Holy Fools: a thrilling historical mystery from Joanne Harris, the bestselling author of Chocolat - Softcover

Harris, Joanne

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0552770019 ISBN 13: 9780552770019

Publisher: Black Swan, 2004

Synopsis

In seventeenth-century France, against a backdrop of witch trials, regicide and religious frenzy, Juliette, one-time actress and rope-dancer, seeks refuge with her young daughter in the remote abbey of Saint Marie-de-la-Mer, and reinvents herself as Soeur Auguste.

Until a new Abbess is appointed, bringing with her a ghost from Juliette's past, a man she has every reason to fear.

About this title

Review:

Holy Fools is Joanne Harris's most enjoyable novel yet, a beautifully detailed and sharply observed piece that emotionally moves the reader unlike anything she has tackled before. The immense success of Chocolat and Coastliners has made Harris one of the most cherished authors at work today, and each new book is something of an event.

Holy Fools is set in 17th century France, and the central character is Juliette, a former actress and rope dancer who has given up her travelling life to become a teaching nun at a remote abbey. Juliette has settled with her young daughter into an existence very different from that she knew, and she finds comfort from the advice of the wise and friendly abbess.

Harris brilliantly delineates both phases of her heroine's life: the colourful earlier era and the new demands of the semi-cloistered life. Things change radically when the abbess dies and her place is taken by an 11-year-old girl whose appetite for reform quickly destroys much that Juliet has come to love in her new life. What makes the book so refreshingly original is not just the unusual structure (the heroine's dual life alone is handled with radiant detail), but the surprising new trajectory the narrative takes after the death of the abbess, as everything Juliette was used to begins to go wrong.

We become involved in every minor crisis, however much we question that the religious life is the answer to her problems. Juliette is a brilliantly drawn character, and the plotting of this ambitious novel is both thoughtful and invigorating, while the basic theme--the ploys we all use to distract ourselves from the painful realities of existence--is handled with subtlety. --Barry Forshaw

Review:

"Truly sensational... This is a wonderful novel. It draws you in from the very first page" (Sunday Express)

"A weird and hugely enjoyable blend of Aldous Huxley's The Devils of Loudon and Angela Carter's Nights at the Circus" (New Statesman)

"With this bold, inventive book, Harris confirms her position as one of Britain's most popular novelists... Fans will be delighted by the way this novel complements her earlier works. At the same time, the author's experiments with structure and voice ensure this story is fresh and compelling" (Daily Mail)

"Hugely enjoyable... Both consoling and wise" (Amanda Craig New Statesman)

"With this bold, inventive book, Harris confirms her position as one of Britain's most popular novellists... Fresh and compelling" (Daily Mail)

About this edition

• Publisher: Black Swan
• Publication date: 2004
• ISBN 10: 0552770019
• ISBN 13: 9780552770019
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 432