Thief of Souls (Hardcover)

Reading this the two heroines are not as dissimiliar as one may expect. Lany Dunbar though not specifically stated has some very classic christian values to her character. Mere Guillemette le Drappiere, while a respected nun and confidante/aide to the bishop of Nantes was not always a nunm and has some very pragmatic and secular values leftover before her life of service. One thing both ladies have in common is their passion to solve the mysterious disappearances of young children.

As I said in title of review this book is very good, Benson seamlessly parallels the eras the action of her novel is set in. She writes with a meticulate attention to her chief characters' motives and humanity.

There is only a couple flaws that bugged me very slightly as I read this book but I feel they are worth mentioning for the integrity of this review. 1) One reason I read this is the back blurb sounded really interesting setting half the novel in 1440 Nantes around "Bluebeard's" or Lord Giles de Rais's crimes hooked my jaded attention span. However while Benson gave equal "screen" teehee book i mean time to 1440 Nantes, I felt she could have characterized de Rais a little deeper. Until his trial he was like a phantasm mists of a character(perhaps intentional to further the plot), but if he is a draw to readers like myself I felt I would have liked to get inside his head more so to speak. 2.) This novel is probably longer than it could/should be, again another confession I skimmed about a hundred of the 600+ pages, because although it was entertaining and enjoyable it wasn't Great enough for me to self-justify reading every single word in the massive text.
Everyone's taste is different and this is the reason I can consciously recommend this title to others. While I felt it was long and dragged a little for readers of Benson, and readers that enjoy historical/contemporary fiction this could be the title you are looking for.:)

There are just some things that I am uncomfortable with. Benson writes extremely well, and does her research. The other books were about the Black Plague and new, emerging diseases. I did not expect to find myself involved in a historical atrocity.I get enough of that from my research and writing on the killing of the deaf and disabled during Nazi Germany!

Like I said, I did not finish the book. I realize Benson needed a new subject matter linking history and current happenings, and that some of the information was from historical transcripts...but it was way too morbid and disgusting for me. I pitched the book in the garbage. Some will disagree with me and that's fine. I don't want to waste my time on something like this that is extremely upsetting to me as a mother and a grandmother.

Karen Sadler

Like THE PLAGUE TALES, THIEF OF SOULS is set in both the past and present, centering on two strong, determined women working hard to solve their own current-day mysteries of missing children.

The different voice Benson uses in her past and present scenes is smoothly transitioned so the reader is never left wondering where s/he is. The foreshadowing is a little heavy-handed, however Benson makes you really care for her characters and the outcome to each story.

If you've read THE PLAGUE TALES and THE BURNING ROAD (which I did), I strongly suggest adding THIEF OF SOULS to your Ann Benson collection. You won't be disappointed.