Set during the religious wars of the late 15th century, this is, at its heart, the story of a family. Don't worry if you haven't read the earlier books - there's enough backstory to appreciate the characters and the story. Know however that the initial pages might be a bit overwhelming in terms of the politics of the time but power through and you'll find yourself immersed in a complex, well plotted novel with vivid characters, especially in Minou. Minou and Piet, who converted from Catholicism, are living peacefully with their children Marta and Jean Jacques, her sister Alis, and their aunt when Piet makes the decision for the family to travel to Paris for the Royal Wedding which is meant to heal the rift between the churches. Unfortunately, just before they leave, Alis is shot-leaving her bed ridden. Things go wrong after the wedding and the family is caught up in the St Bartholomew's Massacre but is able to flee to Amsterdam. At the same time. Louis is plucked from an orphanage by Vidal, a former friend and now enemy of Piet. What does Vidal know about Piet's parentage? And why is it an issue? No spoilers from me. I love these characrters- not just Minous but also young Marta the magpie, the steadfast Cornelia, Louis, and so on. It's a great read that kept me guessing as to what would happen next (there are some tricky spots and twists). Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. There's an opening at the end for another installment, which I'm very much hoping for. Terrific read for fans of historical fiction.

While I was able to follow the plot and the history of the unsettled alliance between the Catholics and the Huguenots, readers will probably be more fully immersed in the story and the characters if the first book THE BURNING CHAMBERS is read before this one. Mosse was adept at bringing this story set in the late 1600’s to live and fleshing out all the intrigue murder, greed and religion that were important pieces of the story.

I stumbled over the lengthy historical note in the beginning of this book but once the narrative got going, I really enjoyed it. Minou and the other characters are interesting and their lives reflect the dramatic times. I did wonder whether it was accurate that the women in the story would have so much freedom and agency over their own lives. It seemed a little unlikely in the late 1500s, but overlooking that, I did like the strong and stubborn female characters. I got a little lost in the political battles in Amsterdam; it didn’t seem necessary to the overall story and was confusing. Overall, it was a fun read with a lush, GoT vibe to it. It is the second in a series, following The Burning Chambers, and will be released Jan. 19.

I loved that the book starts with a few pages of historical notes. It really set the scene and grabbed my interest. My favorite part of the book was the history surrounding the story.

The start of the story is in August 1572, when Minou Joubert and her husband Piet travel to Paris to attend a royal wedding in an attempt to unite Catholics and Huguenots. This is the second book in the trilogy and I think it was a true ‘middle book’, a bridge from the romance of the first book and a big cliffhanger ending to set up for book three

The characters were plenty and I found myself flipping to the handy cast of characters in the front of the book. I would have been lost without that reference.

This book was long, with some slow parts where the plot stalled out (like the preparation for the trip and the road trip chapters.)

I think readers who enjoy sweeping historical fiction epics will enjoy this book.

Another triumph for Kate Mosse!
You could read this book without reading The Burning Chambers and enjoy it but I would recommend you read both. Vidal is the villian in both but he isn't as cruel in this sequel so the reader won't get the full horror of who he is and why he plagues Minou and Piet.
This novel covers more history from a time when Catholics and Huegenots despised each other and fought to get control in France and Holland. The intimacy of the first book isn't quite realized in this one and there is a lot to be sad about. Many of the fantastic characters from the first one don't make it very far in the second. The new characters are charming, cunning and resilient and sometimes just plain annoying but that's what I love about them!
Kate Mosse once again weaves her tale through the backdrop of hatred and fear, stunning cities and thriving ports. I really enjoyed this and get the feeling there is a least one more to come.
Thank you Netgalley for the ARC. This is my honest review.

I am ashamed to admit this but I realize most of what I know about French history I have learned from Kate Mosse. I, of course, knew about Marie Antoinette and Lafayette, but that was about it. She has nailed yet another piece of history for me, the battle between the Huguenots and Catholics in 1572 for the throne of France. This starts with the wedding between principals of the two religions to join the crown of France as told by the Huguenot family of Minou Joubert.

The family comes from the provinces to witness the wedding. There is a 7 year old girl, a two year old boy, an aunt and the couple, Minou and Piet. The little girl is quite willful and takes off on her own to explore Paris. She gets caught up in a bloody battle that takes her uncle's life. She is taken in by a young boy and then taken by a Catholic and kept and raised. The family searches the streets but because of the battle cannot find her and must flee for their lives.

Thanks to friends they make their way to Amsterdam and safety. Their relationship cools because of their missing daughter. They have another daughter but things are never the same. Years later a friend tells them he thinks he has spotted the missing daughter now grown up. The couple make their way back to France and run into an old enemy. Their daughter is in danger and they must rescue her.

The story tells a great deal about the conflict between the Huguenots and the Catholics. It talks of the bloody conflicts over the religious issue. It was really quite interesting. Thanks to NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for a fair review.

