Pagan’s Daughter by Catherine Jinks
As you might have guessed by now, I have lots of favourite authors. Catherine Jinks caught my attention many years ago when she wrote the first of the Pagan series. After that I stayed pretty close to her adult fiction, and left her YA and children’s books to find their own audience.
A year ago I sighted a manuscript copy of the new Pagan novel, and I had to return it to the owner!! But finally I got a chance to read the book. If anything, it is better than I expected.
For those new to the Pagan series, Pagan was a young Arab boy living in Jerusalem during the Crusades, he is befriended by a Templar knight and returns to Europe in his service. Eventually Pagan becomes a priest and even a bishop, and finds a young disciple in Isidore.
Along the way Pagan fell in love and had a brief affair with a French woman. Both of their faiths denied them the option of being together, so they regretfully parted. Pagan did not know that he had left the woman pregnant.
At the start of this book Babylonne has almost a Cinderella lifestyle, that is Cinderella before the prince. Her family continually punish her for being the illegitimate child of a Catholic priest. When she is faced with a repulsive marriage, she runs away from home and literally runs into a priest named Isidore. Although she is Protestant, this priest takes her under his wing, and doesn’t appear to want anything in return. Gradually the reader works out Isidore’s motives, but Babylonne remains suspicious.
I found the book fascinating. It could be my memory, but there seems to be much more action and adventure in this volume of the tale. And Jinks has a wonderful feisty character in Babylonne. However, I am not sure what young readers will make of the religious warfare. True these internal crusades were happening in France in the 13th century, but how much understanding will kids today have of the motivation behind the slaughter that took place. I look forward to finding out.
