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Published Apr 2016
496 pages
Genre: Historical Fiction
Publication Information
I must write this account, and when I have finished, I will burn it.
Buried deep within the archives of a convent in medieval France is an untold story of love, loss, and wonder and the two girls at the heart of it all.
Dolssa is an upper-crust city girl with a secret lover and an uncanny gift. Branded a heretic, she's on the run from the friar who condemned her mother to death by fire, and wants Dolssa executed, too.
Botille is a matchmaker and a tavern-keeper, struggling to keep herself and her sisters on the right side of the law in their seaside town of Bajas.
When their lives collide by a dark riverside, Botille rescues a dying Dolssa and conceals her in the tavern, where an unlikely friendship blooms. Aided by her sisters and Symo, her surly but loyal neighbor, Botille nurses Dolssa back to health and hides her from her pursuers. But all of Botille's tricks, tales, and cleverness can't protect them forever, and when the full wrath of the Church bears down upon Bajas, Dolssa's passion and Botille's good intentions could destroy the entire village.
From the author of the award-winning All the Truth That's in Me comes a spellbinding thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat until the final page and make you wonder if miracles really are possible.
"Starred Review. Love, faith, violence, and power intertwine in Berry's lyrical writing, but Botille's and Dolssa's indomitable spirits are the heart of her story. Ages 12+." - Publishers Weekly
"Starred Review. Readers will be transported into Dolssa and Botille's world. An expertly crafted piece of historical fiction." - School Library Journal
"Starred Review. Irresistibly compelling…[Berry conveys] complex historical and religious matters fluently and accessibly for today's readers." - Horn Book
"The slow build reveals...a compelling, admirable young woman in a gorgeously built world that accepts miracles without question... Immersive and mesmerizing." - Kirkus
"A beautiful and timeless tale of family and loyalty, friendship and devotion." - Mette Ivie Harrison, author of New York Times Notable Book The Bishop's Wife
"Powerful and heartbreaking, The Passion of Dolssa shows us that the voices of dissent can only be silenced for so long. Their echoes carry down the centuries, sounding warnings for our own time. Julie Berry writes the past as if she lived it." - Jennifer Donnelly, New York Times bestselling author of These Shallow Graves
"Julie Berry's sweeping tapestry of friendship and belief is both epic and intimate, both sweet and painful." - Elizabeth Wein, author of Code Name Verity and Rose Under Fire
"Two unique girls, thrown together in a time of change and danger. One transcendent reading experience." - Nancy Werlin, National Book Award honoree and New York Times bestseller
This information about The Passion of Dolssa was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Julie Berry grew up in western New York. She holds a BS from Rensselaer in communication and an MFA from Vermont College in Writing for Children and Young Adults. She now lives in southern California with her husband and four sons. All the Truth That's in Me (September 2013, Viking) was Julie's first young adult novel. It earned five starred reviews and garnered widespread critical praise. It was nominated for the Edgar Award for Young Adult Mystery, and shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal (UK), and was the recipient of the 2014 Silver Inky award, the Whitney Award for YA, and the Westchester Fiction Prize. Julie is also the author of seven other critically acclaimed titles for young readers. Her works appear in international versions worldwide. Prior to becoming an author, she worked in software sales and marketing. Find her online at www.julieberrybooks.com, or on Twitter at @julieberrybooks.
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