Reviews
ADVANCE PRAISE FOR HERESY "HERESY is a must-read for every fan of historical thrillers. S. J. Parris transports the reader back to an extraordinary time in history by mobilizing fascinating details, suspense, and fully drawn characters. Giordano Bruno turns out to be that rare hero, charismatic and nuanced enough to impel an encore, and to leave us asking for more from the gifted Parris." -Matthew Pearl,bestselling author ofand "HERESY has everything - intrigue, mystery, excellent history and haunting sense of place. The beginning of a wonderful new detective series." -- Kate Mosse,New York Timesbestselling author ofLabyrinthandSepulchre "The famous scientist Giordano Bruno,erupts with volcanic force from the pages of S. J. Parris's spellbinding debut novel,Heresy. Blending the philosophical sleuthing skills of Brother Cadfael with the magic sorcery of Voldemort, Bruno cracks the secret code, unraveling a church conspiracy as deep and dark as that in a Dan Brown novel." -Katherine Neville,bestselling author ofThe EightandThe Fire "Heresyis a riveting read. Rich in both historical detail and ingenious twists, S. J. Parris has created a character in Giordano Bruno that will endure. A true rival to C. J. Sansom." -Sam Bourne,bestselling author of "Fascinating . . . The period is incredibly vivid and the story utterly gripping. Cadfael can't hold a candle to this." -Conn Iggulden,New York Timesbestselling author ofThe Dangerous Book for BoysandBones of the HillsThe Righteous Men New York TimesNew York TimesThe PoeShadowThe Dante ClubNew York Times, ADVANCE PRAISE FOR HERESY "HERESY is a must-read for every fan of historical thrillers. S. J. Parris transports the reader back to an extraordinary time in history by mobilizing fascinating details, suspense, and fully drawn characters. Giordano Bruno turns out to be that rare hero, charismatic and nuanced enough to impel an encore, and to leave us asking for more from the gifted Parris." -Matthew Pearl, New York Times bestselling author ofThe Poe ShadowandThe Dante Club "HERESY has everything - intrigue, mystery, excellent history and haunting sense of place. The beginning of a wonderful new detective series." -- Kate Mosse,New York Timesbestselling author ofLabyrinthandSepulchre "The famous scientist Giordano Bruno,erupts with volcanic force from the pages of S. J. Parris's spellbinding debut novel,Heresy. Blending the philosophical sleuthing skills of Brother Cadfael with the magic sorcery of Voldemort, Bruno cracks the secret code, unraveling a church conspiracy as deep and dark as that in a Dan Brown novel." -Katherine Neville, bestselling author of The Eight andThe Fire "Heresyis a riveting read. Rich in both historical detail and ingenious twists, S. J. Parris has created a character in Giordano Bruno that will endure. A true rival to C. J. Sansom." -Sam Bourne, bestselling author ofThe Righteous Men "Fascinating . . . The period is incredibly vivid and the story utterly gripping. Cadfael can't hold a candle to this." -Conn Iggulden,New York Timesbestselling author ofThe Dangerous Book for BoysandBones of the Hills "A rich, dark and utterly gripping tale, paced to perfection and populated with a glorious cast of characters." -- Mark Mills, bestselling author ofThe Savage GardenandAmagansett "Parris interweaves historical fact with psychological insight as Bruno, a humanist dangerously ahead of his time, begins his quest to light the fire of enlightenment in Europe." --StarredPW "The murders stack up, the pace becomes helter-skelter and the action overloaded as Bruno, in pursuit of a corrupt Jesuit priest, confronts endless perils before justice is finally and bloodily served. Spirited storytelling, an appealing sleuth and a cool, mutilated villain will lead readers to hope this is the launch of a series." --Kirkus, ADVANCE PRAISE FOR HERESY "HERESY is a must-read for every fan of historical thrillers. S. J. Parris transports the reader back to an extraordinary time in history by mobilizing fascinating details, suspense, and fully drawn characters. Giordano Bruno turns out to be that rare hero, charismatic and nuanced enough to impel an encore, and to leave us asking for more from the gifted Parris." -Matthew Pearl,New York Timesbestselling author ofThe Dante ClubandThe PoeShadow "The famous scientist Giordano