The Passion of Dolssa

When Botille Flasucra finds Dolssa de Stigata lying on a riverside close to death, she takes the stranger to her family’s tavern. Botille, a young matchmaker, and her sisters nurse Dolssa back to health in secret—a Dominican friar obsessively hunts Dolssa, whom he condemned as a heretic to be burned at the stake. The year is 1241 in Provensa (now Provence), where the aftereffects of the Albigensian Crusade have led to an inquisition meant to rid the Christian world of heretics. Dolssa, however, feels called to heal the sick in the name of her beloved Jhesus, and her miracles eventually bring danger to the small town of Bajas. Berry (All the Truth That’s in Me) again delivers an utterly original and instantly engrossing story. Drawing from meticulous historical research (highlighted in extensive back matter), she weaves a tense, moving portrait of these two teenage girls and their struggle to survive against insurmountable odds. Love, faith, violence, and power intertwine in Berry’s lyrical writing, but Botille’s and Dolssa’s indomitable spirits are the heart of her story. Ages 12–up. Agent: Alyssa Eisner Henkin, Trident Media Group. (Apr.)