Wild Flowers of the World: A Thousand Beautiful Plants Painted by Barbara Everard

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Best Book Ever

A wonderfully thorough and informative equestrian travel manual

Excellent book, and very welcome reprint of a classic

The Cavalry Horse and his Pack
Col. John J. Boniface
Manufacturer: The Long Riders' Guild Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1590481720

Book Description

This is quite simply the most important book ever written in the English language by a military man on the subject of equestrian travel. It was designed to be used by the United States cavalry. Yet it differs from traditional manuals in that it has says nothing about drills and everything about horse journeys. If you want to learn how to properly pack and ride a horse over extremely long distances, then you are holding the cavalry man's sacred text in your hands. At the dawn of the 20th century experts were busy predicting the imminent demise of the horse. Mankind's most historically influential comrade would make way for the automobile, cynics said. Yet the young author of this remarkable volume disagreed with the critics. No machine of steam and steel, of cog or cam, no vapor-fed motor, no craft propelled by batteries or boilers would ever successfully displace the horse from our on-going needs, advised Boniface. Part text book, part history book and all inspiration, "The Cavalry Horse and His Pack" is the lasting tribute to the great horseman and talented writer who foresaw the day when horse travel would once again flourish and a book such as this one would be cherished by unforeseen generations of Long Riders, cavalry students and horse lovers.

Customer Reviews:

Best Book Ever.......2007-01-04

This book was written by my father-in-law more than 100 years ago. He was a 1st Lt. in the U.S.Cavalry, serving in the Philippine Islands. It was written for the Army, and considered the finest book ever written on the subject of horses and horsemanship. It was recently re-published by the Long Rider's Guild in England. The Guild is composed of riders who have made a 1,000 mile journey on horseback. They believe it to be the best book written on horses and horsemanship.

A wonderfully thorough and informative equestrian travel manual .......2005-07-30

The Cavalry Horse and his Pack, by Lt. Jonathan Boniface, is a book rich in both history and detail coupled with photographs and illustrations. With 538 pages packed with information it is a wonderful reference book! Though the style of English used is well over a century old, it is refreshing and adds authenticity.

Initially published in 1903 in the day that the cavalry was still strong, it is easily evident that Lt. Boniface speaks to us with authority.

To say that this book is thorough would be an understatement. It is a manual covering a huge range of topics, which are not limited to but do include, the following:

a) a description of horse breeds and cavalry from around the world
b) how to determine a horse's age by teeth
c) shoeing practices & managing horses on long treks
d) picketing, hobbling and foraging techniques of the Cossacks, United States, French and British cavalries
e) fording and bridging rivers with special attention of ways to swim horses (comes with good cautionary advise)
f) fitting a saddle to a horse and packing the military saddle
g) pack saddles and packing techniques for bundles, boxes & bales
h) mule trains and use of a belled mare

As a horse packer for nearly a decade in the Canadian Rocky Mountains, I found this book full of useful ideas.

Thank you to The Long Riders' Guild Press for the 2005 reprint!

Excellent book, and very welcome reprint of a classic.......2005-05-04

Lt. Boniface's book is a well respected equine classic covering nearly every topic imaginable in regards to horses and horsemanship. While no doubt any dedicated equine fan could fine one or more things to quibble with, it would be difficult to find one who wasn't completely impressed with this text.

There are several books written by Army officers during this period which cover related topics such as this. All of them are excellent. This one is no exception. It covers riding (just before Ft. Riley began to develop what would become the modern military seat), basic horse care, the horse itself, shipping horses, and every topic imaginable.

Boniface's book, which was issued in several editions, has long been sought after by those who are aware of it, and interested in this topic. The equine community is fortunate that The Long Rider's Guild has reissued this edition in a readily availabe format. We at The Miltiary Horse Society, to whom it is dedicated, are very honored that they have mentioned us in the dedication.

