The Virgin in the Ice: Starring Sir Michael Hordern & Douglas Hodge (BBC Radio Collection)

Whilst in Ludlow, Cadfael also finds himself embroiled in the hunt for a party of three young persons missing after the attacks on Worcester and known to be heading for Shrewsbury, at which destination they have failed to arrive. With a bitter freeze on hand and the winter's first snows, there are grave concerns for their safety and well-being. One of the three is subsequently found dead - obviously killed and dumped in a watery (now icy) grave on the very night that the good monk's patient was attacked.

Unlike many another Cadfael tale, this one moves along with a gripping sense of urgency and with a fair amount of tension and excitement building gradually as things proceed. It contains the usual Ellis Peters' meticulous attention to both historical and narrative detail and constitutes as riveting - and entertaining - a story as you are likely to find. As always, Cadfael is aware of details overlooked by others and never once loses sight of the smaller issues that are wont to become subsumed into the larger, weightier ones. He (and the regular reader) is provided with an unlooked-for reward in this volume, too.

This book has to be one of the very best of the Cadfael Chronicles and is unreservedly recommended for lovers of the genre. Its story line stands somewhat apart from others in the series, making it fairly unimportant where it is read in the sequence.


An atmospheric murder mystery   April 25, 2001
5 out of 5 found this review helpful

Having read one of Ellis Peter's Cadfael books and been left totally unimpressed by it I bought this tape on the grounds that it was a BBC production and therefore probably pretty good.

I'm glad I did. This production is absolutely superb. It really captures the atmosphere of the piece - listen to it in a darkened room and you'll swear that you've been transported to medieval Shrewsbury. At one point it even succeeds in making you feel cold as the characters battle through a snowstorm!

The casting is spot on. Philip Madoc has a truly magnificent voice - listening to him is the aural equivalent of comfort food - and you can quite imagine why the townsfolk would head to his Cadfael with their problems. In addition the voice of Paddington Bear, Michael Hordern, is the narrator.

The story itself concerns the plight of 2 children who have been forced to flee Worcester during a battle between King Stephen and Empress Maud. The boy, Ives, turns up unharmed but his sister is nowhere to be found. Cadfael organises a search which leads to the discovery of a young woman's body, frozen beneath the ice. But the story has only just begun.

If you enjoy audiobooks then this will be a welcome addition to your collection. If not, then this might well be the tape to get you hooked.


Revelations and a superb story to boot!   December 11, 2000
1 out of 4 found this review helpful

The previous review sets the stroy up nicely. There are a couple of revelations in this story which, if you've not read the later books, will make you jump for joy! It's a superb story to boot! I got the Omnibus but the story is the same as in this edition! Easily one of the best I've read so far!


Excitement in the Winter Cold   October 1, 2000
1 out of 5 found this review helpful

When the town of Worcester is destroyed, three of those fleeing head towards Shrewsbury. But they don't find safety, just the risks of youngsters travelling through winter snows. When the party getes split up, Cadfael & Hugh have to find the missing youngsters before they meet a terrible fate!