The Familiar

The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo, 385 pages

Luzia is a servant in the home of a spiteful (but not particularly wealthy) mistress in 16th Century Madrid. While most of the world sees Luzia as the lowest of the low (she does sleep on the floor of the pantry, after all), Luzia has a secret up her sleeve: she can perform little miracles like mending tears in fabric and un-burning the bread. When her mistress finds out, she puts Luzia's abilities on display in the hopes of climbing the social ladder. But soon, Luzia's miracles have grabbed the attention of Antonio Perez, the disgraced former secretary of King Philip. Perez puts Luzia in a perilous competition against three other so-called miracle workers, pitting them against each other under the watchful eye of the Inquistion. Complicating things further is the titular familiar, Santangel, a mysterious man who has been tasked with helping hone Luzia's talents.

I loved the character of Luzia, a woman who is intelligent, talented, and ambitious well beyond the bounds of her station. The way this book unravels keeps the reader guessing at what will happen next, and it's never clear who Luzia can trust, if anyone, as her skills and power grow. An excellent, if somewhat dark, fantasy, set against an unexpected (but somehow perfect) backdrop. Highly recommended.

South of Sepharad

South of Sepharad by Eric Z. Weintraub, 334 pages

Vidal ha-Rofeh is a Jewish doctor in 1492 Granada when the Spanish conquerors sign the Alhambra Decree, giving all Jews within the city three months to either convert to Catholicism or leave Spain. If they don't do one or the other by the time this "grace period" is over, the penalty is death. Vidal's oldest daughter has already converted (she married a Catholic man that Vidal healed) and Vidal's wife wants to convert to stay with her and the home that's been in their family for generations. But Vidal thinks leaving is safer, and his family soon joins a caravan of 200 Grenadian Jews traveling to Fez, Morocco to resettle. The book follows both Vidal as he tries to balance his family life and work as a physician, as well as his daughter Catalina, who comes under the scrutiny of Inquisitors in Grenada.

There hasn't been a ton of fiction written about the Jewish expulsion from Spain, and I commend Weintraub for choosing the topic for his debut novel. It's interesting, and inspires me to learn more about this chapter of history. The characters are a bit two-dimensional, and the plot isn't quite believable at times, but I generally liked it.

This book will be published Feb. 20.