The Confession of Brother Haluin (Chronicles of Brother Cadfael, #15)

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The Confession of Brother Haluin (Chronicles of Brother Cadfael #15)

3.99 of 5 stars 3.99 · rating details · 1,359 ratings · 50 reviews

The time: 1142. The place: the Benedictine Abbey. Believing himself mortally injured, Brother Haluin makes a shocking confession to Brother Cadfael. When he recovers, the two embark on a pilgrimage to redress the past. The Cadfael books are international bestsellers and have been produced for PBS's Mystery!

Paperback, 205 pages

Published (first published December 1st 1988)

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Sep 22, 2012 Ann rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This was, so far, my favorite of the Brother Cadfael Chronicles ... If a murder myster could possibly be described as "sweet", this is what comes to my mind when I try to review this book. The brother who is highlighted in this book came to the Shrewsbury monastery of St. Peter and St. Paul at age 18 and lived an impeccable life of reverent service to God. It wasn't until he was helping clean the snow off the rectory during a particularly hard winter that he falls, comes near to death, and unbu...more

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Nov 16, 2009 Marie rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Brother Cadfael is a 12th century Benedictine monk who retired to the monastery of St Peter and St Paul at Shrewsbury in England after having been a Crusader and a sailor. He now tends the abbey's herb garden to make healing remedies and spices for cooking. Using his knowledge of human nature and the human body, he often solves murder mysteries. He is an honest enough soul.

This fifteenth chronicle of Brother Cadfael opens in December, 1142, with the fulfillment of ominous predictions from the we...more Brother Cadfael is a 12th century Benedictine monk who retired to the monastery of St Peter and St Paul at Shrewsbury in England after having been a Crusader and a sailor. He now tends the abbey's herb garden to make healing remedies and spices for cooking. Using his knowledge of human nature and the human body, he often solves murder mysteries. He is an honest enough soul.

This fifteenth chronicle of Brother Cadfael opens in December, 1142, with the fulfillment of ominous predictions from the weather-wise for a severe winter. The description of the first half-dozen paragraphs of the first chapter is absolutely beautiful, and given how much importance the weather plays in the story, Peters emphasis on it right away is understandable.

So much snow falls that the guesthouse roof begins to leak--right on the head of the bishop's legate, of course. The brothers must repair the roof in this miserable weather, risky as that is, for waiting until the weather warms and snow melts would make things that much worse. They set up a system where everyone takes a short shift, working in pairs. The warming room is kept open all day. This way, the threat of frost bite is minimized. The brothers estimate that, working this way, the repairs will take about a week.

The signal for end of shift has just been given while Bother Urien and Brother Haluin are working. Not having to be told twice, Brother Urien heads straight down, but Brother Haluin goes for one last thing. When they piece together what happened next, they figure the snow and ladder slipped from under him, and roof tiles fell after him. He fell about forty feet and would have been instantly killed were it not for the build up of snow to cushion his landing. As it was, the roof tiles sliced up his feet so badly he'd never walk unaided again and he felt it was time for final confession.

The abbot was called, and Brother Cadfael remained present, since Haluin felt he'd wronged Cadfael in the past. His confession comes out, but he recovers, however slowly. Although he's been absolved, he vows to take a penitential pilgrimage to the tomb of a lady love for whose death he feels responsible. On his lame feet. Cadfael is appointed to go with him, to help him when he falters.

Since much of the novel takes place out of doors, Ellis spends a lot of time describing the open road for the two monks. It is wonderfully done. One sees the sun set, snow flurries begin to fall. The weak point, sadly, is characterization of many of the minor characters. Haluin himself is depicted as having been tortured for years by the old sins he only reveals fully in his confession, and his drive to expiate those sins in this pilgrimage. It's a long time before things get any better for him. In the end he finds that elusive peace, however, so it all seems worth it, in a round about way.

