#2 Joanna Stafford

The Chalice

Nancy Bilyeau
3.87
1,937 ratings 281 reviews
It was a time of fear. It was a time of prophecy. It was a time for one woman to show a courage she never knew she had... Winner of the Best Historical Mystery Award from the RT Reviews, 'The Chalice' is a thriller told from the point of view of a young woman caught in the crosswinds of time: She has pledged to become a Dominican nun in an England ruled by Henry VIII, who has ruthlessly smashed his country's allegiance to Rome. By 1538, the bloody power struggles between crown and cross threaten to tear the country apart. Joanna Stafford has seen what lies inside the king’s torture rooms and risks imprisonment again, when she is caught up in a shadowy international plot targeting the King. As the power plays turn vicious, Joanna understands she may have to assume her role in a prophecy foretold by three different seers, each more omniscient than the last. The life of Henry VIII as well as the future of Christendom are in her hands—hands that must someday hold the chalice that lays at the center of these deadly prophecies. As she struggles to forge a life for herself in a country that rejects her faith, she must also decide if her future should be shared with a man--and if so, which of the two men who love her should be chosen.
Genres: Historical FictionFictionMysteryHistoricalTudor PeriodBritish LiteratureHistorical MysteryAudiobookThriller16th Century
496 Pages

Community Reviews:

5 star
516 (27%)
4 star
813 (42%)
3 star
471 (24%)
2 star
106 (5%)
1 star
31 (2%)

Readers also enjoyed

Other books by Nancy Bilyeau

Joanna Stafford Series

Lists with this book

How the Light Gets In
Speaking from Among the Bones
Leaving Everything Most Loved
most anticipated mysteries 2013
149 books544 voters
Shadow on the Crown
Outlander
The King's Agent
Historical Novel Society 2013
142 books79 voters
The Other Boleyn Girl
The Six Wives of Henry VIII
The Boleyn Inheritance
Best Books About Tudor England
601 books1612 voters
The Name of the Rose
The Alienist
The Historian
Best Historical Mystery
1953 books4428 voters