Bilihild: A Tale of the Irish Missionaries in Germany, AD 703

by Julie Sutter

When the God-fearing Herzog of Thuringia dies, the Irish missionary settlements face the wrath of his bitterly heathen wife, Geila, and her son, now Herzog Hedan. But when Hedan falls in love with Bilihild, a young Christian maiden, he offers peace to his Christian subjects if Bilihild will become his wife. As Bilihild strives to love her new husband and protect her people, she faces increasing difficulty and danger, especially from her jealous mother-in-law. As the clouds thicken around her, Bilihild must put her entire reliance on the God whom she honors and loves.

Genres: Fiction

Audiobook

First published January 1, 1883

Reviews

[Janelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this, but I must admit that while it presents itself as a historical biography, from what I can gather it is extremely fictionalised. Although I’m curious to know if what was written about the Irish missionaries is true.
Some readers might be bothered by the anti catholic content.

[Charlotte · Rating 2 out of 5]

This doesn't exactly age well. It's a sweet enough story in terms of characters and general narrative but is very, very sure of it's concept of "truth." The treatment of other faiths, both the so-called heathen as well as different interpretations of Christianity is uncomfortable reading at best and does start to grate after a while.

Still, if you can look past some thankfully dated opinions, "Bilihild" is overall an interesting read, and I did find myself liking the character of Bilihild herself. However it was probably the lovely voice of the Librivox reader I listened to that gave this one any real charm for me in the end.