One Corpse Too Many by Peters is the second book in her Brother Cadfael mystery series set in 12th century England. This time the trouble comes to Cadfael as England divided allegiance between King Stephen and Empress Maud and Stephen leads an army to besiege the castle at Shrewsbury which defiantly supports his rival. Just before the castle falls, more new faces arrive in Shrewsbury. Godith, daughter of one of the castle nobles, is brought to the abbey disguised as a boy to hide. The abbey also hosts Aline, who has come to offer Stephen the keys to her castle, and Hugh Beringar, the betrothed of Godith also come to side with the king. When the castle falls, Cadfael is sent to take care of the bodies of the fallen men; but the count is one too many. After careful review, he discovers one body that clearly does not belong, a young man brutally strangled and then dumped in with the bodies from the castle. With the king's blessing to find the murderer, Cadfael discovers that the man was on the opposing side part of a duo tasked with secreting away the treasure of the castle noble. Cadfael responsibilities multiply as he locates the other man hiding and wounded. Now he has a treasure to retrieve and two young people to get safely out of Shrewsbury while still trying to discover the truth about the murder.
An excellent follow up to the first book in the series, I would recommend One Corpse Too Many for ages 16 and up.
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