#hardcover #historicalfiction p12jnvd #italy

Hardcover (1 to 2 lbs)

Massachusetts

The year is 1570, and in the convent of Santa Caterina, in the Italian city of Ferrara, noblewomen find space to pursue their lives under God’s protection. But any community, however smoothly run, suffers tremors when it takes in someone by force. And the arrival of Santa Caterina’s new novice setsin motion a chain of events that will shake the convent to its core.

Ripped by her family from an illicit love affair, sixteen-year-old Serafina is willful, emotional, sharp, and defiant–young enough to have a life to look forward to and old enough to know when that life is being cut short. Her first night inside the walls is spent in an incandescent rage so violent that the dispensary mistress, Suora Zuana, is dispatched to the girl’s cell to sedate her. Thus begins a complex relationship of trust and betrayal between the young rebel and the clever, scholarly nun, for whom the girl becomes the daughter she will never have.

As Serafina rails against her incarceration, others are drawn into the drama: the ancient, mysterious Suora Magdalena–with her history of visions and ecstasies–locked in her cell; the ferociously devout novice mistress Suora Umiliana, who comes to see in the postulant a way to extend her influence; and, watching it all, the abbess, Madonna Chiara, a woman as fluent in politics as she is in prayer. As disorder and rebellion mount, it is the abbess’s job to keep the convent stable while, outside its walls, the dictates of the Counter-Reformation begin to purge the Catholic Church and impose on the nunneries a regime of terrible oppression.

Sarah Dunant, the bestselling author ofThe Birth of Venusand In theCompany of the Courtesan, brings this intricate Renaissance world compellingly to life. AmidSacred Heartsis a rich, engrossing, multifaceted love story, encompassing the passions of the flesh, the exultation of the spirit, and the deep, enduring power of friendship.

Sacred Hearts

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Sarah Dunant

A Novel

The year is 1570, and a new novice has just been forced into the Italian convent of Santa Caterina. Ripped by her family from the man she loves, sixteen-year-old Serafina is sharp and defiant. Her first night inside the walls is spent in an incandescent rage so violent that the dispensary mistress, Suora Zuana, is dispatched to the girl’s cell to sedate her. Thus begins a complex relationship of trust and betrayal. As Serafina rails against her incarceration, disorder and rebellion mount inside the convent, while beyond its walls, the dictates of the Counter-Reformation begin to impose a regime of oppression that threatens what little freedom the nuns have enjoyed. Acclaimed author Sarah Dunant brings the intricate Renaissance world compellingly to life in this rich, engrossing, multifaceted love story encompassing the passions of the flesh, the exultation of the spirit, and the deep, enduring power of friendship.

Category - Fiction / Romance

Format - Hardcover

Condition - Good

Listed - 2 years ago

Views - 14

Wishes - 1

Ships From - Massachusetts

Est. Publication Date - Jul 2009

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Sacred Hearts

ISBN: 9781400063826

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Category - Fiction / Romance

Format - Hardcover

Condition - Good

Listed - 2 years ago

Views - 14

Wishes - 1

Ships From - Massachusetts

Est. Publication Date - Jul 2009

Seller Description

Additional Information

Sacred Hearts

ISBN: 9781400063826

Publisher Description

Tags

Sacred Hearts

By:

$1.97

Meet the seller

Discover more

Sacred Hearts

By: Sarah Dunant

More from this seller

Additional titles by Sarah Dunant

'Sacred Hearts' readers also enjoyed:

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