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The Cavalry Horse and his Pack
Col. John J. Boniface
Manufacturer: Hudson Kimberly Publishing Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000M6BV2S

The cavalry horse and his pack, embracing the practical details of cavalry service: For the use of officers and non-commissioned officers of cavalry

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The cavalry horse and his pack, embracing the practical details of cavalry service: For the use of officers and non-commissioned officers of cavalry
J Boniface
Manufacturer: C & K Pub. Co
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

The cavalry horse and his pack, embracing the practical details of cavalry service

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The cavalry horse and his pack, embracing the practical details of cavalry service
J Boniface
Manufacturer: Hudson-Kimberly Pub. Co
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

Book Description

eThe authors, Neale Steiniger and Jerry O'connell, have combined their expertise and experience to write the definitive reference book on global securities markets activities. Read this book for an easy to understand description of the clearance, settlement, and custody processes and flows. Gain an understanding of the roles of the participants in a global trade, entries as the trade progresses from execution to settlement and through corporate actions. Follow the flows of the markets in Brazil, Hong Kong and the United Kingdom and reference a glossary of terms.

Book Description

In the early eighteenth century, the household accountant was traditionally female. However, just as women were seen as financial accountants, they were also deeply associated with the literary and narrative accounting inherent in letters and diaries. This book examines these socio-linguistic acts of feminized accounting alongside property, originality, and the development of the early novel.

The book begins with an investigation of the reconceptualization of value that occurred between the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries. While women were denied inheritance of land their fortune was increasingly realized in moveable wealth: textiles, furniture, valuables and money. The author shows how numbers, and in particular, number in financial accounts were used to record experience and create subjectivity, highlighting the role of almanac-diaries in providing a way in which the female owner-author could document her experienced sociability, thrift, prudence and control.

Two female-narrated novels-Aphra Behn's Fair Jilt and Daniel Defoe's Moll Flanders-are then examined, questioning the way in which the century's preoccupation with accounting manifested itself differently in novels of the time. The book concludes with an examination of the developing relationship between property, narrative, and 'personality'. The picaresque an older form of narrative which charts the search for real property or land is contrasted with the 'novel of personality', which charts the search for personal property or land.

This book will be essential reading for students and researchers of History, Economic History, Women's Studies and those interested in the early novel.

Customer Reviews:

One of the Best Training Books I Have Read!.......2007-09-07

I used the training method in the book by Mr Loeb and had great success with my Bichon. I love the fact that I never needed to strike my dog and all he knows when I reach for him is LOVE! He was house trained at 14 weeks (I got him at 8 wks)and I can trust him explicitally.

no reason for this.......2004-06-01

There is no reason in the world to resort to these kinds of tactics to train your dog -- even the independent breeds. I'm appalled.

This book belongs in the trash.......1999-09-08

I am a dog behaviorist but I love to collect old breed and training books. The other day I came across this book and browsed through it. I could not believe the crap in this book, tabasco on your dogs gums for soiling in the house? Slap him real hard so that he knows he did wrong? Put vinegar on his nose so that he knows it is your house and not his? Time we educate the public with some kind and intelligent ways to train our dogs.

Average customer rating:

just ok...

Scrapbook Pages Starring Your Baby: 250 All New Page Ideas (Memory Makers)
Memory Makers Books , and Memory Makers
Manufacturer: Memory Makers Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Scrapbooking Baby's Cherished Moments: 200 Page Designs

ASIN: 1892127458

Book Description

Nothing inspires moms to scrapbook as much as the arrival of a new child. With Scrapbook Pages Starring Your Baby, scrapbookers will find fresh and dynamic ideas for creating pages that feature children from birth through their first eighteen months. This guide provides:

* More than 150 scrapbook pages celebrating the delights of babies, including sleepytime, playtime, first steps, and other important moments

* Ideas for scrapbooking photos and memories, along with journaling ideas for capturing these precious years

* Ways to use the hottest techniques and embellishments to create memorable and unique pages

With this book, scrapbookers will discover creative ways to preserve their sweetest memories.

Customer Reviews:

just ok..........2005-10-11

The book has some interesting ideas but there are better books for babies and quick scrapbooking pages.

Book Description

Powerful photography, specially commissioned artworks, and informative text work together to tell the amazing story of life on earth.

