shrewsbury Castle falls, Brother Cadfael discovers a murder mystery amid the wreckage In the summer of 1138, war between King Stephen and the Empress Maud takes Brother Cadfael from the quiet world of his garden into a battlefield of passions, deceptions, and death. Not far from the safety of the abbey walls, Shrewsbury Castle falls, leaving its ninety-four defenders loyal to the empress to hang as traitors. With a heavy heart, Brother Cadfael...

Little peace is to be found in England in the year 1142 as civil war continues to rage. The effects of the violence reach even into the cloistered world of the Benedictine Abbey of St. Peter and St. Paul. Richard Ludel, the father of one of the abbey's students, has recently died of wounds received in battle. His ten-year-old son, also called Richard, has now become Lord of Eaton. Richard's formidable grandmother, Dionysia, wants the boy released...

An occultist attempting to capture Death to bargain for eternal life traps her younger brother, Dream, instead. After his 70 year imprisonment and eventual escape, Dream, a.k.a. The Sandman, goes on a quest for his lost objects of power. Author Neil Gaiman creates an unforgettable tale of the forces that exist beyond life and death by weaving ancient mythology, folklore and fairy tales with his own distinct narrative vision.

All opposition to the man once derided as the Prince of Nothing has vanished or been vanquished. Their leaders slain, the heathen Fanim have fled in disarray. One final march will bring the Holy War to the fabled city of Shimeh. But so very much has changed. Anasurimbor Kellhus, the Warrior-Prophet, now leads the Men of the Tusk. The cuckolded sorcerer Achamian serves as his tutor, betraying his school to keep safe the man he believes can prevent...

The irrepressible Bishop Blackwood Ryan returns as his Cardinal dispatches Blackie to The University on the South Side of Chicago to investigate a baffling locked-room mystery. Someone has assassinated a Russian Orthodox monk in his office at the Divinity School-despite the fact that the door of his office was bolted shut from the inside and no killer was found within. Who shot Brother Semyon Ivanivich Popov? There were only four professors in the...

As a vast Holy War begins, a powerful new force emerges in the second book of this "violent, passionate, darkly poetic" fantasy series (SFSite.com). The first battle against the heathen has been won, but while the Great Names squabble over the spoils, Kellhus draws more followers to his banner. The sorcerer Achamian and his lover, Esmenet, submit entirely-only to face an unimaginable test of faith. The warrior Cnaiur falls ever deeper into madness....

A chronicle of the life of a Buddhist monk from childhood to the end of his days

When a monk survives a tragic injury, he enlists Brother Cadfael to help him right the wrongs revealed in his deathbed confession Winter arrived early in 1142, bringing with it a heavy snowfall. The safety of the guest-hall roof at the Benedictine Abbey of St. Peter and St. Paul comes into jeopardy, and the brothers are called upon to effect repairs. But the icy and treacherous conditions are to prove near fatal for Brother Haluin. He slips from the...

Two monks seeking refuge bring with them a troubling mystery that will test Brother Cadfael's beliefs In the year of our Lord 1141, August comes in golden as a lion, and two monks ride into the Benedictine Abbey of Saint Peter and Saint Paul bringing with them disturbing news of war-and a mystery.   The strangers tell how the strife between the Empress Maud and King Stephen has destroyed the town of Winchester and their priory. Now Brother Humilis,...