Description

Everyone knows the story of Joan of Arc, a peasant girl who put Charles VII on the throne – before being burned by the English as a heretic and witch.

But things are not always as they appear.

Jeanne d’Arc was only five when three angels and saints first came to her. Shrouded by a halo of heavenly light, she believed their claim to be holy. The Archangel Michael and Saint Margaret told her she was the foretold Warrior Maid of Lorraine, fated to free France and put a king upon his throne.

Saint Catherine made her promise to obey their commands and embrace her destiny; the three saints would guide her every step. Jeanne bound herself to these creatures without knowing what she’d done. As she got older, Jeanne grew to mistrust and fear the voices, and they didn’t hesitate to punish her cruelly for disobedience. She quickly learned that their cherished prophecy was more important than the girl expected to make it come true.

Jeanne is only a shepherd’s daughter, not the Warrior Maid of the prophecy, but she is stubborn and rebellious, and finds ways to avoid doing – and being – what these creatures want. Resistance has a terrifying price, but Jeanne is determined to fight for the life she wants.

But when the cost grows too high, Jeanne will risk everything to save the three people she loves most in all the world.

Not everyone is destined to be a hero. Sometimes you have no choice.

Publisher Review

A Joan of Arc like no other. Moyer takes the myth of the Maid of Orleans and comes at a different tale, a darker one. For those of us who love Jeanne d'Arc and have always wanted to rescue her from the flame, a new retelling * PATRICE SARATH, author of The Sisters Mederos and Fog Season * Divine Heretic rewrites Joan of Arc's life with heart and humanity, creating surprising new twists in the tale we all think we know * BETH CATO, author of Breath of Earth * This Jeanne, however, is wonderful, a richly drawn woman who is capable of fierce love, of deep friendships, of railing against her fate for as long as possible, until it threatens the lives of those she loves. And her voices! Oh wow! I think this is the best book I've read all year and I thoroughly recommend it * HISTORICAL NOVEL SOCIETY * Full of surprising twists and subversion of the legend as it is traditionally told, Jaime Lee Moyer manages to make the story truly her own . . . weaving it into a new tapestry worth discovering for itself * LIBRI DRACONIS * As I grew more and more absorbed in Divine Heretic, I came to love the way it isn't conventional fantasy * BLUE BOOK BALLOON * This is a good adventure and historical romance story with a woman at the heart of it. * SF CROWSNEST * I am absolutely intrigued by how history and myth get mixed together * RUNALONG THE SHELVES * A treat for those who like their myths with extra magic * THE TIMES on Brightfall * Interesting and different * SF BOOK REVIEWS * Jaime Lee Moyer has consistently published books that touch me profoundly, and this one is no different . . . a book about resilience, about found family and holding onto the things and people you love, about finding joy in the little moments, and a book about understanding that courage means doing the thing anyway because you know what is right, no matter how scary. Strongly recommended * LYNNE M. THOMAS, Hugo Award-winning editor of Chicks Dig Time Lords * It blew me away . . . It was perfectly told * BOOKS FOR LIFE * A bittersweet story about how promises can be twisted, how they can break you, but also how they can save you * CROOKS BOOKS * Lush . . . richly described * PUBLISHERS WEEKLY * A good and vivid alternative historical take on Joan of Arc. Joan's story of a young woman striving for autonomy, strength and freedom is a message and story that resonates in 2020 as much as 1430 * NERDS OF A FEATHER * A genuinely intimate quality to Divine Heretic I very much enjoyed. The idea that a single person shapes the direction of a nation, and the burden that power carries, is examined in a very unique way * THE ELOQUENT PAGE * Recommended to fans of historical fiction, especially Roman Catholic history and strong female characters * NEVER IMITATE *