Pope Joan

"Pope Joan has all the elements one wants in a

historical drama—love, sex, violence, duplicity and

long-buried secrets."—Los Angeles Times

For a thousand years her existence has been denied—Pope Joan, the

woman who disguised herself as a man and rose to rule Christianity.

Now this compelling novel animates the legend with a portrait of

an unforgettable woman who struggles against restrictions her soul cannot

accept.

When her older brother dies in a Viking attack, the brilliant young Joan

assumes his identity and enters a Benedictine monastery where, as Brother

John Anglicus, she distinguishes herself as a scholar and healer. Eventually

drawn to Rome, she becomes enmeshed in a dangerous mix of powerful

passion and explosive politics that threatens her life even as it elevates her

to the highest throne in the Western world.

"Pope Joan brings the savage ninth century vividly to life in all its

alien richness. An enthralling, scholarly historical novel."

—REBECCA FRASER, author of The Brontës

"Exceptional historical fiction... Pope Joan brings to life

a most intriguing personality and reveals a talent

who should be heard from again soon."

—King Features Syndicate