In antebellum Charleston, a Catholic priest grapples with doubt, his family’s secret African ancestry, and his love for a slave owner’s wife.Joseph Lazare and his two sisters grow up believing their black hair and olive skin come from a Spanish grandmother—until the summer they learn she was an African slave. While his sisters make very different choices, Joseph struggles to transcend the flesh … transcend the flesh by becoming a celibate priest.
Then young Father Joseph meets Tessa Conley, a devout Irish immigrant who shares his passions for music and botany. Joseph must conceal his true feelings as Tessa marries another man—a plantation owner who treats her like property. Acting on their love for each other will ruin Joseph and Tessa in this world and damn them in the next.
Or will it?
NECESSARY SINS is the first book in the sweeping Lazare Family Saga that transports readers from the West Indies to the Wild West, from Charleston, Paris, and Rome into the depths of the human heart. Passion, prejudice, secrets, and a mother’s desperate choice in the chaos of revolution echo through five generations. If you enjoyed THE THORN BIRDS or the novels of Sara Donati, dive into Elizabeth Bell’s epic historical fiction today.
Praise for Necessary Sins
“A feast of a novel by an extraordinary new voice. Haunting, meticulously researched, and exquisitely told through characters so human you’d swear they have beating hearts.” — KATHLEEN GRISSOM, New York Times bestselling author of The Kitchen House
“A taut, compelling family drama with a fresh and intriguing setting. Necessary Sins will be a welcome read for fans of historical fiction.” — OLIVIA HAWKER, internationally bestselling author of One for the Blackbird, One for the Crow
- Finalist for the James Jones First Novel Fellowship
- Second Place in the Maggie Awards for Excellence in the category Novel with Strong Romantic Elements
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A Charleston setting. An interracial family secret. A forbidden love. What could be better?
This is the story of Joseph Lazare, whose family flees Haiti during the San Domingue uprising and who grows up in its shadow in Charleston. His soul is promised to the Catholic Church, but after he takes his vows, he falls in love with the unhappily married wife of a wealthy South Carolina planter.
The historical context is powerfully evoked, and the framework of the Church—its shadow, and its yoke—greatly adds to the tension of the tale of the last two souls who should feel fleshly love for one another.
This is an exceptionally well-written and well-researched book, the kind that surely took decades to weave together. And the reader is the beneficiary. A modern reader will discover many uncomfortable moments – especially in regard to slavery and the use of historically accurate language – but far from sanitizing the past, the author makes one feel as if they have been transported in a time machine to a difficult moment in history that was still saturated with an array of human responses. She did not hold back – and I learned more for it.
Beyond being immersed in another time, the story itself is a page-turner. Joseph’s piety is palpable, his family’s dynamic is real and heartwarming, the love interest is intriguing, and this reader looks forward to the next three in the series.
In antebellum Charleston, a Catholic priest with a family secret (his grandmother was a slave) falls in love with a beautiful Irish immigrant who is married to plantation owner. Readers who loved The Thorn Birds should enjoy this story.
Bell’s four-volume family saga set in turbulent times is off to a great start with this richly-developed tale of faith, love, prejudice, and the strength of family. Her protagonist, Joseph Lazare, is juggling a complex and often toxic mixture of devout faith and forbidden love. He is mired in guilt and secrecy to an extent that might have been offputting for a modern reader, but Bell humanizes him by bringing out the idealism and warmth of his faith, as well as showing us his love for music and his devotion to his family. We never doubt the sincerity of his religious vocation, even while we ache for him because of all he has given up. And he proves himself honorable over and over, as he consistently puts Tessa’s spiritual and material welfare before his own desires.
Tessa, the object of Joseph’s obsession, is a remarkable woman, as bright and warm as she is lovely. Bell has written her in a way that makes Joseph’s passion not only easy to understand, but almost inevitable. Readers will find themselves wishing that these two lived in fairer, safer, more accepting times, though the challenges they face make for a more powerful story and allow us to know them inside and out.
Joseph is blessed (for the most part, anyway) with a lively family, each member vividly drawn and interesting in his or her own way. There is a certain gentle humor in the way they deal with Joseph’s fervent religious beliefs; they are kinder to him by far than he is to himself.
