The Quiet Light - well worth reading

I finished The Quiet Light by Louis de Wohl, an historical novel focusing on St. Thomas Aquinas and his times.

It was well worth reading.

Like all good historical fiction, it brought the time period in which it was set to life. In this case, it was the events surrounding the life of St. Thomas, including the Crusades, his family's opposition to his vocation, the ongoing war between Frederick II and the papacy, the latest heresies, and the pushback against the mendicant orders. As is the case in such novels, there is a mix of real and fictional characters, and, in this case, a little romance.

The book was well written. It kept my attention, and kept me interested in the characters and what might happen. It also got me checking some histories to find out more details and to see what parts of the story were indeed true and what parts fiction.

Quibbles: I wish there had been more of St. Thomas and his spirituality and ideas, and less of the romance. I was able to guess where many of the fictional parts of the story were going - though that might be just the reader/writer in me and my familiarity with the conventions of the genre.

Still, I recommend the book for lovers of historical - and religious - fiction. I know I will read more of de Wohl's books.

Pax et bonum