Brother Cadfael's Penance

Brother Cadfael searches for his own endangered son, and in so doing, forsakes his order and boldly defies his abbot. What he finds challenges his soul. It is autumn 1145, and the battle rages between Empress Maud and her cousin Stephen for the throne of England. One who previously had been among Empress Maud's greatest champions, Sir Philip FitzRobert, has turned coat and imprisoned thirty knights and squires who stayed loyal to the empress. One still held is Olivier de Bretagne, who is not aware that he is the son of Brother Cadfael. Word reaches Cadfael that Olivier's life is in peril. Brother Cadfael decides to leave the monastery without his abbot's permission; he must break his monastic vows in order to try to save his son's life. Cadfael must find his son before it is too late.