Detective, monk, father, herbalist, Crusader, sailor, Celt, friend-author Ellis Peters bestows all these attributes on her twelfth-century Benedictine monk-detective Brother Cadfael. As a detective, Cadfael uses his analytic mind to solve crimes and administer justice. As a man of God, he also dispenses mercy along with his famous cordials.
Why, essays ask, is a cloistered monk solving murders? How can an author combine a valid detective and an effective healer?

Courtesan and criminal, thief and trollop, warrior and wanderer the picara embodies the continuing archetypal pattern of a woman s autonomy. She is the sly sharpster in Defoe s heroines such as Roxana and Moll Flanders. With an ancestress like Becky Sharp, the picara evolves into Scarlett O Hara before finding a comfortable niche as the female hero in fantasy written by women. The Picara traces the development of this character, from an autonomous woman in a harsh patriarchal society to the female hero of the modern fantasy novel.
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Courtesan and criminal, thief and trollop, warrior and wanderer--the picara embodies the continuing archetypal pattern of a woman's autonomy. She is the sly sharpster in Defoe's heroines such as Roxana and Moll Flanders. With an ancestress like Becky Sharp, the picara evolves into Scarlett O'Hara before finding a comfortable niche as the female hero in fantasy written by women. The Picara traces the development of this character, from an autonomous woman in a harsh patriarchal society to the female hero of the modern fantasy novel.

Traditionally, romance novels have a reputation as being no more than trashy, sex-filled fantasy escapes for frustrated housewives. But books in this genre account for nearly half of the paperbacks published. Contributors examine the patterns used by the romance authors to tell their stories.

The critics in Romantic Conventions believe that the romance genre is an important part of the literary scene, not only because it has captured nearly fifty percent of the paperback market, but also because it employs sympathetic values and identifiable conventions of its own. These values -- literary, challenging, and socially redeeming values -- are encoded in the themes; conventions, patterns, or familiar images that are the tools of the craft of romance writing. The authors explicate, explain, dissect, analyze, and research to make the enjoyment of reading the romance greater.

Ten essays focus on Ellis Peters' mystery novels and stories featuring a 12th-century Benedictine monk/detective. Topics range from the moral world view Peters creates to Cadfael's Welsh heritage.