Book Description

Strong self-esteem is a critical ingredient for human happiness--and its development begins at home in the nurturing interactions between children and adults. Clarke's unique approach to building self-esteem begins with her belief that this is indeed a "family affair." Rather than offering collection of dictatorial "shoulds," Self-Esteem: A Family Affair instead serves as a source of parental support, providing a broad range of imaginative and effective suggestions for dealing with individual family members in ways that nourish self-esteem for all involved.Throughout her book, Clarke encourages parents to claim their strengths and to trust their judgment as they make decisions about appropriate child care. Recognizing, too, that kids' needs are best met by adults whose own needs have not been neglected, Clarke offers a range of creative and workable options for parents to build the self-esteem of children while also caring for their emotional needs.Jean Illsley Clarke, author of Hazelden's Growing Up Again: Parenting Ourselves, Parenting Our Children, is a writer and an internationally recognized parent educator who specializes in the areas of parenting, self-esteem, family dynamics, and adult children of alcoholics. She currently directs the Self-Esteem Center, which she founded in 1975, and lives in Plymouth, Minnesota.

Customer Reviews:

From the perspective of a social worker.......2007-09-02

This book uses a very clear paradiagm to analyse the different kinds of messages we give our kids. It teaches a person to be aware of the effect of what we are saying. It also can enlighten a person to the way in which they speak to themselves and to foster positive self talk. I would highly recommend this book.

A must read for parents.......2005-02-22

I read this book in the wee ours of the morning when my child was a crying infant. It has been a great part of bringing her up as a self assured young lady.

Now I am buying a copy to give to my daughetr because she has a child of the same age.

Life-Changing Resource for Parents.......2003-09-03

Jean Illsley Clarke has given parents and families a real gift with this book. Our family has benefitted so much from her insights, that we were able to understand and apply right away.
Ms. Clark also wrote the foreword for the children's picture book If I Ran the Family, which presents many of these same principles for parents and kids to read together.

Good advice, but focuses only on what we say.......2001-06-14

There is good advice here, and know I will refer to the book often. But, there were two things that bothered me while I read it. First, some parts are hard to follow. An example is when the author gives real life examples of families. Family members and friends are often mentioned when they haven't been introduced yet, so as I read along, another name suddenly pops up,and I must stop and figure out "who is this?" Only after going back and then reading all the way through the paragraph again do I figure out the relationships. Second, the advice is really only based in the things we say to our loved ones. Communication is great, but simply saying these "magical phrases" alone is not enough. Before saying any of these affirmations to someone, it might be useful to ask questions to understand where they're coming from and if they even want affirming. It seems like the author presumes you already know when these affirmations are useful.

Important practical advice with examples.......2000-09-15

This is the most user-friendly parenting advice book I have ever read, out of a mountain of parenting books. It gives these practical suggestions for enhancing your child's and your own self-esteem. The concrete examples and clear explanations of the reasoning behind the suggestions make this my favorite parenting book.

Self-esteem, a family affair: Leader guide

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Self-esteem, a family affair: Leader guide
Jean Illsley Clarke
Manufacturer: Winston Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Average customer rating:

Self Esteem a Family Affair
Jean Illsley Clarke
Manufacturer: Winston Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OA2DBA

Learning is a family affair: A guide for parents of children in grades 1-6

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Learning is a family affair: A guide for parents of children in grades 1-6
Charlotte Sawtelle
Manufacturer: Dept. of Educational and Cultural Services
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

General | Family Relationships | Parenting & Families | Subjects | Books

General | Parenting | Parenting & Families | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B0006YO55G

Learning is a family affair: A guide for parents of children in grades 7-12

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Learning is a family affair: A guide for parents of children in grades 7-12
Charlotte Sawtelle
Manufacturer: Maine Dept. of Educational and Cultural Services
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

General | Family Relationships | Parenting & Families | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: B0006YV1SA

Learning is a family affair: A guide for parents of young children

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Learning is a family affair: A guide for parents of young children
Cheri Allen
Manufacturer: Maine Dept. of Educational & Cultural Services
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

General | Family Relationships | Parenting & Families | Subjects | Books

General | Parenting | Parenting & Families | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B00070US4G

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Self-Esteem : A Family Affair
Jean I. Clarke
Manufacturer: Winston Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OEH98I

