Okay fellow book lovers. As my first official book review, I want to start with a book that took me literally FOREVER to get into, but once I did (and I'm SO glad that I did), it was incredibly rewarding. The book is called Heresy by S. J. Parris, and it's genre-ally (my word for what genre it can generally be categorized under ^.^) a historical thriller. Which automatically means: YES, I MUST READ. I LOVE YOU FOREVER HISTORICAL THRILLER NOVEL.
The book takes place in late 1500s Protestant England, right after the English throne separated from the Catholic Church. It gives you a brief history of the Catholic monk Giordano Bruno (which actually was a real monk) and all of his troubles leading up to the current events of the book. Troubles like excommunication, fleeing the Catholic Inquisition, allegations of heretical studies of magic, and teaching the forbidden theory that the earth is not the center of the universe. Major mind blowing stuff right there. So, if you get into stories revolving around accusations and conspiracy, treason, secret societies, and plain old mystery, this book is definitely for you.
At first, I was a little disappointed. The plot literally takes a good 10 chapters or so to really catch your interest (which is why it took me so long to get started), and honestly, you have no idea what's going on until Parris wants you to know. But believe me, when the puzzle finally does start revealing the bigger picture, the realization and discovery is well worth the wait. While trying to explain to my mom how amazingly rewarding this book was, I created a pretty good metaphor in my opinion: Heresy isn't a cheap thrill book, boom boom you're done book. Sure, those are easy reads, which require minimal actual brain activity or mutual interaction with the characters. It's a slow courtship kind of book; it demands a patient, steady enticement of the reader. It takes a while to warm up, but boy, when it does, it's on fire.
In terms of character development, Parris may lack a little with minor characters, but does a fulfilling job with the ones that count. Bruno is a character to sympathize with, but at the same time, you find yourself questioning him. Without giving too much away, it's safe to say that Bruno is a character that I think will continue to surprise over and over again. You're never really sure what he'll think about what; he's someone that's very confused about what he believes at the moment. I'm curious to see how this character develops in her other two sequels, Prophesy and Sacrilege. I have a feeling that Bruno is on the brink of a huge discovery, whether external, effecting the world as a whole, or internal, changing who he is forever. I'm excited to see what's next for our friend, Bruno, and I'm hopeful that S.J. Parris can deliver throughout the rest of her trilogy.
Wanna join me in exploring my current book? I'm reading Prophesy by S.J. Parris. I'll be posting my thoughts on that one soon! This series is admittedly a bit older, spanning from 2010-2012, so it's a bit difficult to find in your mainstream bookstores on hand. Order online through B&N, Hastings, or Amazon, and you'll be just fine! ^.^
Cheers, and happy reading :),
Kayla
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