Sharon Key Penman - Medieval Mysteries

An avid fan of Accursed Kings, I took upon reading "While Christ and His Saints Slept". I'm about halfway in and I enjoyed it a lot in the beginning, though I'm getting a bit overwhelmed with the story now. Maybe I'm used to Maurice Druon's style of wrapping things up quickly.. Anyway, I decided to take a break and try some of Penman's shorter books, as I already have The Queen's Man and Cruel as the Grave in my library. Has anyone read these books? In the Penman praise posts, I notice the Medieval Mysteries get skipped quite often. What is the reason for this? Are they not as good as the main series?

Update: I started The Queen's Man and LOVING it. I confess I like it much better than While Chris and His Saints Slept. It's a much easier read for sure.