In which young Gerard, gifted with the rare skill of penmanship, finds unexpected favour and hospitality among the monks as he undertakes to transcribe their records, while the rugged soldier Denys, once a sceptic, candidly recounts his riotous initiation into monastic life and its boisterous excesses. Between playful jests and solemn whispers of haunted crypts, the vivid contrasts of sanctity and human frailty are laid bare, with Gerard's heart irresistibly drawn towards home under the watchful eyes of friends both pious and profane.