Brother Hermitage's Christmas Gift - Howard of Warwick

    2017; 128 pages.  New Author? : No.  Genre : Historical Satire; Christmas; Novella; Medieval Fiction.  Overall Rating: 8½*/10.

 

    December 25, 1066 CE is nigh!  It will be a day of celebration!

 

    Not only because it’s Christmas, or, as they called it back then: Christes Mass Day.  It’s also the day that Duke William of Normandy will be crowned the King of England.  That's William, the victor at the Battle of Hastings over King Harold of the Saxons.  That's the “late” King Harold.

 

    The Archbishop of Canterbury has instructed all abbeys in England to send emissaries bearing gifts to William.  It is prudent to get on the good side of the new ruler.

 

    For reasons best left untold, Abbot Athan, the head of the abbey at De’Ath’s Dingle, has chosen Brother Hermitage to attend the coronation.  Along with his wiseacre sidekick, Wat the Weaver.

 

    Have fun, Hermitage and Wat.  Paint smiles on your faces as you try to forget that you’re both Saxons, not Normans.

 

What’s To Like...

    Brother Hermitage’s Christmas Gift is a novella-length Christmas tale set in 11^th-century England, in the critical days when the Anglo-Saxon rulership ends and the Normans take over.  It has the same setting as Howard of Warwick’s Chronicles of Brother Hermitage series uses, although here the a trio of the recurring characters play a part.

 

    Unlike the regular books in the series, there is no murders or other crimes for Brother Hermitage to investigate.  Instead, the theme of the story is the nature of gift-giving.  Hermitage and Wat have polar-opposite views about that, and weeklong trek from De’Ath’s Dingle to London gives them ample time to debate it.  They also have to figure out what an appropriate gift the new king should be, and then find one, since they forgot to hit up Abbot Athan for one.

 

    I enjoyed tagging along on their 7-day journey.  Each night lodging and meals must be found, and they are introduced to some fascinating characters.  They also have to beware crossing paths with brigands and marauding Norman soldiers.  And, as is true of all books in this series, Howard of Warwick’s witty dialogue and dry humor is a royal treat.

 

    The story is written in English, not American, so you get weird spellings such as focussed, recognise, practise, and meagre.  But it wasn't distracting, and I always like reading in a foreign language.

 

    The ending is good, with a bit of excitement capping off an otherwise philosophical tale.  The gift-giving storyline has a moral to it, but it’s not what I was expecting.

 

Ratings…
    Amazon:  4.3/5 based on 448 ratings and 46 reviews.

    Goodreads: 4.09/5 based on 190 ratings and 13 reviews.

 

Excerpts...

    When established constructions, particularly old Roman ones, fell into disrepair the local folk would gather the fallen stones for their own homes.  De’Ath’s Dingle didn’t fall into disrepair, it jumped.  Local folks knew far better than to use material cast off by that place.  As the saying in those parts went: "The stones of De’Ath’s Dingle; for when the worst isn’t quite bad enough.”  (loc. 148)

 

    “So you expect us to travel to London in seven days?”

    “Correct.”

    “In the middle of winter, across a land not yet conquered and probably swarming with armed groups taking advantage of the chaos?”

    “That’s it.”

    “Two Saxons into an army of Normans celebrating their victory?”

    “You do ask a lot of questions.”

    “We’ll be killed.”  (loc. 276)

 

Kindle Details…

    Brother Hermitage’s Christmas Gift sells for $1.49 at Amazon right now.  It is related to Howard of Warwick’s popular Chronicles of Brother Hermitage series, which is up to 32 (soon to be 33) e-books.   The prices for those tales range from $2.99 to $4.99.

 

“Amanuesis?”  “A man who what?”  (loc. 579)

    There is zero profanity in Brother Hermitage’s Christmas Gift which seems appropriate for a Christmas story.  This is the fourth book I’ve read featuring Brother Hermitage, and so far, all of they’ve all been light on the cusswords.  I like it when an author is skilled enough to not have to overuse expletives to tell the story.

 

    For a change, the typos were also scarce.  One missing period, and one clunky wording (“Because it what…”) were all I noted.  The opening word in each chapter (chapters are called “caputs” here; and is that kewl, or what!) has an extra space in it, but I’m sure this was a formatting issue beyond the author’s control, not a typo.

 

    I can’t think of anything else to grouse about.  Brother Hermitage’s Christmas Gift was a delight to read from beginning to end, and exactly what I look for in a Christes Mass story: short and sweet, and thoughtfully upbeat.

 

    8½ Stars.  One last thing.  If you’re new to this series, you should know that Wat the Weaver is renowned for his “sophisticated” tapestries.  Quite a few of the characters here are well acquainted with his masterpieces.  Unfortunately, his craftwork probably is not appropriate as a public gift to a newly crowned monarch.