As I mentioned, today I'm a stop on the TLC book tour for Nancy Bilyeau's The Chalice. (These books consumed my weekend, in a good way!)It's been just one year since the dissolution of Dartford Priory. Joanna and some of the other nuns have made their home in the neighboring village but the transition hasn't been easy. The attitude towards the Catholic Church and their old order is hostile at times, thanks to the current political climate, but they're determined to move on. Then Joanna is offered a chance to visit her cousins in London. The invitation comes at an opportune time for Joanna and her ward, but soon turns out to be the first step in fulfilling a prophecy Joanna has long feared. This prophecy, set in motion when Joanna was just a teen, would have her on a course that could change history and restore the Catholic Church. But at what cost?
More political intrigue with a twist of the mysterious for Joanna! The Chalice takes us beyond Dartford and and England as a whole, exploring the next piece of British history following the events of The Crown.
Joanna evolves quite a bit in this second book. While she'd never be described as a character who stood by and accepted her fate, she did make an attempt to accept what had happened at the start of The Chalice. That soon changes, and her willingness to once again take an active role in preventing what's happening comes about once again (admittedly her motives in The Crown have more to do with protecting her loved ones than herself).
She also has to face changes in herself that result from no longer being part of a holy order. Since the priory was dissolved before she was able to take vows, she was never officially a nun. Her feelings for both Geoffrey and Brother Edmund presented interesting new aspects of the story.
Fans of historical fiction, suspense/thrillers, and what I like to call literary puzzles will love this series. Bilyeau has another installment due out late next year called The Covenant.
Rating: 5/5
To see more stops on the tour, check out the official TLC tour page here.
For more on Nancy and her books, visit her official website and follow her on Twitter.
1 comment:
This trilogy is high on my TBR list, but at the rate I'm going the final book will be out before I have a chance to start the first one. Still, I'm looking forward to reading all of them!
Thanks for being on the tour.
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