I have always loved Ellis Peters's a.k.a Edith Pargeter's command of English, use of imagery, and powerful description. She humbles speakers of English as a third language like me. There'd been times when I wished I could learn yet another language, such as Mandarin, but, after reading the works of Peters/Pargeter, I refuse to take on any other foreign language if I am unable to write eloquent stories using it.

What use would Mandarin be to me on the street except to go shopping in Lucky Chinatown?