Book Description

Known by his pseudonym Zero, Hans Schleger was a pivotal figure in the history of modern graphic design. His nom-de-plume suggests his devotion to the Bauhaus principle of reduction, a design of simple unadorned essentials. Indeed, Schleger pioneered the concept of corporate identity, the task of distilling a company down to its visual essence. Coming to New York in 1924, Schleger was one of a handful of European emigre artists and designers who brought modernism to American advertising. After a brief return to Berlin, he emigrated to England in the wake of Hitler's rise to power. His work, first for the War Office and then in advertising, demonstrates his skill at combining photography, line, and type in humorous, sometimes surreal, and always ingenious ways. With a foreword by legendary designer Paul Rand, Zero is the first comprehensive survey of Hans Schleger's work and includes drawing, painting, and photography, as well as the graphic design work for which he is best known: posters, symbols, advertising and corporate design, and packaging. Zero is itself essential reading for any designer.

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Zero: Hans Schleger - a Life in Design
Pat Schleger
Manufacturer: Princeton Architectural Pres
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000IMWU3K

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Well written and well researched but .......

Wales Wales - to be born welsh is to be born privileged........

The Last Pendragon?

Ahh, take me back to the grand ole days of Wales

Medieval fiction of the highest quality

The Brothers of Gwynedd: Comprising, Sunrise in the West, the Dragon at Noonday, the Hounds of Sunset, Afterglow and Nightfall
Edith Pargeter , and Ellis Peters
Manufacturer: Headline Book Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Historical | British | World Literature | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0747232679

Customer Reviews:

Well written and well researched but ..............2006-08-06

I just couldn't get into this book. I was familiar with the story of Llewellyn the last and his Eleanor from reading Sharon Kay Penman's Welsh trilogy (LOVED IT!!). This book, or rather these four books in one tell a similar tale as SKP's Falls the Shadow and The Reckoning, but I found this version to be a bit dry and dragged in many places.

Part of it may be from telling the story in the first person, thus limiting the story telling to what is observed by that person, loosing a lot of character development. I think also because these were originally written as four smaller books, they might stand better alone with some breathing room in between. Looking at it as one book it could well have stood some serious editing. Also suffering due to the first person account is more about Eleanor except for when Samson the clerk is there, so much of the magic of the tale of Llewellyn and his Eleanor is not told here.

Maybe it's just me, although I usually devour large historical fictions about this time period without hardly taking a breather. This one I could always put down, found myself skipping a lot of pages and praying for the book to end -- how many times did we need to have demonstrated in such great, lengthy detail about the legal manipulations of Edward I?

That being said, my heart still breaks for what was lost forever to Wales and the Welsh people at the hands of that despicaple, two timing, double dealing, lying snake in the grass Edward I.

Wales Wales - to be born welsh is to be born privileged...............2006-04-11

I cried.

Tears of grief over my fallen King and nation.

I re-discovered in my Thirites that to be Welsh truly was to be born privileged, and that the White Eagle of Snowden will indeed one day rise to throw off the yolk of saxon tyranny.

Wales is not defined by a sad forlorn wet saturday in Mid Winter at the National Stadium. WE are defined by our spirit, our souls, and an indefatigable refusal to yield in the face of overwhelming odds.

and

an unabidng hatred of saesneg oppressors.

WE WILL RISE AGAIN

The Last Pendragon?.......2005-05-07

"Avid reader" makes a particularly appropriate observation when she says, THE BROTHERS OF GWYNEDD (pronounced "Gwinith") reads like a "...legend of King Arthur...." Some historians now say that the warrior of 500 CE who successfully defended the Celts, including the Cymics (or, if you must, the Welsh), against the invasion of the Saxons was none other than Arthur Pendragen, a Cymric king, famous for his Knights of the Round Table.

Ahh, take me back to the grand ole days of Wales.......2003-03-19

I have read, no, I have lived, this book.It is a story and book to love for life and read and reread every few years.

It is a big fat book and has to be to tell properly the long, exciting and ultimately tragic story of the Prince of Wales, Llewelyn ap Griffith and his attempt to unify Wales in the 1200's.

Since I finished it (sniff, sniff) I have been searching everywhere for other sources to see if Miss Pargeter's view of this part of Welch history coincides with others' views and my belief, so far, is that she is probably close-although there is one camp that insinuates that Llewlyn imprisoned his brothers for more sinister reasons that Miss Pargeter (and I, loyal-lover-of-his that I have become) believes.

