The Burning Chambers by Kate Mosse (Review #41)

The Burning Chambers by Kate Mosse

Blurb

Carcassonne 1562: Nineteen-year-old Minou Joubert receives an anonymous letter at her father’s bookshop. Sealed with a distinctive family crest, it contains just five words: SHE KNOWS THAT YOU LIVE. But before Minou can decipher the mysterious message, a chance encounter with a young Huguenot convert, Piet Reydon, changes her destiny forever. For Piet has a dangerous mission of his own, and he will need Minou’s help if he is to get out of La Cité alive. Toulouse: As the religious divide deepens in the Midi, and old friends become enemies, Minou and Piet both find themselves trapped in Toulouse, facing new dangers as sectarian tensions ignite across the city, the battle-lines are drawn in blood and the conspiracy darkens further. Meanwhile, as a long-hidden document threatens to resurface, the mistress of Puivert is obsessed with uncovering its secret and strengthening her power.

Review

This book was a holiday read for me so the review is rather late. Hopefully, I am starting to catch up with them now though. I really like Kate Mosse’s work so I was very excited to start reading this series.

I was really excited to read this book and it did not disappoint. The only problem I had with the book was I found the narrative a little bitty and at times this made the book drag. It didn’t feel like Kate Mosse’s usual flow of narrative.

This historical fiction novel was packed with adventure, mystery, conflict and some romance. Mosse takes us back to France’s Wars on religion the fighting between the Catholic Church and the Huguenots. The story is set in Languedoc in 1562, in Carcassonne. Minou Joubert is the main character of this book and when she receives an anonymous letter saying ‘She knows that you live’ her life is about to be turned upside down.

When Minou meets a Huguenot convert called Piet Reydon who needs her help to leave La Cite they find themselves drawn to each other in the most dangerous of circumstances. The story then begins to pick up pace and we are shown how family secrets can be hard to bear and the consequences of secrets.

As well as Minou’s story we also have the battle between the Catholics and Huguenot’s going on. Neighbour turns on neighbour and lives of innocents are caught in the middle. The story is fast paced and sets the scene for the time and location beautifully. I really enjoyed this book and the only thing that let it down was the bitty narrative. I give this book 4 out of 5 Dragons.

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About the author

Kate Mosse is an international bestselling author with sales of more than five million copies in 42 languages. Her fiction includes the novels Labyrinth (2005), Sepulchre (2007), The Winter Ghosts (2009), and Citadel (2012), as well as an acclaimed collection of short stories, The Mistletoe Bride & Other Haunting Tales (2013). Kate’s new novel, The Taxidermist’s Daughter is out now.

Kate is the Co-Founder and Chair of the Board of the Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction (previously the Orange Prize) and in June 2013, was awarded an OBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List for services to literature. She lives in Sussex.