A Life, Lived: The Virgin and the Griffin

October 04, 2012

The Virgin and the Griffin

A number of years ago I met a woman named Sandra Cordon on the Slowtravel website (not THAT way - dirty bird!). We bonded over our love of Italy, art, we were fellow Canadians, both lived in Ontario, and generally despised the right-wing sentiments of the world.

Sandra, then based in Ottawa, would get together with me for drinks and dinner from time to time when I was in Ottawa. We'd chat for hours about our love of Italy, art, and hatred of Stephen Harper.

A year ago Sandra moved to Rome and I followed her adventures on her blog Leaping Without a Net.

I knew that Sandra, a new writer by trade, had been working on a novel for years but struggled to find a publisher. In the end she went the e-publishing route and got it out herself.

I was thrilled to read the following announcement a few weeks ago:

I have published my novel.

The Virgin and the Griffin is now available on Amazon.com as an e-book for the low, low price of $3.99US, plus tax.

www.amazon.com
www.amazon.it
www.amazon.co.uk

It's a work of historical fiction set in the small Italian city of Perugia, and filled with intrigue, Papal plots, and a sexy priest.

I popped over to Amazon.com to buy it and experienced a challenge. I had an iPad not a kindle which is the version of books that Amazon sells. I discovered that I could download a kindle app for my iPad which allowed me to view the book.

Amazon didn't take kindly to the fact that I lived in Canada but bought the book from it's US site. In fact they sent me a letter saying that they were 'investigating the purchase'.

'Investigate THIS,' I thought . . .

I knew that Sandra's book was inspired by a wonderful textile she purchased in Perugia a number of years ago:

The novel is based in 1504 Perugia - a burgeoning city in Umbria. Even though Perugia was under Papal control at this time, the ruling families and the guilds held sway. With a new Pope in St Peter's the citizens know it is only a matter of time before Pope Julius sends the Papal arm out to bring the restless city back under control.

Enter a mysterious priest, a family of weavers, and a kindly neighbour and you have the main cast of characters. Sandra has done a brilliant job of bringing the setting to life - the reader understands women's work and the power males held over them, the daily struggle for existence in these harsh times, and how political intrigue casts a strong and wide net.

Father Michele Gialletti (AKA' the sexy priest' - how blasphemous is THAT?) tutors the children and we later learn that he is purpose is not merely the transfer of knowledge from him to them. He exposes Isabella, to art and later love. Cordon conveys her love of Perugian art through Michele and Isabella. In fact, much of the first half of the novel reads like a rich travel guide where Father Gialetti and Isabella explore the rich artistic heritage of Perugia.

The second half switches things up significantly. Whereas the first part of the novel is about art, the second half is all about the threat of Papal invasion, the intrigue amongst the various factions in the city, and the growing dread amongst the townspeople who have seen the streets run red with blood before.

It was was at this point that I found it difficult to put the book down and got carried along to the dramatic climax - which wasn't the climax I was expecting (although anyone familiar with Italian history during this era would know the way the invasion and intrigue turns out. *smile*).

Cordon has created characters the are believable - one understands their struggles and feels their pain. They interact and behave in a manner that is believable - particularly through the historic lens of the time.

For a first effort this is a brilliant book. I know that Sandra is at work on her second novel and I, for one, hope that it doens't take three years to come to fruition!

Posted at 07:46 AM in Books, Italy | Permalink