In The Difficult Saint, Sharan Newman returns to medieval France and the murder-haunted Catherine LeVendeur, heroine of this acclaimed series. After a harrowing stay with Catherine's in-laws in Scotland, Catherine and her husband, Edgar, have returned home with their two small children to live a life of peace at last--or so they hope. But soon the safety of those they love is questioned as anti-Jewish sentiment begins to grow in Paris. Raised Catholic by her father, Hubert, who poses as a Christian while practicing Judaism in secret, Catherine fears that the violence of the most recent crusade will repeat itself, victimizing members of her family. but before she can put too much thought into that, fate interrupts.
Catherine's estranged younger sister, Agnes, has returned to Paris with the news that she has been promised in marriage to a German lord. Bitter about their religious differences Agnes wants no part of Catherine or Hubert--except for the sizable dowry that Hubert can provide. When Catherine and Hubert arrange for Agnes to be escorted to Germany with her dowry, they assume that they have seen the last of her.
But then one of Agnes's escorts returns to Paris with terrible news: Agnes's new husband appears to have been murdered by poisoning, and Agnes is the prime suspect. In spite of their differences, Catherine believes in her innocence, and knows that she must do everything she can to save her sister's life. And when Catherine and her brood travel to Germany to begin sleuthing in a dangerously anti-Semetic climate, it becomes clear that Catherine and Edgar's long-dreamt of life of peace remains in the distant future--if they live to see it at all.
Sharan Newman is a medieval historian and author. She took her Master’s degree in Medieval Literature at Michigan State University and then did her doctoral work at the University of California at Santa Barbara in Medieval Studies, specializing in twelfth-century France. She is a member of the Medieval Academy and the Medieval Association of the Pacific.
Rather than teach, Newman chose to use her education to write novels set in the Middle Ages, including three Arthurian fantasies and ten mysteries set in twelfth-century France, featuring Catherine LeVendeur a one-time student of Heloise at the Paraclete, her husband, Edgar, an Anglo-Scot and Solomon, a Jewish merchant of Paris. The books focus on the life of the bourgeoisie and minor nobility and also the uneasy relations between Christians and Jews at that time. They also incorporate events of the twelfth-century such as the Second Crusade and the rise of the Cathars.
For these books, Newman has done research at the Bibliothèque Nationale in Paris, the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique France Méridionale et Espagne at the University of Toulouse and the Institute for Jewish History at the University of Trier, as well as many departmental archives.
The Catherine Levendeur mysteries have been nominated for many awards. Sharan won the Macavity Award for best first mystery for Death Comes As Epiphany and the Herodotus Award for best historical mystery of 1998 for Cursed in the Blood. The most recent book in the series The Witch in the Well won the Bruce Alexander award for best Historical mystery of 2004.
Just for a change, her next mystery, The Shanghai Tunnel is set in Portland in 1868.
The Shanghai Tunnel allowed Sharan Newman to explore the history of the city she grew up in. She found that the history she had been taught in school had been seriously whitewashed. Doing research in the city archives as well as the collections at Reed College and the Oregon Historical society was exciting and eye-opening. Many of the “founding fathers” of Portland turn out to have been unscrupulous financiers. Chinese workers were subject to discrimination and there was an active red light district.
On the other hand, Portland in the post-Civil War period also saw some amazingly liberal movements. Women’s rights were an important issue as was religious toleration. Even at that early date, preserving the natural environment was hotly debated.
This is the world in which Emily Stratton, the widow of a Portland merchant and the daughter of missionaries to China, finds herself.
Newman has written a non-fiction book, The Real History Behind the Da Vince Code Berkley 2005. It is in encyclopedia format and gives information on various topics mentioned in Dan Brown’s novel. Following on that she has just completed the Real History Behind the Templars published by Berkley in September of 2007.
This review has been edited to include the following message from the author. I emailed her asking which character in the novel was the "Difficult Saint." Here is her reply: "Dear Curious; The title was taken from my friend Brian McGuire's biography of Bernard of Clairvaux, but I meant it to be Lord Gerhardt, for being a Cathar saint, something highly heretical. Thanks for asking, Sharan"
The following is my origianl review: The setting for this historical novel is northeast France and northwest Germany and takes place in the mid 12th century. The politics of the time are centered around the initial organizing for the Second Crusade. Many Europeans are equipping themselves for the planned crusade, and some people resent the fact that Jewish merchants are profiting from sales of supplies to the crusaders. The fictional main characters of the story are centered around a nominally Christian family of mixed Jewish ancestry (a fact they try to keep a secret).
The historical environment described in this story is well researched by an author who is well qualified in the subject of medieval history. At a superficial level this book is a murder mystery. But for me the suspense of pending danger from anti-Jewish pogroms was more scary than the need to solve the murder mystery in order to save the falsely accused sister of the heroine. There's even a secret group of heretics (Cathars) in the story that has some appearances of being a proto-Protestant group. Of course Protestants and Anabaptists appeared hundreds of years later in the 16th Century, however this description of 12th Century society is a reminder that each age had its dissidents. So the feature of this book that I appreciated most was how it served as a window into a historical time often overlooked by writers of historical novels.
