Graëlfire

by Stephen Chamberlain

Lena Dubois has a problem, but death is the last thing on her mind until the enigmatic Count Angelo walks into her life, warning her condition is fatal. Her only hope is a cryptic riddle that will lead her to the Holy Grail.

Lena teams up with Raphaël Proctor, the Count’s inscrutable assistant. As their quest advances along Lake Geneva, sinister forces stalk them. Lena fears the worst, but Raphaël knows what lurks in the shadows is worse than she can imagine.

Step back to the year 1245, a time of terror in Languedoc. Gideon Drude is on the trail of the fabled lost treasure of the Cathars. Pursued by the Inquisition, his mission carries him across pilgrim routes to Italy, where his journey ends in star-crossed love, tragedy and betrayal.

When the past collides with the present, Lena becomes embroiled in a cosmic vendetta where malevolent forces eight hundred years in the making propel her to a deadly showdown.

Graëlfire is a gripping new twist on Grail mythology. Based on the medieval legend of the Grail as a stone that fell from Heaven, the story is set in present-day Switzerland and medieval Occitania within a fictional cosmos where universes emerge from primordial Graëlfire – the source of all Creation.

Genres: Fantasy

200 pages, Paperback

Published July 28, 2017

Reviews

[Chelsea Usher · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. I found it on Netgalley and realized it was something I couldn't put down only after a few pages. The characters are vibrant and original, as is this new telling of a Grail myth. I loved the two varying timelines and how they wove together through the same quest. Lena and Raphael are an interesting team and their dynamic made this read much more compelling. Gideon's arc was intriguing and as the story continued, his tale made me much more bound to finishing it.

A Grail story for sure, but not like Dan Brown in any way. This supernatural Grail quest was full of adventure, sure, but it had more of a plot, more purpose. It wasn't church against humanity, it was more than that.

[Karina · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is basically a different version of the Holy Grail story. Here the grail(Graël)is a stone from a different universe.The book consist of two storylines and it constantly switches between those two. One happens in present day Switzerland were Lena and a mysterious stranger, Raphael, are looking for a lost Graëlstone once believed to be in the possession of the Cathars. Of course they are not the only ones looking for this stone...The other storyline is situated in the Languedoc and northern Italy in 1245. Here the Cathars are fleeing from the horrible Inquisition . We follow the story of Gideon ,another mysterious stranger, who is looking for the Graëlstone believed to be kept in hiding, by the Cathars, since the fall of Montségur, their stronghold.
Well, it starts very promising,very exciting, a strange mix between fantasy, adventure and mystery but unfortunately it doesn't keep its promise. It just drags on and on, a bit of a never-ending story and I had a hard time actually finishing it. It really is too bad because a new take on the Grail myth is always interesting....
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[Robin Price · Rating 5 out of 5]

Authors have long sought the Holy Grail with varying degrees of success: Bernard Cornwell notched up a few more bestsellers; Dan Brown made lots of money; and Kate Mosse created a modern classic, Labyrinth.
The author has an extraordinary imagination, taking the reader on a journey through time, and to other worlds and other races. The showdown is as memorable as when the Duc de Richlieu sees off the Angel of Death in The Devil Rides Out. There's clearly much more to come in this series. Can't wait!

[Ann · Rating 3 out of 5]

I finished this book but it seemed to take forever. I'd lay it down and read something else and come back. Lena has been raised by her grandmother in a home maintained by Count Angelo. When she is diagnosed with a terminal illness the Count sends her on a mission to find the Holy Grail, her only hope of surviving. Based loosely on the legend of the Grail falling from Heaven.