One thing I am confounded by is that there isn't more about this part of Welch history on the web and that the Welch sites appear to be strangely silent about their LLewlyn -a bigger-than-life hero of theirs.

If you are looking for Cadfael-well this is history and not mystery so keep that in mind.

If you love beautifully-writen historical novels-the sort in which you can immerse yourself and really feel intimately involved with a differnt time, an exciting place and people you will forever feel you know through and through then please do yourself a favor and join Llewlyn at his place-and please give my love to Samson, too!!

Medieval fiction of the highest quality.......2003-01-09

Set in 13th century Wales, this book reads like an legend of King Arthur packed with tales of chivalry, gallant heroes, ladies imprisoned in castles, characters with "the sight", kindly monks and many, many battle scenes. This is the fictional account of Llewelyn, last Welsh prince of Wales, told through the eyes of Samson, Llewelyn's chronicler and closest friend, and Samson's own personal history of mysterious parentage and his love for the enigmatic yet evasive Cristin.

The stories of Llewelyn's struggles with his own brothers, especially dark and wild David, his battles with the English (Norman) kings, Henry III then later his son Edward, & the alliance with Simon de Montfort in the English civil war were all familiar to me through the works of Sharon Kay Penman, but I enjoyed "The Brothers of Gwynedd" considerably more. Penman's style, to use an expression several other reviewers have alluded to, is too much like a Harlequin romance, gushing with characters that belong more in the 20th century than in medieval times. "The Brothers of Gwynedd" was pure enjoyment to read with great attention to detail and physical descriptions, it seemed to me to have a more authentic medieval feel to it and was as beautiful to read as a fairy tale.

This is a long book but a real page turner, one of those you'll wish could keep going forever. The way the English appropriated the lands of the Welsh, through legal trickery, divide & conquer tactics and outright aggression made me think this was practice for treatment of aboriginal peoples in the newly "discovered" worlds to come. I recommend this to anyone who enjoys medieval fiction or is interested particularly in stories about Wales and it's princes, Simon de Montfort or the Plantagenets.

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Edith Pargeter: Ellis Peters
Margaret Lewis
Manufacturer: Seren
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Warfare Accomplished

The Potter's Field: The Seventeenth Chronicle of Brother Cadfael

ASIN: 1854113291

Book Description

This perceptive survey of the two faces of prolific and award-winning author Edith Pargeter explores both her life and her work. Pargeter is best known as Ellis Peters, the author of the Chronicles of Brother Cadfael. These 20 novels have been televised and adapted for radio and have played a major role in turning crime writing into a literary genre and making historical detectives popular. Also discussed are Pargeter's series of 14 Inspector Felse novels, written under her real name, and her further novels, including two outstanding historical sequences, The Brothers of Gwynedd quartet and The Heaven Tree trilogy. The Eighth Champion of Christendom, a trilogy of novels about the Second World War, is also illuminated.

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Another great story from the wonderful Ms. Ellis Peters.
The Doorway to Death
The mediaeval church door led only to the grave
Destiny Knocking: Sanctuary or Portal to Eternity?
a fun english cosy

The Knocker on Death's Door.
Edith Pargeter (as Ellis Peters)
Manufacturer: William Morrow
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 068801948X

Customer Reviews:

Another great story from the wonderful Ms. Ellis Peters........2005-10-07

This is another solid entry in the George Felse series. We see a great deal of George this time, and that is a good thing. George is a wonderful character - straight, no-nonsense, and smart as a whip. The wonderful thing about Ellis Peters books is her wonderful plots and characterizations. She will take something simple like an old, medieval door and build a tale around it. This whole story revolves around this old door, and the old door has a lot of secrets to tell. George is willing to listen to the door and its hidden secrets and is therefore able to solve the case. We have a nice mix here of an old cold case and two new cases (a murder and an attempted murder). Ms. Peters weaves them all together seamlessly.

The Doorway to Death.......2005-07-08

Best known for her "Brother Cadfael" series, Ellis Peters (1913-1985) was also the author of thirteen novels featuring Inspector George Felse. Published in 1970, THE KNOCKER ON DEATH'S DOOR is the tenth novel in that series--and among the best.

