Indie Spotlight is my effort to help promote Indie books. You can help too by sharing this post with all your social media followers. Below see my review of an amazing novel, When Secrets Bloom, the first book of a new series set in 15th Century Transylvania.
BOOK DESCRIPTION (FROM AMAZON)
Transylvania, 1463. A land of fortress cities, whispered heresies, and shadows cast by Vlad Dracula (the man, not the vampire.)
Kate Webber, a 28-year-old Saxon healer, has always lived between reverence and suspicion. Her gift with herbs and midwifery makes her indispensable – and dangerous – in Kronstadt (today Brașov) , a medieval city where fear rules and women are silenced. Her marriage to the powerful, secretive Magyar promised safety, but instead bound her voice.
One bitter Advent night, Kate breaks her husband’s command and saves a dying mother and child. Her defiance sparks awe in some, fury in others. The jealous town physician seizes his chance to destroy her. Rumors flare. A mob gathers. And Kate’s only ally is Iancu – her childhood friend turned militia captain – whose return stirs memories of freedom, laughter and forbidden longing.
Elsewhere in the city, Moise, a Jewish apprentice at the printing press, witnesses a cloaked Shaman haunting the square. When a rare manuscript vanishes, Moise discovers a dangerous secret: a book men will kill for. His search entwines his fate with Kate’s – until both stand accused in a city hungry for scapegoats.
On the day of execution, Kate chooses defiance again. She saves a child. Moise is framed. And in the shadows of fortress walls, a legacy map begins to reveal itself – a secret hidden not in books, but in the hearts of those who guard them.
BOOK REVIEW
When Secrets Bloom is Book One in Patricia Furstenberg’s series, Blood of Kings, Heart of Shadows. The beauty of the writing captured me immediately. A gifted Saxon healer in Krondstadt, Transylvania, who is told she can’t save the “wrong” people on a holy night, Kate does it anyway, at the threat of brutal 15th-Century justice, an example of which is here: “The air thickened in my throat for just a moment. Not because I feared fire, but because I had seen it all before. I knew what it smelled like when flesh blackened. When screams were choked by smoke.” This one quote shows us the fear and brutality of the time.
I could fill this entire review with amazing quotes, and here is one more: “To me Father had always been a pillar–weathered but unbroken. Yet in that moment, against the tide of self-interest, he seemed smaller. Not less, but alone. Like the last tower still standing after the fortress has fallen.” This is just one example of how Furstenberg, throughout this work, displays her strong ability to use people, places, and nature itself to not only convey meaning, but to pull the reader in and show them the story.
The novel’s characters are all intriguing. The relationship between Kate and Iancu is one of longing and regret. This book is not full of love scenes, but whenever they are together, the intensity and deep feelings between them are clear to see. The most mysterious character is the Shaman. He pulses throughout the novel, shadowy and dark, described as an almost mythical figure. But who is he? We first meet the Shaman when we meet Moise, a Jewish apprentice who seems to see the Shaman at every turn, and who begins a search for a missing book that will draw him to Kate. Other characters, many dark, greedy, and judging, seem to be everywhere, and the history of Transylvania at that time flows through it all.
This novel is what happens when exquisite writing meets meticulous, caring research. I look forward to Book Two in the series. Highly recommended.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Patricia Furstenberg is a Romanian historical fiction, contemporary and children’s books author who resides in South Africa. Patricia penned the Amazon bestseller Joyful Trouble, page-turner Silent Heroes, beloved children’s literature The Cheetah and the Dog, new releases When Secrets Bloom, Dreamland and Transylvania’s History A to Z: 100 Word Stories.
Amazon Bestseller author, Top 100 Romanians from Everywhere Category Art 2023, Spillwords Press Awards MMXXIII Author of the Year, Patricia Furstenberg writes with passion about history that blends with fiction, about war heroes, human or canine, while the poetry she pens is sometimes incisive, sometimes humorous.
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BEFORE YOU GO
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