Bruno,erupts with volcanic force from the pages of S. J. Parris's spellbinding debut novel,Heresy. Blending the philosophical sleuthing skills of Brother Cadfael with the magic sorcery of Voldemort, Bruno cracks the secret code, unraveling a church conspiracy as deep and dark as that in a Dan Brown novel." -Katherine Neville,New York Timesbestselling author ofThe EightandThe Fire "Heresyis a riveting read. Rich in both historical detail and ingenious twists, S. J. Parris has created a character in Giordano Bruno that will endure. A true rival to C. J. Sansom." -Sam Bourne,New York Timesbestselling author ofThe Righteous Men "Fascinating . . . The period is incredibly vivid and the story utterly gripping. Cadfael can't hold a candle to this." -Conn Iggulden,New York Timesbestselling author ofThe Dangerous Book for BoysandBones of the Hills, ADVANCE PRAISE FOR HERESY "HERESY is a must-read for every fan of historical thrillers. S. J. Parris transports the reader back to an extraordinary time in history by mobilizing fascinating details, suspense, and fully drawn characters. Giordano Bruno turns out to be that rare hero, charismatic and nuanced enough to impel an encore, and to leave us asking for more from the gifted Parris." - Matthew Pearl, New York Times bestselling author of The Poe Shadow and The Dante Club "HERESY has everything - intrigue, mystery, excellent history and haunting sense of place. The beginning of a wonderful new detective series." -- Kate Mosse, New York Times bestselling author of Labyrinth and Sepulchre "The famous scientist Giordano Bruno,erupts with volcanic force from the pages of S. J. Parris''s spellbinding debut novel, Heresy . Blending the philosophical sleuthing skills of Brother Cadfael with the magic sorcery of Voldemort, Bruno cracks the secret code, unraveling a church conspiracy as deep and dark as that in a Dan Brown novel." -Katherine Neville, bestselling author of The Eight and The Fire " Heresy is a riveting read. Rich in both historical detail and ingenious twists, S. J. Parris has created a character in Giordano Bruno that will endure. A true rival to C. J. Sansom." -Sam Bourne, bestselling author of The Righteous Men "Fascinating . . . The period is incredibly vivid and the story utterly gripping. Cadfael can''t hold a candle to this." -Conn Iggulden, New York Times bestselling author of The Dangerous Book for Boys and Bones of the Hills "A rich, dark and utterly gripping tale, paced to perfection and populated with a glorious cast of characters." -- Mark Mills, bestselling author of The Savage Garden and Amagansett "Parris interweaves historical fact with psychological insight as Bruno, a humanist dangerously ahead of his time, begins his quest to light the fire of enlightenment in Europe." -- Starred PW "The murders stack up, the pace becomes helter-skelter and the action overloaded as Bruno, in pursuit of a corrupt Jesuit priest, confronts endless perils before justice is finally and bloodily served. Spirited storytelling, an appealing sleuth and a cool, mutilated villain will lead readers to hope this is the launch of a series." --Kirkus From The Washington Post If proliferation is a sign of health, then the most vigorous member of the historical novel species must surely be the religious thriller. We know what to expect of these ecclesiastical romps: Sadistic clerics, heroic visionaries, ancient texts, torture chambers and a sprinkling of Latin are guaranteed whether the turmoil being depicted is the Protestant Reformation, the Roman Inquisition or some obscure schism. The latest example of this thriving subgenre is "Heresy," by S.J. Parris (the pseudonym of British writer Stephanie Merritt), a vigorous philosophical thriller that wastes no time getting to the point. "They have sent for the Father Inquisitor," a desperate monk whispers to his cellmate. "There is no time to lose." Along with this rallying cry -- the first of many -- we can practically hear the galloping of hooves and the creaking of thumbscrews. The monk in question is Giordano Bruno, the 16th-century Neapolitan philosopher who was finally burned at the stake for his belief in an infinite, Copernican universe. (The actual Bruno was a Dominican friar. "Heresy" ends well before his execution, although a planned sequel may take us there.) We meet our hero in
