Product Description

Canterbury, 1235. Two monks, Wilfridus and the defrocked Brother Thomas, have been charged to look into the case of Cecilia, an enigmatic visionary, and to report on her alleged links with the heretical Cathar sect. The two monks are immediately beguiled by the grace and courtly bearing of Cecilia, and moved by the story she unfolds of her youth in the courts of Southern Germany - a tale of passion and loss, and the consolations of music and the contemplative life. But even as they begin to find themselves drawn to her, they uncover a web of intrigue and corruption, stretching to the highest levels of the Kingdom.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1684843 in Books
• Published on: 2001-12-06
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 352 pages

About the Author
T.J. Armstrong was born in Essex in 1957. His first novel, Walter and the Resurrection of G., won the Authors' Club Best First Novel of the Year Award.

Customer Reviews

A Visionary Book
It is rare these days to read a book that inspires one to further investigate the topics and historical period that it deals with - Cecilia's Vision is such a book. Packed with murder, intrigue, and heresy, it is a brilliant evocation of a lost age, cunningly entwined with a palpable sense of mystery.

The characters are as rich as the mercurial storyline itself; and most importantly it is an enjoyable read!

Mystical Mystery
Having read "Walter and the Resurrection of G" by Tim Armstrong, I was eagerly awaiting another book by him - and was not disappointed. In a sense this book is a sequel to his first as the protaganist of the first, Walter von der Ouwe makes an appearance. But what actually happens is a parallel of the first book, as Cecilia's story is told from her perspective.

One of the things that is so impressive is that this book is obviously written by a story-teller with real and working knowledge of the history and culture of the time in which it is set (12th century Germany and England); but this knowledge is used to colour the narrative, rather than being allowed to dominate. Therefore a real ambience is created in which one believes, rather than being forced to worship at the altar of the author's cleverness. However, it probably helps if you have a little understanding of Qabbalah, Jewish mysticism and mediaeval theology and monasticism.

Most of all, this is a mystery, and I found myself totally absorbed in the book by the story, involved with the characters (which are very sympathetically drawn out for us) and carried through the currents and under-currents of the narrative by the skill and beauty of the prose.

Couldn't really recommend it any more if I tried.

A first class mediaeval yarn with a gripping plotline
Completely enthralling book that takes you into mediaeval Canterbury, the Templars and dirty deeds. The plot is complex but completely convincing and full of colourful characters and historical detail. The story races along. I can't understand why this book is not more widely known.