The Illuminator

Praise for
The Illuminator

“A bold first novel, blending a sweeping portrayal of the distant past with intricate family drama. Set in late fourteenth-century England and mixing historical and fictional characters, the novel immerses us in an era of ferocious political and religious rivalries and the stirrings of protest.… Apart from the rich period atmosphere, the story is ample in romance, mystery, and adventure; its characters are full of life and energy. Some of its themes … are timeless.”

—
The Boston Globe

“A remarkable debut novel.”

—
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

“An absorbing, expertly told tale, plainly and forthrightly written and embroidered with plenty of homespun detail.”

—
Publishers Weekly
(starred review)

“At the center of this remarkable first novel is the story of the gradual adoption of the English language by the Norman ruling classes of England in the fourteenth century.… Vantrease, a former librarian, depicts this complex period with imagination and care, realistically presenting actual historical figures like Wycliffe and Julian of Norwich while avoiding formulaic devices of fiction.”

—
Library Journal
(starred review)

“A richly detailed story.… [Vantrease's] details and deft storytelling create a luminescent and very readable portrait of a dark time in history.”

—
Booklist

“Reading
The Illuminator
is a bit like standing in The Cloisters in New York gazing at the Unicorn Tapestries … Brenda Rickman Vantrease has written a debut novel of fourteenth-century England—just as colorfully written as the tapestries are strikingly embroidered.”

—
The Tennessean

“Lovely in the way it re-creates a long-ago era.… If you liked
The Birth of Venus,
Sarah Dunant's bestseller about Florence on the eve of the Renaissance, you'll love
The Illuminator
.… Vantrease's book tells a good tale and gives a sense of the backdrop for two major historical events that occurred much later, the Reformation and Henry VIII's split with the Catholic Church.”

—
GoodHousekeeping.com

“A fabulous historical work of fiction that brings to life a pivotal moment in the history of England.… The prime characters enable the reader to grasp the nuances of the age as duty comes before love and conflict resolution means the strong do more than just survive; they take what they want, including an unprotected widow who must use her wit to elude suitors who see her estate up for grabs. Brenda Rickman Vantrease illuminates the medieval era with a deep tale.”

—
Midwest Book Review

“Vantrease has joined the ranks of writers who have the gift of weaving stories that blend history with fiction. … This book rings with authenticity.”

—
Nashville City Paper

“A novel with something for every reader. It has young love, older love, political plot and intrigue, and religious and philosophical conflict presented as grand adventure. All of these elements are woven within the wonderfully rich context of fourteenth-century England. Each detail is telling, pitch perfect, important. The relationships are complex, engrossing. Vantrease's feel for time and place is natural. This book absolutely glows.”

—Frances Sherwood, author of
The Book of Splendor
and
Everything You've Heard Is True

“In her elegant novel,
The Illuminator,
Brenda Rickman Vantrease breathes light into the dark corners of feudal England, laying bare the consequences of political and spiritual oppression, and illuminating the power of both love and the written word to save.”

—Charmaine Craig, author of
The Good Men: A Novel of Heresy

“A very absorbing and masterfully written novel that twines two stories together—a personal one of life on a manor in 1379 and a political one about the undercurrents that led, eventually, to the Reformation But people do not read novels to learn about social history, they read them because they meet characters they care about and whose problems they worry about. Impressive new talent Brenda Rickman Vantrease has created a cast of characters that stand out as individuals you want to follow. For those of you who remember, and have missed her, it was like finding a new book by the late Anya Seton. It especially reminded me of her masterpiece
Katherine.”

—Margaret George, author of
The Autobiography of Henry VIII
and
Mary Called Magdalene

“The Illuminator
is a rich and original debut novel. Brenda Rickman Vantrease writes with a strong voice, imaginative scope, and an audacious reach about complex characters during a fascinating historical period. Throughout
The Illuminator,
Vantrease's intelligence, imagination, and love of language shines through. This gripping story—both entertaining and thought provoking—leaves you stimulated by this visit to a new world and eagerly awaiting Vantease's next book.”

—Valerie Miner, author of
The Low Road
and
Abundant Light

“Brenda Rickman Vantrease's
The Illuminator
is one of the most engaging books I've had the pleasure to read in many years. Extraordinary characters of an extraordinary period in history are portrayed with passion that only an accomplished writer can deliver. Even reluctant readers will be compelled to stay with the residents of Blackingham Manor as they survive—if that can be the word—the brutal class system of fourteenth-century England. This is simply a wonderful book.”

—Terry Kay, author of
To Dance with the White Dog
and
The Valley of Light

“A wonderful novel—a tumultuous panorama of Wycliffe's and Chaucer's England, with an absolutely compelling and irresistible heroine. This is historical fiction in the grand epic manner, beautifully felt and written.”

—Max Byrd, author of
Grant
and
Shooting the Sun

B
RENDA
R
ICKMAN
V
ANTREASE

 

 

ST. MARTIN'S GRIFFIN

NEW YORK

THE ILLUMINATOR
. Copyright © 2005 by Brenda Rickman Vantrease. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this book may be reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews. For information, address St. Martin's Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010.

www.stmartins.com

Design by Kathryn Parise

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Vantrease, Brenda Rickman.

The illuminator / Brenda Rickman Vantrease.

       p. cm.

ISBN 0-312-33191-6 (hc)

ISBN 0-312-33192-4 (pbk)

EAN 978-0-312-33192-4

1. Bible—Translating—Great Britain—Fiction. 2. Illumination of books and manuscripts—Fiction. 3. Inheritance and succession—Fiction. 4. Scribes—Fiction. 5. Widows—Fiction. 6. Great Britain—History—14th century—Fiction. I. Title.

PS3622.A675 145 2005

813'.6—dc22                                                                                                 2004030095

10  9  8  7  6  5  4  3

For Barney and Arlene

THE
I
LLUMINATOR

O
XFORD
, E
NGLAND

1379

J
ohn Wycliffe put down his pen and rubbed tired eyes. The candle burned low, spitting tendrils of smoke. It would burn only minutes longer, and it was the last. Only the middle of the month, and he'd exhausted his allotment. As master of Balliol College, Oxford University, he was afforded what would be adequate for most clerics—for most, who worked by day and slept by night. But Wycliffe scarcely slept during the nighttime hours. Purpose drove him from his bed early and kept him from it late.