One thing I appreciated in this book was the author’s use of a wide range of quotations from philosophical, religious, and literary sources. They are thought-provoking, and they add a level of subtlety as they take us from the particulars of Joseph’s story to more general observations about human nature. I am very much looking forward to the books still to come in this saga!
I stumbled across Necessary Sins in a Facebook group and knew I HAD to read it! Historical fiction. Epic family saga. Antebellum south. Forbidden love. Yes, please! I was instantly pulled into the story of the Lazare family and had a hard time putting it down. Elizabeth Bell’s debut novel is a must read! The only thing I don’t like is the fact that I have to wait for the next book in the series!
I already ordered the other three in the series, this one was so good! It has been a while since I have found a good historical fiction series that I could not put down. I am so glad the other three are already out and published! This novel touches on everything; romance, love, right and wrong, morale, ethics, church, interpreting the Bible, sinning, women, disability, slavery, medicine and overall family. Those who loved Outlander, Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman, Promised Land, Touched by an Angel… these books are for you!
This story is told through the main character Joseph- we get some background on his parents and grandparents – what happened to them, as well as watch Joseph grow into the Catholic priest he had always dreamed of becoming. He was often reminded of how honest and good he was, a lot of people really thought Joseph could do no wrong. But as Joseph comes into adulthood and becomes the main priest, he sees the different side of life.
Joseph is quick to have an answer from the Bible for most things he comes across, but the one thing he cannot find an answer for is the one thing that priests are supposed to be held to high standard on- not taking a wife, or mistress -but to sustain celibacy to remain pure. He cannot have a woman; for they make you lose focus, they will tempt you- look what Eve did to Adam in the Bible! And yet, it seems everyone around him is telling him that the Bible is not always correct. Maybe he is interpreting things differently than what it is meant.
Although to everyone, Joseph appears pure and perfect he is also hiding a deep family secret that could tear things apart if anyone ever found out the truth. How could his father have kept this secret, and how is his mother understanding of it all? Joseph has a lot of growing up to do, even though he was raised to be mature through the church – he has his own burdens to bear on top of the other burdens he bears for those who ask for his help.
This novel was so good! There are so many other connecting storylines that I cannot wait to read the others to find out more about the other characters and generations. Also, book one was left with a bit of a cliffhanger with Joseph. We want to know what decision he makes! Thank you to HFVBT for the invite, this is definitely a series to go next to Outlander. Thank you to the author for gifting me an ebook, although I just had to buy it to have a physical copy!
Necessary Sins is a meticulously researched, fast moving book. It is also an epic, multi-generational, decade-spanning family saga. I was hopelessly hooked from the beginning and it held my interest throughout. It took me to places I hadn’t been before and introduced me to situations I hadn’t thought to imagine. The main character is richly portrayed, complex, and imperfect. The writing makes you care about his struggles, and the other characters in the book are just as engaging. You can tell this author has made an enormous personal investment in crafting this sensational novel. I’m sure it was a labor of love, and it probably took years to write. The result is a work of art that was well worth creating.
ARC via Netgalley.
Set in the antebellum South, this is a poignant tale of courage, sacrifice, love, the search for meaning, and battling social conventions that had caused a whole lot of suffering for a whole lot of time in human history.
From a young boy who makes an agonizing decision to commit to a lifetime of celibacy because of a drop of African blood in his veins, to a young woman who agrees to marry a callous, insensitive man in order to lift her family out of poverty, the heroes of Necessary Sins struggle to do the right thing within the frame of the social norms of the time and place – which makes the reader rejoice in how far we’ve come as a society. The story ebbs and flows, sometimes uplifting, sometimes heartbreaking, but always compelling.
Elizabeth Bell spins a masterpiece of a story, a beautifully written, seamlessly crafted, perfectly paced historical novel that will grab you and won’t let you go until the very end. A fantastic first installment in the best tradition of the epic family saga genre. Definitely one of the best reads I have come across lately!
As soon as I read the first chapter, I knew this book would tear at my heart and make me want to reach through the pages to slap a couple of characters. The author dives right into the mind and life of each character, period prejudice and all, giving a vivid experience of the times and culture. Heroes are conflicted. Villains live up to their labels. Every scene, character, and phrase drives the story forward with relentless irony.
