THE JOURNEY CONTINUES Thirteenth-century Languedoc, torn apart by decades of crusades against the Cathar heretics, braces for the final stand of the Catholic Church against the Good Men and Good Women at the remote fortress of Montsegur. Azemar and Azalais, now fugitives after their daring escape from the castel de Belascon, must try to reach the fortress—and fulfill their destiny—before it’s too … fulfill their destiny—before it’s too late.
But the captivating trobairitz Jordane de la Moux d’Aniort and her damozel Johana have escaped with them at the last minute, putting them all in grave peril. Will Jordane’s conflicting purpose of reuniting with the rebel Raimon de Berenger thwart Azemar and Azalais’s quest?
A cryptic note leads Azemar to the Templar stronghold at Mas Deu, where he undergoes brutal trials—only to discover that his ultimate purpose could lead him to destroy the very culture and religion he wants to preserve.
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I’m excited to share with you, courtesy u2063
of @HFVBT ,an excellent read about a u2063
little known time in history. u2063
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The Spirit Of Fire u2063
The Orphans Of Tolosa Trilogy #2u2063
By: Susanne Dunlap u2063
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*REVIEW* u2063
Susanne Dunlap’s The Spirit Of Fire is the continuation of a thirteenth century(1243-44) tale woven from fact and fiction about a dark horrific era in French history in the region then know as Languedoc. This region, now called Occitanie, would not become part of France until the sixteenth century. In Languedoc lived the “true Christians,” also known as the Cathars. Naturally, the Pope had no tolerance for any non-Catholic sect, thus the Crusades launched against the Cathars. As this story begins, Azemar, now the named heir of the Baron de Montpezot’s heir, and Azalais, in disguise, are fugitives fleeing to the Montegur Fortress. They are determined to find their true destiny. Through cryptic means, Azemar is led to the Templar monks of M’as Deau for reasons he may not understand or anticipate. Although seeking to protect and preserve a religion and a way of life, the orphans have no way of knowing what is in store for themselves or the Cathars. The siege of the Montegur Fortress is neigh at hand. I found so much information in the story that was both astounding and terrifying. These characters are not real, but they could have been and probably were in some persona or other. Freedom of religion is something taken for granted, but this story offers further proof that this right is blood drenched. I cannot imagine the depth of conviction these people had to die for what they believed. I felt so much for every character, and the story was alive in my mind. This is a detailed informative deeply researched book about a little known time in history that certainly deserves more attention. It is a complicated and complex subject, but The Spirit Of Fire is well worth the time spent reading. An historical fiction gem!
Susanne Dunlap made it easy to pick up the story of Azemar and Azalais in this second book of the trilogy. Often the action in a second book can drag a little until the end when the author tries hard to make you want to buy the 3rd in the series, but that was NOT the case for Spirit of Fire. I enjoyed the writing even more in book II, and the pacing kept the pages turning throughout, sometimes long after I had really wanted to go to bed. The character development continued so we became even more invested in their lives and times. I appreciate the gentle inclusion of the history of this sect of Christians called Cathars that were persecuted as heretical at the time, as well as many other details that bring the time to life. The Templars play an interesting role in this whole drama.
The ending is well done and we can see the set up for an interesting final book in the series, without having it feel like an unsatisfying cliff hangar. Well written and enjoyable and I hope it won’t be too long before we see the final installment in this series.
A great read. this period of history in France is not really described, people are still ashamed of what happened. The story telling is so good that it echoes the “troubadoures” and it is a great “tour de force”. The story isiInformative, the readers will learn about everyday life and how political conflicts can use religion to obtain power.
“The Spirit of Fire” by Susanne Dunlap is the Second Book of the Orphans of Tolosa Book covering the years 1243-1244. The story covers the thirteenth century period in a region that will not become part of France until later in the sixteenth century, called Occitanie. Quite unique to the culture is their women troubadours who wrote poetry, sets it to music and performs in the courts.
The Midi (Languedoc) were similar to Spanish and Catalan culturally, and more tolerant of other religions including the Jews. Another prevalent religion was the Cathars, a religious sect who called themselves the true Christians. The Pope considered them as heretics and launched the crusades against them. The Cathars went into hiding in the Pyrenees in the castle called the Montsegur in the fortress in the Ariege.
Book II begins as the Cathars fight against the French. Fugitives Azemar, an orphan from Tolosa who becomes heir to the Baron de Montzepat, along with another orphan Azalais, who was in disguise married the baron de Belascon, are trying to reach the fortress.
I loved this book and found it to be an epic story about strong and amazing women characters that I loved reading about. I loved that the characters though fictional were set in real historical events in a very dark period in French History. The violence that the Cathar people suffered as heretics, by being murdered and burned at the stake were simply heart wrenching – ethnic cleansing wars are very difficult to read about but must be written to ensure that their stories are told and learn from history. We know that in many years to come, these have been a part of many of the wars we have come to suffer from even through the 20th century.
I am looking forward to reading the third book in the series; it will be going through the years 1229-1240 and following the two orphans on their epic adventure and survival. What an amazing continuation that would be.