The First Blast of the Trumpet (The Knox Trilogy, #1)

Hailes Castle, 1511. Midnight on a doom-laden Hallowe'en and Elisabeth Hepburn, feisty daughter of the Earl of Bothwell, makes a wish?to wed her lover, the poet David Lindsay. But her uncle has other plans. To safeguard the interests of the Hepburn family she is to become a nun and succeed her aunt as Prioress of St. Mary?s Abbey, Haddington. However, plunged into the political maelstrom and religious turmoil of the early Scottish Reformation, her life there is hardly one of quiet contemplation. Strong-willed and independent, she clashes with those who question her unorthodox regime at St. Mary?s, including Cardinal David Beaton and her rival, Sister Maryoth Hay. But her greatest struggle is against her thrawn godson, John Knox. Witnessing his rejection of the Roman Catholic Church?aided by David Lindsay?she despairs that the sins of her past may have contributed to his present disenchantment. As he purges himself from the puddle of papistry, Knox finds his voice, denouncing everything he once held dear, but will that include his godmother, Prioress Elisabeth? And by confessing her dark secrets, will Elisabeth steer Knox from the pernicious pull of Protestantism or drive him further down the fateful path he seems hell-bent on, a path that leads to burning at the stake? In a daring attempt to shed light on a wheen of unanswered questions about John Knox?s early, undocumented life, this novel throws up some startling claims and controversial conjectures. The First Blast of the Trumpet is book one of The Knox Trilogy. CAST OF CHARACTERS; FAMILY TREES; MAP; PART ONE; I Hallowe'en; II A Cursing; III The Wedding Feast; IV Annunciation; V Holy Orders; VI Matrimony; VII Education; VIII A Courting; IX Rumours of War; X Handfasting; XI Confrontation; XII The Miracle of the Flood; XIII Flodden; XIV Ordination; XV Birth; XVI Baptism; PART TWO; I Absolution; II Visitation; III Epiphany; IV Clishmaclaver; V Hunt the Gowk; VI Requiem; VII De Profundis; VIII Knight of Love; IX Auvergne; X The Papingo; XI Rivals; XII Prioress Elect; XIII Prioress Appointed; XIV Consecration; XV Last Rites; XVI The Miraculous Cure. XVII A Case of Courtly LovePART THREE; I The Complaint; II The Clerk's Play; III Resurrection; IV Purification; V Inquisition; VI Pride and Grace; VII Revelation; VIII Wantering Willie's Tale; IX Birdsong; X Extreme Unction; XI The Tragedy of the Papingo; XII Best Laid Schemes; XIII The Return of the King; XIV The Lollard Oath; PART FOUR; I Raggle Taggle Gypsy; II The Thirling of Bothwell; III The Royal Hunt; IV Twice-Marrit Lindsay; V The Pardoner's Tale; VI Ordeal by Fire; VII Dramatic Interlude; VIII Indictment; IX St. John's Vigil; X the Madness of King James; XI Widow Ker. XII The King is Dead: Long Live the QueenXIII The Queen's Suitors; PART FIVE; I The Abbot of Unreason; II Wise Heart; III The Sermon on the Tyne; IV Last Supper; V The Trial; VI Burnt Offering; VII Murder Most Foul; VIII Armistice; IX A Dolent Death; X Gethsemane; XI Nunraw; XII The Paraclete; XIII Black Saturday; XIV The Galley Slave; XV The Treaty of Haddington; XVI In the End is my Beginning; Author's Note; Acknowledgments. Hailes Castle, 1511. Midnight on a doom-laden Hallowe'en and Elisabeth Hepburn, feisty daughter of the Earl of Bothwell, makes a wish to wed her lover, the poet David Lindsay. But her uncle has other plans. To safeguard the interests of the Hepbum family she is to become a nun and succeed her aunt as Prioress of St. Mary's Abbey, Haddington. However, plunged into the political maelstrom and religious turmoil of the early Scottish Reformation, her life there is hardly one of quiet contemplation. Strong-willed and independent, she clashes with those who question her unorthodox regime at St. Mary's, including Cardinal David Beaton and her rival, Sister Maryoth Hay. But her greatest struggle is against her thrawn godson, John Knox. Witnessing his rejection of the Roman Catholic Church aided by David Lindsay she despairs that the sins of her past may have contributed to his present disenchantment. As he purges himself from the puddle of papistry, Knox finds his voice, denouncing everything he once held dear, but will that include his godmother, Prioress Elisabeth? And by confessing her dark secrets, will Elisabeth steer Knox from the pernicious pull of Protestantism or drive him further down the fateful path he seems hell-bent on; a path that leads to burning at the stake? In a daring attempt to shed light on a wheen of unanswered questions about John Knox's early, undocumented life, this novel throws up some startling claims and controversial conjectures. Book one of The Knox Trilogy.