It’s also refreshing to see an intact, loving family at the center of chaos. That makes it especially hard when…well you’ll have to find out. Joseph’s father has some incredible one-liners that will have you rooting for justice and adoring him.
I cannot fathom the amount of research and connections made to craft this story. Being the kind of person who falls asleep during mass, I am impressed at how the author found ways to bring life to old texts, teachings, opinions about them, etc., and use them to create conflict and peace.
Looking forward to the next one. I need to find out what happens!
Necessary Sins is the first book in the Lazare Family Saga by Elizabeth Bell. It’s historical fiction that takes place from the late 1700s to the mid-1800s and spans over fifty years. It’s over five hundred pages, and the story started out slowly for me with many characters and locations. But once it picked up and I became vested in the diverse set of characters, it was an emotional albeit enjoyable read.
The prologue takes place in Charleston, South Carolina, in 1822, but that’s not when the story begins. It begins in 1789 in the West Indies, and from there, we go to Paris, Charleston, Rome, and back to South Carolina, where most of the story takes place. This is a multigenerational tale of the Lazare family, and while we find out that they descend from black slaves, Rene was led to believe that his coloring and those of his children were from their Spanish grandmother. Rene, the patriarch, is raised by his stern grandmother, Marguerite, who is meanspirited, evil at times, very harsh, and lies. Is it because of what happened to her own family and its effects on her outlook on life? We learn of his life, marriage, children, profession as a doctor, his friendships, and his beliefs of the Catholic Church and how they differ from his devout wife and son. When Joseph, at a young age, declares he wants to become a priest, his mother, who is a deaf-mute, is thrilled, while his father feels he’s shortchanging his life. Will his father’s prediction come true?
Each chapter begins with an interesting quote. There are a lot of Bible passages and prayers sprinkled throughout, especially since Joseph does become a priest and the Catholic Church and their beliefs play a major role in the story. The story has many twists and turns with a depth to the characters and the storyline. I enjoyed the relationship Joseph had with his mother and his sisters, as well as his friendship with Teresa and her brother, Liam. It was heartbreaking to see how Joseph treated his father, but his father was always there for him. There is often a darkness to the story, and at times I had tears rolling down my face. The amount of loss endured was distressing, and it was upsetting to see how poor some people were and how they lived, like Teresa and Liam. The way the slaves were often treated was sad, while others were treated with dignity and like part of the family even though they were the property of their landowners. Blacks, as well as the poor, were treated horribly in the South, and it was often heart-wrenching to see. There was also a lightness in some of the relationships, the feelings for other family members and friends, and the love and happiness often portrayed. There are vivid descriptions throughout that often made me feel like I was there. The story ended too abruptly for me, but I’m happy to see there are three additional books in the saga. I do hope to read them all. The cover is attractive and is meaningful to the story. The Author’s Note and Acknowledgments were both interesting and gave a nod to the amount of research that went into the telling of this tale.
Ms. Bell has a writing style that I enjoyed, and I will look for her books in the future.
A friend recommended Necessary Sins! Wow! From the first page I was hooked. I love the historical account of Antebellum Charleston. This book was professionally researched and beautifully written. The drama, emotion, but mostly the tragedy that the Lazare family endured is beyond comprehension. I can’t wait to read the next book is this saga.
NECESSARY SINS is the first book in the sweeping Lazare Family Saga. In antebellum South Carolina young Joseph Lazare discovers a secret that would ruin his family. To atone this sin he becomes a priest, only to fall in love with a married woman. It is recommended as a sweeping drama, a sexy forbidden romance, richly detailed and well researched (and a beautiful book cover) Sounds good right? Well I was not a fan of this book, I just didn’t get it. The first half of the book was about slavery, the author was so obsessed with the size of the slaves noses, she wrote about it over and over again I just wanted to scream ENOUGH!! The second part of the book was about the family, while reading the second half I actually missed the first half, UGH. Needless to say I struggled with this book, I did not connect with the characters, I found the story tedious, it was way too long, and to think this Saga will continue to another book makes my head hurt. I don’t like writing negative reviews, but I just could not get my head around this story, if you are a fan of The Thorn Birds you may enjoy this book.