Sourcebooks Landmark, February 2, 2016.
Four Stars
Lia Carrer is a newly widowed historian – after the
sudden death of her husband, she returns to the South of France to rebuild her
life and finish her dissertation on Cathar theology. Living in a cozy cottage,
strolling through the ancient villages in the Languedoc region of France, and
visiting her best friend at her nearby vineyard – everything in Lia’s new life
is helping her towards rest and recovery. That is, until she meets two mysterious
men who bring back memories of a life she doesn’t remember.
While the Languedoc was Lia’s mother’s birthplace,
she grew up all over the world and doesn’t really feel at home anywhere – until
she meets Raoul. After their confusing first meeting in an ancient church,
where Raoul feels compelled to protect her from an unclear danger, Lia is
convinced that Raoul is crazy. However, when they meet again, she begins to
feel that they have known each other before, perhaps in a former life.
Meanwhile, Lia is approached by a photographer named Lucas,
who wants to publish a book about the local history of the area. He asks Lia to
provide the descriptions of his photos, and the two begin to explore the region
together. Lia is quickly drawn into the historical world around them,
especially as it fits into her dissertation on Cather beliefs in reincarnation
and the afterlife. However, Lucas seems to have darker, ulterior motives as he
tries to keep Lia away from Raoul.
We spend most of our time following Lia’s character
in the present, but there are also flashbacks to the 13th century
Cathar crusades, and the horrors that came with them. With the advice of Father
Jordi, a priest that remembers the past all too well, Lia comes to understand
her own connection to the Cathars, and why she seems to remember Lucas and
Raoul from a former life. There are mystical, fantastic qualities to this novel
– although not any traditional time travel – but it somehow always feels
realistic. The two different time periods converge, and the characters connect
with each other despite the constraints of time.
Johnson is a thoughtful, exciting storyteller, and her
prose is somehow dreamy and precise at the same time. Although some of the
characters are truly wicked and evil, they are always supplied with clear motivations
that make them human. At the core of the story is love, although Lia doesn’t
understand her feelings for these two men at first. And even though we are
jumping centuries backwards in time, the plot is never difficult to follow.
The setting is described so luxuriously, it is as if
you can truly see the lush landscape, smell the regional food and taste the
wine. Underneath this beautiful setting is a dark current of suspense, as we,
like Lia, never know who we can trust. The flashbacks don’t distract from the
present, and it is easy to suspend disbelief as we follow Lia’s journey from
1208 to the present. Overall, this novel is a perfect combination of historical
fact and romantic escapism.
I received this book from Sourcebooks Landmark and
NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
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