"A bold first novel blending a sweeping portrayal of the distant past with intricate family drama . . . ample in romance, mystery, and adventure." — The Boston GlobeIt is England, in the fourteenth century—a time of plague, political unrest and the earliest stirrings of the Reformation. The printing press has yet to be invented, and books are rare and costly, painstakingly lettered by hand and illuminated with exquisite paintings. Finn is ...

From the bestselling author of The Illuminator comes a magnificent tale about the power of love and the perils of faithTudor England is a perilous place for booksellers Kate Gough and her brother John, who sell forbidden translations of the Bible. Caught between warring factions—English Catholics opposed to the Lutheran reformation, and Henry VIII's growing impatience with the Pope's refusal to sanction his marriage to Anne Boleyn—Kate embarks on a...

In the fifteenth century, with religious intolerance spreading like wildfire across Europe, English-born Anna Bookman and her grandfather, Finn, earn a living in Prague by illuminating precious books, including forbidden translations of the Bible. Finn subscribes to the heresy that people ought to be able to read the Word of God for themselves, without having to pay a priest for the privilege, but holding that belief is becoming more and more hazardous. When the authorities start burning b...

A glowing first novel that brings us "historical fiction in the grand epic manner, beautifully felt and written"It is England, in the fourteenth century -- a time of plague, political unrest and the earliest stirrings of the Reformation. The printing press had yet to be invented, and books were rare and costly, painstakingly lettered by hand and illuminated with exquisite paintings. Finn is a master illuminator who works not only for the Church but also, in secret,...

A glowing first novel that brings us "historical fiction in the grand epic manner, beautifully felt and written"*It is England, in the fourteenth century—a time of plague, political unrest and the earliest stirrings of the Reformation. The printing press had yet to be invented, and books were rare and costly, painstakingly lettered by hand and illuminated with exquisite paintings. Finn is a master illuminator who works not only for the Church but also, in secret, fo...