There are some of the Cadfael staples, the star-crossed lovers to somehow get together, and a sad murder to solve. These are not peripheral to Haluin's situation, but are set in motion by his arrival at the home of erstwhile lady love's family. There is a lot of sadness in the story, and frankly, I'm glad Haluin is a fictional character.

Nevertheless, what kept me reading was I cared about Haluin. Even though I knew that everything would be all right for him, I wanted to know what would happen with him, despite the flaws in the story. Thus, I can recommend it.
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Mar 28, 2013 M Christopher rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery

Clearly, it was a mistake to try to read all of the Cadfael Chronicles in relatively short order. I was less than a quarter through this entry when I realized that I'd already figured out exactly how the rest of the book was going to go. By the time I was a third of the way through, I was annoyed at the leisurely pace. At the halfway point, I'd had enough. I read the last sentence of the four or five remaining chapters and called it quits -- I'd been exactly right.

I don't know if the author was...more

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Jul 09, 2012 Nancy rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery-thriller, historical

This is the first dud of the series so far, but for a Cadfael book a dud is still a comfortable three stars.

I didn't particularly like the titular Brother Haluin. He's so unbending, so intent in exacting every ounce of penance he believes is his due for whatever his faults. He's reminds me of both Brother Columbanus (A Morbid Taste for Bones) and Brother Eluric (The Rose Rent). Haluin has Columanus's pride but lacks his nearly naked ambition. Eluric also (figuratively) flogged himself for his si...more This is the first dud of the series so far, but for a Cadfael book a dud is still a comfortable three stars.

I didn't particularly like the titular Brother Haluin. He's so unbending, so intent in exacting every ounce of penance he believes is his due for whatever his faults. He's reminds me of both Brother Columbanus (A Morbid Taste for Bones) and Brother Eluric (The Rose Rent). Haluin has Columanus's pride but lacks his nearly naked ambition. Eluric also (figuratively) flogged himself for his sins, but they were more imagined than real. Haluin serves in the monastic pale as lifelong penance for a sin committed 18 years earlier. After a near death experience he confesses that sin and conceives of a difficult task for himself as a final atonement: a pilgrimage to his former master's household and an overnight vigil at a gravesite. There's no doubt it will assuage his heart and soul but he's so arrogant about it; it's all about him. I was so glad when Adelais de Clary called Haluin out on it, that he'd embarked on this pilgrimage without giving any thought to the pain he'd be digging up for everyone else. Haluin's character mellows a bit after this, and the rest of the myriad plot elements come to the fore, and he becomes if not likable then at least less unlikable.

The family dynamics between the two households (three if you count Hales) are fun to keep track of, especially given the twist at the end.

I didn't like that for the second book in a row there was another strong matriarch character working at cross purposes. This one isn't exactly the same as the other, but similar enough. Cenred's soft anxious wife balances this somewhat.

I felt like there's too much telling and not enough showing. Peters, through Cadfael, tells us what these characters' are like but doesn't really show us through word and deed. They don't feel quite fully fleshed out on the page. I got a vague sense of this from the previous book as well.

The ubiquitous lovebirds were thankfully not of the "at first sight" variety, but suffered from the telling not showing.(less)

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Sep 22, 2011 Linda rated it 4 of 5 stars

In the particularly bad winter of 1142, the guest hall at the Abbey of St. Peter and St. Paul had lost part of its roof, and Brother Haluin sustained grave injuries in a fall from the roof while trying to repair it. In what Haluin thought was a deathbed confession, he told a priest and Brother Cadfael of a long-ago love affair with Bertrade deClary. The girl had become pregnant and died during an attempted abortion. But Haluin recovered, and learned to walk with crutches on his misshapen feet....more

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Apr 09, 2013 Ron rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: historical-fiction

This book starts a multi-volume set within the greater corpus of Cadfael mysteries. The usual twists and turns.

Cadfael series: excellent historical fiction. Ellis Peters draws the reader into the twelfth century with modern story telling but holds us there with a richness of detail which evokes a time and place which might as well be mythic. Though the foreground of each chronicle is a murder mystery, behind it a nation and a culture are woven in a wondrous tapestry.