This book is fifth in a series of ten books in the Catherine LeVendeur series written by Sharan Newman. A complete list of the books in this series is listed at the end of this review.
There was an "After Word" included at the end of the book that explains which parts of the story were historical and which parts were fictional. I was suprised to learn that some of the incidents in the book that I had assumed were the writer's imagination were actually based on historical records. In particular, there is an incident of a poor washer woman saving the life of a young girl left for dead by an anti-Jewish mob that I found to be particularly dramatic, and it turns out to have been based on historical documents of that time.
Héloïse (of Abélard and Héloïse fame) and her son Astrolabius play side roles in the early part of this novel. At the time of this story Héloïse is prioress of the convent of Argenteuil, and Abélard is no longer living.
Bernard of Clairvaux is another historical character who plays a significant role in the story. Bernard was an opponent of Peter Abelard in earlier years, but in this story he is an older man speaking in support of the 2nd Crusade. Bernard's effort at silencing the fanatical French monk named Rudolphe is a true historical happening included within this novel.
The following comment is not directly related to this book, but while I'm on the subject of Bernard of Clairvaux I thought I would add this bit of trivia. He is the author of the poem often translated in English hymnals as "O Sacred Head, Now Wounded." Also, Dante Alighieri's "Divine Comedy" places him as the last guide for Dante, as he travels through the Empyrean (Paradiso, cantos XXXI-XXXIII). Dante's choice appears to be based on Bernard's contemplative mysticism, his devotion to Mary, and his reputation for eloquence.
List of books in the Catherine LeVendeur series: 1. Death Comes As Epiphany 2. The Devil's Door 3. The Wandering Arm 4. Strong As Death 5. Cursed in the Blood 6. The Difficult Saint 7. To Wear The White Cloak 8. Heresy: A Catherine LeVendeur Mystery 9. The Outcast Dove 10. The Witch in the Well
This historical mystery, set in 1146 in both Paris and Germany, convincingly creates a picture of life in the 12th century which was teeming with political and religious conflict. The religious conflicts were centered on rising anti-Jewish prejudices and violence against Jews that was increasing as a new Crusade was announced by Louis VII of France and also on the attempts to control and eliminate heresy within the Catholic church. Hubert Le Vendeur was born a Jew, but raised as a Christian. However, as he ages, he finds himself yearning to openly identify himself as a Jew and join the Jewish community. His daughter, Catherine, wants him to totally accept Christianity to protect his family and his other daughter, Agnes, will have nothing to do with her family because of her father's Jewish heritage which they refuse to publicly denounce. Well, that's not exactly true. She demands the sizable dowry that her father can provide when she is about to enter into a very advantageous marriage to a German lord. Shortly after her marriage, Agnes is accused of killing her new husband by poison and Catherine and her family travel to Germany to try to discover the truth. The mystery, for me, was a subplot to the information contained in the book about the horrors that individuals were willing to inflict on each other in the name of religion. I was glad that the author included the influential Abbott Bernard le Fontaines of Clairvoux, an historical figure, who denounced violence against Jews and forbid it in territory under his authority.
The Catherine LeVendeur mystery series is one of my favorite historical mystery series. In addition to the impeccable research and the excellent quality of the writing, what makes this medieval mystery series stand out is that the author incorporates into the series the medieval treatment of Jews. She neither softens nor tries to justify the persecution of Jews during the Middle Ages, but she does try to make the reader see the persecution from the medieval mindset. This book is an excellent addition to the series (which is best read in order). Unlike in previous books where the persecution is opaque and non-violent, the Church's push towards a crusade has ignited anti-Semitism throughout Europe, and Catherine and her family are caught between the personal (Catherine's sister is accused of murdering her newly married husband) and the political (the increasing violence against Jews). The author even throws in some Cathars to add to the religious complications. As always, the characters are interesting and well-rounded. The mystery is interesting and the religious issues well explained. I highly recommend this series!
A couple of weird editing errors marred this book--like calling Margaret's father her grandfather, switching names halfway through a scene, then back, etc. Someone was asleep at the wheel. But the book is solid, if not quite as winning as some of the previous ones. I suspect I'm a little burnt out, so I'm taking a break.
Nicely done historical. Painful to read about the plight of the medieval Jews, and the complacent prejudice of even the "good" christians. The mystery was a little poorly integrated; not really a whodunnit, or at least that wasn't the focus.
This was a decent, solidly written mystery with an interesting historical context (this time, a trip from France into Germany while Louis VII is ramping up for a Crusade) but I felt it wasn't one of the best Catherine LeVendeur books. I've never been entirely sold on the large number of viewpoints in these books, and in this one particularly, I felt that Catherine's voice had been lost in the multitude. One or two of the new characters seemed hurriedly developed, as well.
The central mystery plot itself was fine, although the reader's knowing so much more than the sleuths makes for less exciting revelations. (Some of the later character-in-peril parts were much more gripping.) The violence that has been brewing in the Europe these books depict was vividly and disturbingly portrayed -- although it would be hard-put to be quite so grim and bloody as Cursed in the Blood, the previous book in the series. I was satisfied with some of the ongoing character arcs and conflicts that resolved here, although there were some unanswered questions, especially about Catherine's reaction to events.
