The Maid A Novel of Joan of Arc (Hardcover)

From the Publisher: A contributing editor to Marie Claire presents a debut novel that reimagines the life of the historical martyr against a backdrop of the Hundred Years' War and traces her violence-marked childhood and fateful effort to save her country. (historical fiction). Joan of Arc was the girl who led an army . . . the peasant who crowned a king . . . the maid who became a legend . . . In the 15th century, the tumultuous Hundred Years War rages on. English soldiers tear through the countryside destroying all who cross their path, and Charles VII, the uncrowned king, has neither the strength nor the will to rally his army. But in the quiet of her parents' garden in Domremy, a peasant girl sees a spangle of light and hears a powerful voice speak her name. The story of Joan of Arc, the visionary and saint who believed she had been chosen by God to lead an army and save her country, has captivated our imagination for centuries. But the story of Jehanne, the girl whose sister was murdered by the English, who sought an escape from a violent father and a forced marriage, who taught herself to ride and fight, and who somehow found the courage and tenacity to persuade thousands to follow her, is at once thrilling, unexpected, and heartbreaking. Rich with unspoken love and battlefield valor, The Maid is a novel about the power and uncertainty of faith and the exhilarating and devastating consequences of fame.