BTW: I read these out of orde...more

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May 04, 2012 Ed rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Historical Crime Fiction fans

Shelves: historical-fiction, crime-fiction, reviewed

Not one of Peters' better eforts. The story concerns a dying monk's belief that he had sinned greviously. When he survives, he decides to make a pilgrimage on crippled legs to atone for his sin. Cadfael is assigned to accompany him. The story unfolds from there as in the end Cadfael figures things out and brings all to a satisfactory conclusion.

Thankfully, it is a short book because it is very boring in spots. The dialogue is not up to previous volumes' standards. Very little action and/or suspe...more

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Jun 29, 2010 Kathryn rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2006, 2010, reread-books

1st Recorded Reading: June 19, 2006.

I am coming along nicely in my quest to read all the Brother Cadfael mysteries; this book that I finished last night is #15 of the series, and there are #20 novels (plus one book of three short stories) altogether. I found this particular book to be of a slightly different order than usual; the obligatory dead body does not show up until late in the book, and the mystery mainly has to do with events that happened some eighteen years ago. (And for those not wis...more 1st Recorded Reading: June 19, 2006.

I am coming along nicely in my quest to read all the Brother Cadfael mysteries; this book that I finished last night is #15 of the series, and there are #20 novels (plus one book of three short stories) altogether. I found this particular book to be of a slightly different order than usual; the obligatory dead body does not show up until late in the book, and the mystery mainly has to do with events that happened some eighteen years ago. (And for those not wishing to read further, I enjoyed reading the book.

In December of 1142, a heavy snowfall at the Abbey causes a leak in the guesthouse roof, and it is determined that the more able-bodied monks need to take turns up on the roof clearing away snow and bad roofing slates and putting in new slates. One Brother Haluin, one of the best illuminators in the scriptorium, insists on taking his turn, and in a bad accident falls from the roof, with the load of heavy sharp-edged slates landing on him after. The monks are certain that he will die of his injuries; so does he himself, when he regains consciousness, and he asks to make confession to Abbot Radulfus, with Brother Cadfael there as well, since the confession concerns him. He tells them that eighteen years ago, when he himself was a steward for Lady de Clary at her manor of Hales, he had fallen in love with her daughter and asked for her hand. Lady de Clary refused his suit, but he and the girl kept seeing each other, and she became pregnant. By the time her pregnancy was discovered, Haluin had already entered the Abbey as a monk in despair; Lady de Clary asked him to get a potion to end the pregnancy, which he stole from Brother Cadfael’s workshop and sent to her. Lady de Clary then sent word to him that the potion had killed her daughter, along with her unborn child.

After being absolved, Brother Haluin survives, but with his feet hopelessly mangled. Brother Edmund, the infirmarian, and Brother Cadfael between them manage to put his feet back together well enough so that Brother Haluin can get around on crutches. At the first of March, 1143, Haluin requests of the Abbot permission for him to go on pilgrimage, on foot (and crutches) to the grave of the girl he caused to be killed in Hales; the Abbot decides to send Brother Cadfael along with him, as being the only other person besides the Abbot who knows why Haluin wishes to make this pilgrimage.

So the two set off; and they set off a chain of events that cascades into young love thwarted and a body found in the late winter snow. But through the twin agencies of pure luck and being at the right place at the right time, Brother Cadfael manages to find out just what the heck is going on and to right a wrong committed eighteen years before.(less)

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Dec 12, 2009 D.w. rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: reviewed

When you can see some of what is coming at you for pages in a mystery, then it is not doing what it should be doing. This is the problem I found with The Confession of Brother Haluin. Previously when Peters has sent Hugh Beringar to court then we have court intrigue find its way to Shrewbury.