Notes on audiobook narration: This book had a different reader than the others I've listened to, and I really didn't enjoy the change. The French names are no longer given a French pronunciation (in French, you know, "Agnes" sounds quite beautiful), and the narration is rather monotonic. Some dialogue was whispered so softly (in comparison to the other lines and narration) as to be inaudible, and many characters, including our heroine, sounded inappropriately petulant.
Another great novel in the Catherine LeVendeur series. After Catherine's sister decides to marry a man she has never met the family is summoned because Agnes' new husband has been found dead and Agnes is being blamed for murdering him. Catherine, Edgar, Catherine's father and Catherine and Edgars children all go to Germany to try to save her. I like the way the author takes real history and puts in her story. I liked how she took the story of a Jewish girl who was beaten and left for dead and used it in her story except not the exact same. She is obviously well researched in the time period which is always nice when reading a historical novel of any kind.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
I really enjoy this series and would recommend it to any medieval mystery/historical fiction buff (think Ellis Peters/Margaret Frazier - but this heroine started out as a novice but left the cloister in the first book of the series and married). Anyway, it really brings medieval Paris to life, with a lot of fascinating background about the medieval church, Jewish/Christian relations, and life in the upper/merchant classes.
This book was more difficult to read than the others. More interaction between Jews and Christians and many more disturbing scenes. As the second crusade begins, Christian sects vie with one another in their hatred of fellow man. All this action is threaded through the mystery Catherine and Edgar must unravel.
I had a hard time working my way through this. The persecution of Jews is a major theme, which I don't particularly like, although I realize it was reality. But the characters weren't sympathetic, and the action frequently took place off the pages.
This was an intriguing historical mystery. Set in Germany in the mid 1100s, it is a break from the many British mysteries of Victorian England. I learned a lot about the time, in particular the way religion affected so much of everyday life. In some ways it saddened me to realize how little has changed. The prejudices are a little less overt now, but many of the underlying opinions seem the same. One thing I liked about this story was that there was no attempt to make Catherine overly advanced in her social opinions. She accepts and lives with Jews in her life, but continues to pray that they will realize the error of their ways. This is more realistic to me than if she had totally accepted the validity of Judaism. I also found it interesting that rich people could have their families buy them out of prison. Again, things haven’t changed too much…we just pretend it has. As for the mystery itself, it was not as strong, and the answer seemed pretty obvious early on. Overall, it was a good read for its novelty, but I’m not sure I’d read more in the series.
I like these series but this instalment (set mostly in Trier) was less strong historically and more of a romance. Not that I don't like wives who love their husbands and the attraction between sympathetic men and beautiful women, but I found the earlier Newman novels better.
Still, this was an enjoyable read, featuring a Bernard of Clairveaux's struggle to contain violence against the Jews of Europe (considered as infidel by the rabble, sometimes unscrupulously provoked) while at the same time blessing another Crusade to the Holy Land (against other peoples designated as infidel). There is some wisdom, some tension, and a whole lot of romance in this book.
A good story , though a bit implausible. I love the series, though the times are really tough and the deaths horrific...the threats seem real and so do the settings, travel challenges, and fears... I did not like this one as much as the previous books and I do still want to read the next three or so to find out where this author is going to take us! I In spite of the characters being less loveable and more judgemental in their approaches to family and friends I still want to know what is next. On to book 6?
I love this book. I learned a lot, too. This whole series is so rich in so many good things.
BTW, I was puzzled by the title, until in searching for this book I found one with a similar title about Bernard of Clairvaux. The future St Bernard is in fact a minor character in this book - the Crusade he fomented and the persecution of European Jews it led to (much against his will) are important parts of the background of this novel.
I really liked this one. An interesting mystery, more historical details about another part of the world that I knew little of and the gathering storm of anti Semitic violence surrounding the characters. What’s not to like?
A nice mystery in historical context. Appreciated her attention to medieval antisemitism. Author has a PhD in medieval history. Crossed her t's and dotted her i's.
I don't know why, but I had to start this story over several times before I was able to give it enough time to listen all the way through. I would get several chapters in, but then I'd take a break and have to refamiliarize myself and basically start from the beginning.
I think part of the issue is that this is book #6 in the series and I jumped straight to this book because I wanted to get a taste of this author's stories, but this was what was available online from our library. Having missed out on the drama, intrigue, and familial connections of the first five books, I am sometimes a bit lost remembering who's who
Still, I really enjoyed listening to the audiobook edition.
I like that Agnes gets to be a bigger character in this story and the addition of the heretics and why they were heretics was quite interesting. I'm still finding the drama too much but I'm too invested in the series to stop until I get to the end.
I found this by accident and read it on a whim only to discover that it is a series set during the time of the crusades. I thoroughly enjoyed this and plan to find more in the series.
Enjoyed reading about Catherine and Edward and their family again. I had not read one in this series for many years. I had forgotten about her sister Agnes. Good mystery too.
Excellent read. Catherine's stuffy sister Agnes is in trouble and it is up to Catherine and her family to find the real culprit. Nice work by Sharan Newman.