Monday 17 October 2016

#bookreview ~ The Errant Flock #histfict @AuthoJana

The Errant Flock
(The Flock Trilogy Book 1)
By
Jana Petken

 

The Multi Award Winning, The Errant Flock, a historical epic of greed, betrayal, and murder, set during the Spanish Inquisition.

Valencia, Spain, 1491
 
The ambitions of four men merge and collide in a deadly game of intrigue.

David Sanz, a young militiaman, is forced to carry out a heinous crime, and he becomes an unwitting pawn in a tense battle for power.

Luis Peráto, the duke of Sagrat, sacrifices his own people to cover up dark secrets that could see him burnt at the stake for treason.

Sergio Garcia, Sagrat’s lord treasurer, is a cruel and unscrupulous man, willing to eliminate anyone who opposes his rise to power.

The inquisitor, Gaspar de Amo, zealously punishes heretics for their sins against Rome and her Holy Office. But bringing the Inquisition to the town of Sagrat proves more challenging than he or the church could ever have envisaged.

In the midst of chaos, the people of Sagrat, terrorized by a series of murders, face an even greater danger with the arrival of the Inquisition and the unimaginable horrors it brings.

***
What did I think of the book?

To be saved from Hell, one must first be purged of the Devil. The inquisitor, Gaspar de Amo, knows all about heretics and their evil hearts. It is his sacred duty to bring the flock back to Christ. But by trying to save the immortal souls of the citizens of Spain, he risks losing his mortal life. But it is a risk he is willing to take, in the name of God and the King.
But when he brings his Inquisition to Sagrat, the home of his daughter and her husband Luis Peráto, the Duke of this province, he discovers more than a town full of heretics.

The brutal times of The Spanish Inquisition are brought back to life, in this compelling, page-turner of a read. Full of intrigue, murder and lies, The Errant Flock is a masterpiece of historical fiction. Petkin holds nothing back, with many scenes of torture and death, which makes this a vivid account of what it was like to live under the yolk of the Inquisition. There are many scenes that readers may find upsetting, as neighbour turn on neighbour, in a bid to save their own skins from the evil that the Inquisition was. This is a harrowing account of what it takes to stay alive.

The main protagonist, David Sanz is a well-coloured character, who finds himself embroiled in a web of lies. He commits the most atrocious crime in the services of the Duke. But David soon realises that it isn't just his own guilt that he has to learn to live with. The Duke, now he has used him for his own gains, wants David and everyone he loves to disappear.  David has to keep his wits about him and somehow, amid the terror, save the people he loves from not only death but, also a fate worse than it.

This is one of those books that you simply cannot put down. I was desperate to find out what was going to happen next. Full of twists and surprises, this book, kept me guessing. Petkin has brought 15th Century Spain back to life and in particular those early days of The Spanish Inquisition. This book will stay with me for a long time.

 I Highly Recommend.




Links for Purchase

About the author


Jana Petken served in the (British) Royal Navy as a leading Wren Regulator, equivalent to a sergeant in the military police.
After the Navy she worked for a travel company as an overseas representative.
She was a security guard at the BBC World Service radio station. Afterwards she spent twelve years as a bodyguard for a Saudi Arabian Princess.
Her final career was as a cabin-crew member for British Airways. Unfortunately, she suffered serious injuries on board a flight. The aircraft, a Boeing 747, was flying at 39,000 feet above Africa when it was caught in clear-air turbulence. As a result of that accident, she endured three major operations on her spinal cord, and was forced into retirement.

Jana Petken is a multi award winning and best selling historical fiction author. Her books include:
The Guardian of Secrets. (2013)
The Mercy Carver Series: Dark Shadows, book 1, and Blood Moon, book 2. (2014)
The Errant Flock: The Flock Trilogy Book 1. (2015)
Swearing Allegiance. (2016)
Coming in October, 2016, The Scattered Flock (The Flock Trilogy book 2)

1 comment:

See you on your next coffee break!
Take Care,
Mary Anne xxx