The Illuminator

The Illuminator, by Brenda Rickman Vantrease

This book takes place in the late fourteenth century. I found it to be a transparent description of life in that era. In no way does it romanticize or idealize the exploitation of the people by those in power. The power that the church held over the people is maddening, as is the general treatment of the serfs. Many books avoid the gritty details; this is not one of them. I have to say though, that when I read a book I intend to escape for a little while. This book was no vacation, and at times it irritated me that the fourteenth century couldn't have been nicer.

The plot of the book intertwines the lives of actual historical characters with fictional characters. The author writes from several characters' points-of-view, so it is sometimes difficult to figure out just who the main character is. In the end, one can deduce that those still living must have been the main characters. Here is the gist of it: Lady Kathryn is a widow trying to hold onto her lands long enough for her oldest son to come of age and inherit them. Finn is an illuminator of holy manuscripts with a daughter roughly the same age as Kathryn's twin sons. Because of his daughter, he can't stay at the monastery while doing his work, which is just as well because he has had dealings with John Wycliff (the guy who translated the Bible into the common language). Side plots include the stories of Half-Tom the Dwarf and Julian the Anchoress of Norwich (Julian is an actual historical figure). About midway through the book all hell breaks loose for the characters involved, and it appears as if the evils of church and crown are going to triumph. It was at this point that I realized this book was intended to bring to light the events leading up to the Peasant's Revolt of 1381. When I stopped reading it as an historical romance and started reading it as historical fiction, the book began to make more sense.

Because I am mildly familiar with the historical events of the time period, there were some parts of the plot that did not surprise me. Also, because I have spent a lot of time analyzing the plots of fictional TV shows, movies, and books, there were a few created (non-historical) plot twists that did not surprise me. One in particular was Half-Tom's choice of a wife at the end. It was clear for a portion of the book which girl captured his eye however, even before they met, I had thought to myself, "I bet she and Half-Tom will find each other by the end of the book." And they did. Other parts of the plot seemed a little cliched as well: the identity of the priest's murderer, the way in which the blame was laid on the innocent non-murderer, the greedy, conniving and evil Sheriff of Notting- I mean... Norwich, who steals loyalties and tries to marry into more wealth.

A note about the language of the book: the author writes in a very descriptive language, however, it did not strike me as unique. The plot was entertaining enough to keep me reading, but I did not find myself thoroughly invested in the settings or the characters. In other words, the picture painted by the language of the book did not draw me into the story, but allowed me to stand outside and observe with interest.

All in all, I would recommend this book to adults with an interest in life in the fourteenth century and historical events involving the church and politics, as well as someone seeking a thought provoking discussion on what it means to have a meaningful religious life.