Description

The Sunday Times No. 1 Bestseller

‘Mosse is a master storyteller’ – Madeline Miller, bestselling author of Circe

Bringing sixteenth-century France vividly to life, Kate Mosse’s historical epic The Burning Chambers is a gripping story of love, betrayal, war and conspiracy. It is the first volume in the sweeping, spellbinding series, The Joubert Family Chronicles.

Carcassonne, 1562. Nineteen-year-old Catholic 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 Cite alive . . .

A thrilling adventure and a heartbreaking love story, The Burning Chambers is the first novel in Kate Mosse’s enthralling, meticulously researched historical series. It is followed by The City of Tears.

‘A tour de force’ – The Observer

‘Gripping, complex and intensely atmospheric’ – The Mail on Sunday

Praise for The Joubert Family Chronicles:

‘Historical fiction to devour’ – Anthony Horowitz, bestselling author of Close to Death, on The Burning Chambers

‘An utterly absorbing epic’ – Lucy Foley, bestselling author of The Paris Apartment, on The City of Tears

‘Meticulously researched and stunningly written’ – Santa Montefiore, bestselling author of Wait for Me, on The Ghost Ship

Publisher Review

Mosse's fans will relish this tale of secrets, love and treachery * The Times * Another of Mosse's immersive dramas, which takes you to the heart of the past -- Grazia Book of the Week Mosse's narrative lyricism, beautifully drawn female characters and deft journey from the past to the present day are a cut above * Scotland on Sunday * Rich with historical detail, as you'd expect from Mosse, but it's Minou, the fiery heroine, who makes this a must-read -- Good Housekeeping Book of the Month An irresistible read * Prima * Impressively bold and ambitious, it features betrayals, broken friendship, family secrets and the horrors of fanaticism. Fans will love it * Daily Mail * Transporting readers to sixteenth-century Languedoc where, against a backdrop of simmering sectarian tensions, nineteen-year-old Minou receives a mysterious message at her father's bookshop. Gripping, complex and intensely atmospheric * Mail on Sunday * The Burning Chambers is a tour de force, a compelling adventure that views the past with insight, compassion and humour, and reminds us of the variety of women's voices so often forgotten in the official accounts * Observer * Mosse is a master storyteller, balancing thrilling suspense with complex characters and a thoughtful exploration of a fascinating time in history. Her heroine Minou is a pleasure to root for: clever, loving, down-to-earth and courageous! -- Madeline Miller, author of The Song of Achilles and Circe This is historical fiction to devour. Nobody does it like Kate Mosse -- Anthony Horowitz First-rate cloak and dagger excitement - who knew the religious wars between Catholics and Huguenots in sixteenth-century France could be so riveting to modern audiences? Kate Mosse captures the details of life in the Languedoc region of France, famed for its beauty, but hiding many secrets, in this masterful novel -- Margaret George, New York Times bestselling author of The Confessions of Young Nero Mosse does what good popular historical novelists do best - make the past enticingly otherworldly, while also claiming it as our own * Independent * A powerful storyteller with an abundant imagination * Daily Telegraph * Oh, what a glorious novel. A masterly tour of history; a rapturous romance; and - best of all - a breathless thriller, alive with treachery, with danger, with atmosphere, with beauty. This book will transport you. Kate Mosse is that rarest of writers: a storyteller who breathes fresh life into vanished worlds -- A. J. Finn, author of The Woman in the Window