This time, we do not. We find very little in the way of additional detail about Saint Peter and St. Paul's though we do hear about the brothers who work in the scriptorium as that is where Haluin has found h...more

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Dec 14, 2008 Lori rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: mystery-suspense, series

I began the Brother Cadfael chronicles years ago in paperback form and enjoy them even more with Stephen Thorne reading them to me! These are genteel adventures that transport you back to the 12th century, very well researched. The literary quality of this series is always top notch and I could listen to this narrator all day every day. I would recommend beginning with the first 2 from this series in order, A Morbid Taste for Bones followed by One Corpse Too Many. They set up the rest of the ser...more

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Jan 06, 2012 Karen rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: mystery

Ellis Peters' Brother Cadfael series - set around 1000/1100, a Welsh man who had been with the Crusades, soldier/sailor, loved women etc settles down to retirement as a Benedictine monk, working as an apothecary within the abbey and the community, and assisting the sheriff with mysteries. He's a really wholesome character who understands people and life, not at all narrow and irritating. There is also a series of movies made based on these books with Derek Jacobi playing Brother Cadfael

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Jul 20, 2012 Dagny rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: mystery-series, peters-ellis

It is the winter of 1142 in The Confession of Brother Haluin, the Fifteenth Chronicle of Brother Cadfael. A heavy snowfall has threatened the roof at the guest hall. While the Brothers are working on repairs, Brother Haluin falls. His injury is so serious that Abbot Radulfus and Brother Cadfael hear his confession. He had an evil story to tell and when he doesn't die, but recovers, Brother Haluin decides to make a journey of expiation. Cadfael accompanies him on this treacherous trip.

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Sep 03, 2009 Sandra Strange rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: historical-fiction, mysteries

These suspenseful stories include pinches of romance, devotion, and humor, as well as truly unique characters. The mysteries use as background superb portrayals of 12th Century England. The author is a noted Medieval scholar. Positive. Caution: the series is aimed at adults, not adolescents. Many themes of these mystery novels are ADULT themes, including rape, abuse of various sorts, etc. They are all positive, ultimately.

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May 05, 2013 Spuddie rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: keepers

A re-read of this fifteenth book in the classic medieval mystery series featuring the herbalist/monk, Brother Cadfael. Cadfael accompanies much younger monk Brother Haluin, recently crippled in a near-fatal accident involving an ice dam on the roof collaspsing on him, to a manor home several days' journey from Shrewsbury as Haluin vows to make peace with a woman whom he believes he has wronged. Traveling through perilous weather on crutches, the going is slow, and the response is not what is exp...more

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Feb 02, 2012 Stephen rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-fiction, detective-stories, books-read-in-2012

Though I read this back in 2005, I recently re-read it so as to continue my pilgrimage through the Cadfael novels in order. I enjoyed it even more this time around.

This time Cadfael leaves Wales behind and heads East toward Hales and Elford in the company of a lame Benedictine Brother Haluin. Together they hobble (literally as well as figuratively) through a decades old mystery only to encounter the book's only murder well toward the end. While the exact identity of that killer is never unmaske...more

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Jul 03, 2011 Gwyn rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: historical-ish, mystery

The Confession of Brother Haluin reminds me of the only other mediocre Cadfael book I've read, An Excellent Mystery, in that is slow-paced, does not have particularly engaging characters, and is not really much of a mystery at all. It also reminds me of the last Cadfael book, Brother Cadfael's Penance, in that it's not much of a historical mystery but is still pretty solid historical fiction. True, Confession is not as good as Penance, but I advised readers to skip An Excellent Mystery and I wil...more

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Jan 04, 2009 Joni rated it 3 of 5 stars

I love the Brother Cadfael series. They are like comfort food. A great light read.

I'm fascinated with the Medieval period. (I chose the Medieval period as my Senior thesis at college.) Love getting the combination of this period, the interesting historical facts and the herbal lore. My only critique of the series would be that I'm nearing the point where I've read everything in the series!

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Jan 03, 2013 Iain rated it 2 of 5 stars

I started this book thinking I was going to get a yarn steeped in medieval yore and factoids a la Shardlake.

