The Miracle At St. Bruno's (1981) - Plot & Excerpts
Picked up this book randomly during an ebook sale since it was a historical fiction set in one of my favorite time periods (Tudor/Henry 8th British Era) and it was an enjoyable, although not amazing, read.The story takes place during Henry VIII's reign (The book spans from when Henry is still married to Katherine of Aragon, his first wife, all the way to Elizabeth ascending the throne) and follows a fictional character by the name of Damask, the daughter of a well off lawyer. Philippa Carr did an excellent job of weaving real, historical events into her fictional story. Throughout the story, Damask's life is extremely altered due to the events surrounding the political/religious change and turmoil during Henry's reign. Philippas attention to detail and writing made me feel as if this was truly how life was for many people across England during that time; A constant sense of loss and fear for one's life, where one slip of the tongue could end ones life. The story itself was nothing amazing. Most of the book focuses on Damask as she grows from a child into womanhood with the story being told from her perspective. I found Damask to be a likable and strong-willed female protagonist. I detested her cousin Kate and Bruno though, and I believe Philippa set these characters to be understood but unliked by readers (in my opinion). There was nothing really new or fresh introduced in this book, but then again historical fiction is not really a good median for that.Overall, the book was an enjoyable read, although I feel like it will not be one that I come to remember. If you like coming of age-esque and historical fiction novels, its worth a read. I am interested in reading the rest of Philippas Daughters of England series.
The narrator for this book is Damask Farland, daughter of a prosperous attorney during the reign of Henry VIII. Damask has grown up around the legend of the Miracle of St. Bruno's abbey, that of a lost child found in a crib on Christmas Eve. The child was named Bruno after the abbey and brought prosperity and wealth to the abbey - that is until King Henry starts hankering for Anne Boleyn. During the destruction of the abbey Bruno's real parentage is revealed, and since it's one he can't accept he high tails it out of town for a few years, but when he does return his fortunes have significantly improved, although no one knows the source of his great wealth.Anywho, there's a marriage and a few deep dark secrets, but it takes years and years of endless exposition from Damask to get the reader to the big reveal on the last few pages and by then I was so darned weary of it all I really didn't care much. Part of the problem is that today's readers are fairly up to snuff with Henry VIII and his six wives, and the last thing one needs is another recital of it all, particularly from a character who is stuck in the countryside raising children and gets it all second hand. I suspect this might appeal better to younger teens or die-hard fans of Carr who also wrote at Jean Plaidy and Victoria Holt, but for anyone else I'd suggest giving this a miss.
What do You think about The Miracle At St. Bruno's (1981)?
Another book about the Tudor era. I can't get enough of ole' Henry the 8th. This one describes how the lives of ordinary people (not peasants) are affected by the changing political and religious tides of Henry, Mary and Elizabeth's reigns. When Henry is in power, everybody is in danger; when Mary is in power the protestants are in danger, etc., etc.I would have given this four stars except for a quirky annoyance caused by reading the e-version of the book using the Overdrive app on my Nook. This app will tell you how far into a book you are and how many pages are left to the chapter you are reading. There was a 188 page preview of the next book in the series included in the download which made it look like there was still 1/3 of the book to go when suddenly it ended! I was completely thrown off; it was like I fell off a literary cliff. Very disconcerting.
—Eileen Pucci
This is a historical fiction book that starts when King Henry VIII was ruler of England and goes through the subsequent Queens ending with Queen Elizabeth I.It starts out with the "Miracle at St. Bruno's"and follows the life of one family, and the niece and nephew whose parents are killed and come to live with them, through the tumultuous times during the religious upheaval in England. The back and forth between Protestantism and Catholicism and the effect it has on the family and Abbey that is next door.This book is filled with so much history, which I love. However I felt the story line was a little slow, at first. Once I got past that, it was a very interesting and likeable book. This is a series of books and at the end we also get to read a good portion of the next book in the series, The Lion Triumphant. It actually starts out much better and so I think once the author got going, the story gets even better. I will definitely be buying The Lion Triumphant and the subsequent books after it.If you enjoy books with great historical facts, you can not go wrong with this series of books. I actually felt I was learning from the facts in the book. How can you go wrong?
—Vicki
Tudor-era historical fiction? Normally, that's my cup of tea. The Miracle at St. Bruno's, however, fell a bit flat for me.I'm typically a fan of Jean Plaidy, but I did not recognize this book as being by her (under a different pen name) - the writing did not live up to what I've come to expect from her. This particular book had a rather bland main character, and the action was all very predictable. It wasn't bad... but it wasn't all that good, either. I'm not sure that I'll try another by Philippa Carr...
—Heather
