In an engrossing story of epic proportions, scrupulous historical detail and memorable characters that remain with the reader long after the book is closed, Ildefonso Falcones has produced a true work of art. Shunned by the Moors as a Christian sympathiser and seen as a heretic by the Christians, beset by trials and betrayal, his determination never wavers. Hernando’s struggle for enlightenment determines his every action. His first novel, Cathedral of the Sea was published in 2006 and. When Hernando hears that Fatima is dead he is stricken by grief and immerses himself in study, believing that he can be instrumental in bringing the two faiths, Christianity and Muslim together after all, they worship the same God, and the Virgin Mary is sacred to both. Ildefonso Falcones is a Spanish lawyer and author who was born in 1958 in Barcelona. Driven by hatred and jealousy, his stepfather condemns Hernando to slavery and steals Fatima for himself. When Hernando meets a black-eyed beauty, Fatima, she becomes the love of his life. Constantly referred to as the ‘Nazarine’ by his stepfather, he is forced to sleep in the stables with the mules. Hernando is a Moor torn between two cultures, his blue eyes a constant reminder of the disgrace of his birth after his mother was raped by a Christian priest.
In 1564, after years of Christian oppression, the Moors of Granada exact a terrible revenge against their masters: after the ensuing bloodbath, the white houses of the Christians are daubed with their blood. Written by Ildefonso Falcones Nick Caistor (trans.)
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