Nothing could have been further from the truth. To be honest, the story could have been set at any time in history - the setting has no relevance to the plot whatsoever.

I suspect that as no. 15 in the series, Peters may have been getting rather bored of his theme.

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Dec 16, 2011 Priscilla rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I'm really enjoying these Ellis Peters mysteries. Okay, sure, it's pretty easy to figure out the twists and the bad guys before they're revealed, but who cares - they're cozy reads, the characters feel real, and the main protagonist is such a decent person that it's hard not to want to keep hearing what he has to say about the world.

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May 08, 2011 Marisa rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: histrical-fiction, medieval

I really like the Brother Cadfael mysteries, but this one just didn't do it for me. One of the things I enjoy about the books is that they are far from predictable. As soon as you think you have it figured out you find out you were wrong. Less then a quarter into this book I had it figured out and it didn't take any new twists.

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Jan 28, 2013 Frode rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The murder takes place late in the story, but the real wrong took place 18 years earlier. The story builds over the entire book and ends with resolution for those initially wronged. Cadfael is an active bystander in this book, and it is he who brings about the partial resolution.

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Sep 06, 2012 Michael Carlson rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I've been reading Ellis Peters' The Cadfael Chronicles sequentially, usually as a break between longer books. I love the character of Cadfael and the depiction of life in England in the 12th century.
This book was fun, quick, and interesting. I've come to expect that from Ellis Peters!

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Aug 04, 2011 Hazel rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The Brother Cadfael series by Ellis Peters is a wonderful set of mysteries that take place in 12th century England. Ellis Peters does a wonderful job of describing all the characters and she is a great mystery writer. The cases are complicated enough to make them interesting.

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Mar 10, 2012 Poetreehugger rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I enjoyed this book every bit as much as I am enjoying every book in this series.
There's a good passage on page 65 about pain long remembered, "...within him ready to quicken at a breath, like a sleeping fire when a door was opened." Just one of many.

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Aug 26, 2012 Kim rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-mystery

Book 15. I enjoyed this volume simply because I enjoy Brother Cadfael. This was not one of the better mysteries. A dead body didn't appear until page 101 and it was blatantly obvious the mother had lied about her daughter and grandchild.

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Apr 30, 2011 Miriam rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery, series

This one is really a little light on mystery, and it is pretty clear what is coming early on, but I still enjoyed it a lot. It was interesting to leave the area of the abbey and meet new characters. Both of the love stories were handled well.

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Jul 29, 2011 Lexi rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: mystery, beach-books

Another lovely Brother Cadfael mystery. As usual, mismatched lovers, political power, and church-based morality are interwoven into a somewhat simple mystery with just enough intrigue to make it interesting. Another light, quick read.

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Oct 27, 2011 Lisa rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A good English murder mystery. A bit predictable but it held my interest. And it was clean-always a plus. I can recommend this story.

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May 15, 2013 Kanoobie01 rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I'm trying out some mysteries. I liked this one. Not a big suprise ending, but still good.

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Apr 12, 2013 Vicki rated it 4 of 5 stars

I so enjoy the language, the story and (of course) Brother Cadfael. I even like to re-read them.

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About Ellis Peters

A pseudonym used by Edith Pargeter.

Edith Mary Pargeter, BEM (September 28, 1913 in Horsehay, Shropshire, England –October 14, 1995) was a prolific author of works in many categories, especially history and historical fiction, and was also honoured for her translations of Czech classics; she is probably best known for her murder mysteries, both historical and modern. Born in the village of Horsehay...more

More about Ellis Peters...

Books by Ellis Peters

A Morbid Taste for Bones (Chronicles of Brother Cadfael, #1)

The Leper of Saint Giles (Chronicles of Brother Cadfael #5)

One Corpse Too Many (Chronicles of Brother Cadfael, #2)

Monk's Hood (Chronicles of Brother Cadfael, #3)

St. Peter's Fair (Chronicles of Brother Cadfael #4)

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The Confession of Brother Haluin (Chronicles of Brother Cadfael #15)

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