Jeanne Kalogridis

The Inquisitor's Wife: a Novel of Renaissance Spain Jeanne Kalogridis First edition

From Jeanne Kalogridis, the bestselling author of The Borgia Bride and The Scarlet Contessa, comes a tale of love, loss and treachery set during the perilous days of the Spanish Inquisition

1481 Seville: The Inquisition makes its first appearance in Spain.  Its target: conversos, Christians of Jewish descent?specifically those who practice Judaism secretly in their homes. The penalty for ?crypto-Judaism?: Burning at the stake.

Marisol Garcia, a young conversa, is hurriedly wed to Gabriel, a civil lawyer working for the Inquisition, in hopes that he will protect her. But she still yearns for the childhood love who abandoned her four years earlier, and she?s shocked when he reappears suddenly at her wedding.

When her father is arrested and tortured, Marisol finds herself caught between her love for him and her desire to save the lives of her people. After becoming a favorite of the ruthless Queen Isabella, Marisol discovers a dangerous secret about her former lover, Antonio, and finds herself trapped in a life-threatening web of intrigue. As the Inquisition?s snares tighten around her, Marisol?s love for Antonio and loyalty to her Jewish family is tested as never before?

The Inquisitor?s Wife reveals the real motivation behind the Inquisition, a frank glance at a ?saintly? queen, and the struggles of a maligned people against crushing forces.