Peters often worked with contrived-but-witty plots, and this work shows her at her best. The Macsen-Martels have a notable family tree and historic home, but their time has passed. In the face of dwindling fortunes, they have decided to pass their home into the hands of the National Trust--but before they do so they restore to the local cathedral a historic door that fell into their possession. But along with the door goes a legend, the tale of a man who was carried off by the devil when the door refused to admit him into the church.

Needless to say, no sooner is the door returned to its rightful place at the church than there is a body to go with it: a news photographer is found dead at the threshold, his hand extended to the great cast iron knocker. But his soul wasn't spirited away by the devil, at least not judging from the gaping wound on the back of his head. It is murder, and Inspector Felse is on the scene.

Unlike most Felse novels, this particular entry does not feature his son Dominic; it instead offers an array of locals, some of whom are determined to play detective. Although hardcore mystery fans will likely spot the killer early on simply due to the way Peters sets up the plot, the characters are well drawn and the story is an amiable companion for the hour or two it requires. Recommended.

GFT, Amazon Reviewer

The mediaeval church door led only to the grave.......2002-12-22

This was the first Inspector Felse mystery I ever read. After I'd finished all of Peters' Brother Cadfael mysteries, I finally gave in, despite having groused to myself for years that she'd spent time on these when she could have been spreading mayhem through medieval Shropshire for our fun and her profit.

It's a shame I took so long to give Felse a fair chance. Peters was already an excellent writer when this story was written; the Felse stories are good novels, not just clever puzzles. They carry the bonus that they aren't bound to a formula as tightly as are the chronicles of Brother Cadfael.

Felse's turf is on the Welsh border, but in the last half of the twentieth century, and in "Midshire" (technically not Shropshire). As in the Cadfael stories, time doesn't stand still for the characters. This, as one of George's later appearances, doesn't feature his son Dominic in an active role in the investigation - Dominic is on holiday abroad, having just graduated from university. This particular story is set in Mottisham, one of the villages near Felse's home base of Comerbourne; the area is also the scene of RAINBOW'S END, for anyone who'd like to see how the supporting characters fared in later years.

The Macsen-Martels, as their double-barreled name suggests, are an old family, but their fires are burning out. The valley, as local Sgt. Moon says, is tribal, not feudal - 'squire' is a dirty word around here. The best they ever did was in acquiring Mottisham Abbey out of Henry VIII's dissolution of the monasteries. "Count for nothing now. Never will again. Never *did*, for all that much."

Robert senior was a notorious womanizer who sank the family deep in debt before finally breaking his neck in the hunting field. His widow, a cousin whom he married for her money, would never hear a word against him. Robert junior, the elder son, takes after his mother in looks and values, but what in her is aristocratic arrogance has in him been eroded like a medieval carving. He grew up helping her cope with his father's endless debts and paternity suits, and it seems to have taken its toll on more than the family fortunes - he's worn to the bone. Far from being a lord of the manor, he works in a realtor's office. His younger brother Hugh, on the other hand, has his father's energy, but he turns it to a more profitable end as the junior partner of Cressett and Martel, local garage. (The senior partner, Dave Cressett, is only a year younger than Robert, and where Hugh provides flash and dazzle, Dave provides sturdy dependability. Dinah, Dave's younger sister, chips in - a pocket edition, but made of the right stuff; Hugh's got sense enough to be moving toward marriage with her.)

The family can't maintain the Abbey anymore, and they've finally convinced the National Trust to step in. The building must be restored to original condition as much as possible, so they've started by reinstalling the old wine cellar door in the church porch - there's a family story that it belongs there. George Felse, just returning from a holiday after promotion to deputy head of the county CID, passes the time of day with Sgt. Moon while stuck in traffic, caused by the bishop's stately progress of reconsecrating the door. It's a *DOOR* - 7 x 5 mediaeval oak, flanked by carved angels that were outdated when it was carved and have come all the way around to being modern, and weighing a quarter of a ton. It and its knocker come complete with a Macsen-Martel family legend, which we hear when the younger son, Hugh, takes his Dinah to officially meet his family.

