The Miracle Thief - Iris Anthony

Do you believe in miracles? Sister Juliana does. She's seen miracles happen as she tends Saint Catherine's altar and guards her relic. Yet she doesn't quite dare to believe that even Saint Catherine could help her atone for her wicked past.

Anna does. And she so desperately needs one. In a time when a deformity is interpreted as evidence of a grievous sin, in a place where community is vital to existence, Anna has no family, no home, and no master.

Princess Gisele wants to. A miracle is the only thing that can save her from being given to a brutal, pagan chieftain in marriage.

For those who come in faith, saints offer the answer to almost any prayer. But other forces are plotting to steal Saint Catherine's relic, to bend the saint's power to their own use. Penitent, pilgrim, and princess -- all will be drawn into an epic struggle where only faith can survive. But in a quest for divine blessings, only the most ruthless of souls may win the prize.

My thoughts:

This is a book with 3 POVS, and 3 very different women. Juliana, a nun atoning for past sins. Anna, who has a deformity that makes people shun her and she looks to the saint for healing. And Gisele, a princess who is to marry a viking invader, whether she wants it or not.

I know Anna had a really crap time, as people thought the reason she was wrong was cos of some sin. And I felt for her. And yes poor Gisele, but she was a princess after all and princesses marry to build alliances. I felt most sorry for Juliana, because she had been passionate, happy in love and given all that up to become a nun. And in a time when sex before marriage was such a sin, she was troubled even years afterwards.

A negative thing would be that some of the time jumps made me a bit confused, but I got over it. Moving on.

So we have Juliana in a convent dealing with a new abbess. Gisele wondering if God really wants her to marry a heathen. And with her POV we get the politic of the era too. And lastly Anna, who bring a POV of the poor and forgotten as she struggle to get to the convent.

Even if I had already googled Gisele, I was glad for the author's afterwords about who was real or not. Nice touch.

Conclusion:

An interesting tale about 3 women caught in different conflicts.

Cover

ok

Paperback, 384 pages
Published April 1st 2014 by Sourcebooks Landmark
Historical fiction
for review