Long before I read this, others were saying how wonderful it is. Now I’ve read it, I can echo every other plaudit it has rightfully received.
Philip de Braose is an angry and bitter nobleman and soldier found near death in a ditch when Cistercian monk Brother Hywel notices a magnificent war horse standing, saddled but alone, on the side of a French road. Hywel and Noble the horse take Philip to the nearby Abbey, where Philip begins the very long road to healing and back to Wales, the country of his birth. Along the way, it’s not only his physical wounds, but also his spiritual and emotional ones which slowly begin to heal.
This is a story which is beautifully told, with wonderful descriptive writing and perfectly chosen and positioned bible verses throughout. 13th century France and Wales are so well described that it’s obvious that the author has done her research very well, and that she knows and loves the land she describes.
The Cistercian Abbey Cymer reminds me of the Shrewsbury Abbey of Ellis Peters’ Brother Cadfael novels and I have no hesitation in saying the The Healing is as engrossing as any of the Cadfael books. I would love to learn more of the other monks – especially Brother Aldred. Faith is an obvious element of the book, woven in perfectly and not just inside the Abbey church and pastures. Hywel’s outworking of his faith as he travels home to his Welsh community is both lovely to read and inspirational.
I read lots of books which never make it to my shelf but this book is a keeper. I am truly thrilled that The Pilgrim, which tells Hywel’s early story, is due out in July and I am chomping at the bit in my eagerness to read it!
Note: for transparency, I was sent an advance copy of this book, but I was not required to write any specific or favourable review. All views herein are my own.
No comments:
Post a Comment