Excellent mystery series that I decided to read after watching Cadfael on PBS. The mysteries are suspenseful and you have to pay attention for clues.
During war between King Stephen and the Empress Maud, Brother Cadfael finds himself involved in solving a murder when one too many among the enemy dead proves to be a victim of foul play. Instead of ninety-four the number is ninety-five. Brother Cadfael is placed in charge of burying the dead, only to discover that the extra body has been strangled, rather than hanged.
Brother Cadfael knows that the killer is clever and ruthless and while one death among so many may seem unimportant, even to the king, he is determined to find what really happened. Who committed this murder? Where is the missing treasure? Amidst this tangle, Brother Cadfael finds himself protecting a young woman who hides with a boy's clothing and an injured squire. His only clue to the murder seems to be a jewel in the form of a single broken flower. However, the individual who appears to be responsible for the murder helps Brother Cadfael solve this mystery.
After a final raid on a nearby castle, the remainder of the fighters are hanged for their rebellion against the king. However, when Brother Cadfael tries to account for the dead, he discovers that there is one more corpse than records show. Cadfael is determined to find the person to attempted to disguise his murder as an action of the king.
This was an interesting tale, and Cadfael is such an interesting and compelling character. Having fought in the Crusades before becoming a monk, he has a very different view than his fellow monks, and is willing to pursue what he feels is just and hopes that his work is that of God, too. The ending of this book was mildly unsatisfactory, but the overall twists and turns in the book made for interesting reading, particularly the cat-and-mouse game between Cadfael and Beringar.
"One Corpse Too Many" is Ellis Peters' second Brother Cadfael mystery, and as such, brings a freshness to some of the tropes that will become staples of her later mysteries: the fresh-faced young lovers separated by the politics of the times, Brother Cadfael's worldly view of life outside the cloister, and the sanctuary within a sactuary that his herbarium provides in tumultuous times.
This particular mystery is notable because King Stephen is present in Salisbury in person and orders a nasty revenge carried out on his opponents, one that brings the brutality of 12th C. warfare to Peters' usually idyllic setting.
On a happier note, Hugh Beringer is introduced in this novel, setting up a happy relationship that will play out in future volumes. The result is one of Peters' best efforts.
Kristin M. (mcpenguin5) reviewed One Corpse Too Many (Brother Cadfael, Bk 2) on + 93 more book reviews 
