This post was most recently updated on September 16th, 2024
What They Said About Luisa by Erika Rummel
Publisher: Dundurn Press (June 18, 2024)
Category: Historical Fiction, African American Historical Fiction, Women’s Literature
Tour Dates September 10-October 3, 2024
ISBN: 978-1459752771
Available in Print and ebook, 306 pages
Description What They Said About Luisa by Erika Rummel
An enchanting telling of the complex and fascinating life of real-life Luisa Abrego of Seville, who forges a new life after freedom from slavery in colonial Mexico and gets caught in the far-reaching Spanish Inquisition.
Luisa Abrego, a slave in Seville, is set free upon her master’s death and marries a white man. After boarding Luisa’s illegitimate child with the nuns of St. Clare, the couple sets out for Mexico. There Luisa is accused of bigamy and tried in the court of the Inquisition.
The narratives here are not Luisa’s own. They are those of witnesses who encountered her: housewives, nuns, miners, lawyers, inquisitors. These are European voices, in whose accounts, a fractured portrait of a fascinating and complex woman emerges, like glimpses of a figure moving past a mirror.
Based on 16th century trial records of the real Luisa, this novel is not just one woman’s life in fragments, but a carefully researched imagining, told in vivid, distinct voices, of how the Inquisition affected the Spanish colonies.
Praise For What They Said About Luisa by Erika Rummel
Bookbub: listed among 10 best historical fiction books of 2024
“A deep dive into 16th century Spain and Mexico, during the dangerous times of the Spanish Inquisition, superbly crafted by an experienced historical novelist. A must read.”-Pam Royl, author of The Last Secret
“Rummel’s whole novel is marvellous, full of wisdom, learning, and insight.”-Jonathan Locke Hart, historian, literary scholar, and poet
“a captivating and meticulously researched historical novel that offers a vivid and compelling portrayal of the life of Luisa Abrego, an emancipated woman who forges a new future for herself in colonial Mexico. an intriguing subject and narrative approach, making it a literary masterpiece that deserves to be cherished and experienced. Rummel’s storytelling is both enchanting and thought-provoking, as she weaves a complex and fascinating tale of Luisa’s life, from her emancipation in Seville to her journey to colonial Mexico. The author’s attention to historical detail and her carefully researched imagining of Luisa’s life bring the sixteenth-century setting to life, offering readers a rich and immersive reading experience.”-Trishita Das, GluedToBook
“Overall, this was a very enjoyable read. The characters are wonderfully flushed out and realized, and the history in it is vivid and ever-present. I would highly recommend this book.”- Colleen Earle, Goodreads
“an illuminating novel of historical fiction set in Seville, Spain during the 16th century and the Spanish Inquisition. Refreshing. Brilliantly told from multiple perspectives.”-Dizzy, Goodreads
About Erika Rummel
Award winning author, Erika Rummel is the author of more than a dozen non-fiction books and ten novels. Her tenth novel, ‘’What They Said About Luisa’ was published on June 18, 2024..
She won the Random House Creative Writing Award (2011) for a chapter from ‘The Effects of Isolation on the Brain’ and The Colorado Independent Publishers’ Association’ Award for Best Historical Novel, in 2018. She is the recipient of a Getty Fellowship and the Killam Award.
Erika grew up in Vienna, emigrated to Canada and obtained a PhD from the University of Toronto. She taught at Wilfrid Laurier and U of Toronto. She divides her time between Toronto and Los Angeles and has lived in Argentina, Romania, and Bulgaria.
Erika’s Website: http://www.erikarummel.com/
Erika’s Blog: http://rummelsincrediblestories.blogspot.ca/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/historycracks
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/erikarummelauthor
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Giveaway What They Said About Luisa by Erika Rummel
This giveaway is for 1 print copy or 1 pdf copy. Print is open to the U.S. only. eBook is open worldwide. This giveaway ends on October 3, 2024 midnight, pacific time. Entries accepted via Rafflecopter only.
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