Winter, 1141. Shrewsbury receives a new parish priest, Father Ailnoth, whose severity quickly alienates many of the people he is supposed to serve. When his body is found on Christmas morning, the number of parishioners with reasons to resent him makes the murder unusually difficult to untangle.
Brother Cadfael investigates the priest’s recent dealings, including conflicts involving a young woman and members of the parish. Against the background of the civil war between Stephen and Matilda, Cadfael must distinguish moral failure from murder and determine which grievance became strong enough to end Ailnoth’s life.
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