Only a local sensation, not even a nine-days'-wonder; Bunty's comfortable statement that there's nothing to fetch them back for a second look, though, goes into the category of Famous Last Words. At first, it only begins with the regulars of the Sitting Duck taking the mickey out of the small gang of pressmen who turned out for the ceremony. (The pub conserves its home-brewed beer for the regulars, and anyhow such strangers are nature's way of providing entertainment.) Nobody expected Gerry Bracewell, the quickest-witted of the pack, to return a few weeks later in pursuit of a potential story - and still less for Dave Cressett to find him dead in the church porch, head beaten in before the door.

Felse opts to hang onto the case rather than passing it to the Yard; something was significant about the door itself, not the man. All that was unusual about him was that he'd seen the door once before, years ago, when photographing the house for a series of articles on obscure country houses. But what could be so deadly about a door that was already on public display?

The only touches of amateur hour in Felse's thoroughly professional investigation are Dave Cressett's inquiries when he returns Bracewell's car to the widow, and a few scenes from Dinah's point of view. They're adequately explained by the closed-shop attitude of Mottisham's people - when there's trouble, they pull together, but right must be done. Although those psychic researchers are fair game when they show up at the pub...

Destiny Knocking: Sanctuary or Portal to Eternity?.......2002-01-13

Mild-mannered DCI George Felse, who prefers to solve English country crime without the aid of the Yard, finds himself near the Welsh/English border--first on vacation, then on business. He is abruptly shaken out of his appreciation of Midshire's
natural beauty when confronted by a manorial/monastic mystery--complete with curse. Could monks gone amuck at the time of the
Dissolution actually influence lives (i.e., cause death) in this century? What is the fatal attraction of a curiously-wrought knocker on an oaken door, which was hung first in a church, then in a private wine cellar, but has since been donated back to an ecclesiastical setting?

Ellis Peters, known to aficionados as the creator of the Brother Cadfael series, weaves a delightful web of suspicious characters, cryptic legend and mundane motives into a contemporary thriller, with medieval over--or rather, undertones. Her fans will recognize her penchant for incidental romance: in this case an unexpected but platonic love affair at the end. Socially-conscious in her own time, she raises poignant commentary on the role of impoverished aristocracy, dying out gracefully (?) for lack of cash and new blood...apologies for the ill-chosen expression. Will the Manor be saved by the Trust or is this the end of the line for the Macsen-Martel family? Will the sins of the philandering patriarch be visited upon future generations? Anything by Peters is sure to please; savor this novel as her literary premonition of a medieval Welsh monk dabbling in mystery. My advice: beware of the cowl in the mist and don't knock first!

a fun english cosy.......2000-10-27

Being a fan of Ellis Peters's brother Cadfael series, I decided to try her earlier mystery series, featuring detective inspector George Felse. The Knocker on Death's Door is a good, light read, with interesting historical details, although the solution to the mystery will be obvious to most experienced mystery-novel readers. The plot centers around the restoration of a medieval door to its original place in the village church, and the secrets the door holds, which reveal a long-hidden murder. There's a sweet, innocent romantic sub-plot woven through the detective story, and George Felse is a delightful investigator. Overall, a good read for fans of the traditional English-cosy mystery.

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Afterglow and Nightfall
Edith (Ellis Peters) Pargeter
Manufacturer: Star
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000M635R2

Assize of the Dying 1ST Edition :Ellis Peters

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Assize of the Dying 1ST Edition :Ellis Peters
Edith Pargeter
Manufacturer: CRIME CLUB
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000UCWF7E

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Assize of the Dying 1ST Edition :Ellis Peters
Edith Pargeter
Manufacturer: CRIME CLUB
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000SNTOBU

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A Bloody Field By Shrewsbury
Edith (Ellis Peters) Pargeter
Manufacturer: Sphere
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000M66ZW4

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A Bloody Field By Shrewsbury
Ellis (writing as Edith Pargeter) Peters
Manufacturer: MacMillan
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000GTPQ18

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The Brothers Of Gwynedd Quartet
Edith Pargeter Ellis Peters
Manufacturer: Headline
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000JWUH6G

Average customer rating:

City of Gold and Shadows
Ellis (Edith Pargeter) PETERS
Manufacturer: see notes for publisher info
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000RJMEIU

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