Another totally immersive experience! Mosse yet again delivers a poignant and remarkable story in this continuation of the lives of Piet and Minou. Wonderfully descriptive narratives on both the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre and the Dutch Revolt. Enough of the back story that was written about in The Burning Chambers is dispersed throughout this new book so a reader won't necessarily feel lost if they jump right into this title. Plenty of action packed scenes, devious schemes, loss, and love make this a fast read.

This historical novel is well written with complex characters brought to life through compelling story telling and world building. There are times when, with the help of the author, you are so engrossed in the story that you can almost feel the cobbled streets beneath your feet.

While the story can sometimes feel dense as Mosse tells her tale because of the complexity of the events and their historical significance, overall the book is fascinating and in several places fast-paced and unputdownable. This is a family saga and history lesson all in one terrific story.

If you love historical novels, add this book to you must-read list. You need not have read the first book in the series, “The Burning Chambers,” but if you start with this book, you will undoubtedly want to pick up the first book soon.

My thanks to Minotaur and NetGalley for an eARC.

Kate Mosse is such an extraordinary writer that you turn page after page, never stopping to think that you have read 300 pages and still have another 300 pages to go before you find out what history has already taught you. This is another book that when I went to check my notes and highlights - there weren’t any. Speaks to how invested I was in each page. I believed I could remember all the names, the places, the vendettas and the myriad reasons for all the insanity. Power, who has it, who wants it, who will do anything to keep it, and who will risk all to wrench it away from the status quo.

It took less than ten pages to remember all that happened in “The Burning Chambers” and become reacquainted with Minou Joubert and Piet Reydon. Mosse’s skill in infusing her characters with realistic qualities of love, fear, selflessness, selfishness, prejudice and hate makes you care about the good and righteous and depise the powerful and depraved. The personal losses are so great there may be no coming back from their edge of the abyss.

Once again Mosse has dropped the reader into the bloody civil wars in France of the 16th Century. The Catholics are killing the Huguenots, the Duke of Guise is looking to cement his position and make the ultimate power grab. The Cardinals are corrupt, the Bishops do their bidding, the leaders are insane and the poor populace is about to be slaughtered.
The political situations created by Catherine De’ Medici, The Duke of Guise and Henri of Navarre make the politics of today look like absolute child’s play.

The ending, the ending, the ending, what next Ms Mosse? Thank you NetGalley and Minotaur Books for a copy

Kate Mosse takes you back to 1572 France and Amsterdam in her sequel to The Burning Chambers. A marriage has been arranged between the children of Catherine de Medici and Jeanne de Navarre to rebuild France after the religious wars between the Catholics and the Protestant Huguenots. Piet and his wife Minou have been invited and will travel with their family to Paris to witness the spectacle. It is during their stay that the St. Bartholomew’s Day massacre against the Protestants occurs. Their young daughter Marta, a child who is fiercely independent, chose to sneak out to see some of Paris on her own just as the Duke of Guise unleashed his forces on the city. Despite a desperate search for Marta, Piet and his family are forced to flee for their lives, leaving Marta behind. Unrest spreads through France and Piet and Minou are unable to return to their home. With help from the daughter of a merchant they settle in Amsterdam. Through it all, Piet believes that Marta is dead but Minou never gives up hope that they will be reunited.

Kate Mosse has written a story of romance, loss and intrigue. Minou’s fears for her family and her love for Piet make her a sympathetic character who is easy to love. Piet, who receives a letter written by his mother before her death, finally discovers the identity of his father. It is a revelation that could change his life. Mosse’s love of France and its’ history is evident in her descriptions of Paris and the conflicts, both political and religious, that occurred at the time. Her writing flows smoothly, making this an absorbing tale that is highly recommended for fans of historical fiction. I would like to thank NetGalley and St. Martin Press for providing this novel for my review.

This book is great! Would definitely recommend. Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

This book was artfully written and well-paced. I felt like I was in another place and time which is exactly the point of a historical fiction novel.

Sometimes light peeks through even in the darkest of times. In this case, love shown through during times of great tragedy - war.

This is considered "an epic" and I wholeheartedly agree. I highly recommend this book to all historical fiction fans! It's exceptional.

I was inspired to read The Burning Chambers to fill in the hole which the end of GOT left. Kate Mosse’s Burning Chambers series was the perfect answer and I am already hopefully anticipating the next. As a Catholic, these books have made me thankful I live in 2020 rather than during the war between the Catholics and Huguenots. I find relics fascinating and while I won’t share any spoilers, Vidal’s search for an important one kept me turning the pages as well. Kate Mosse is a scholar!

I review my books around five areas that I think are key in a book. They are Character, World, Plot, Writing Style, and Enjoyment.

Character: 3
- If I had to choose a favorite character from The City of Tears I would pick Piet. He is the main character's husband and one of the best characters in this book. My least favorite character was Marta, frankly a spoiled brat, and daughter of the main character and her husband. My next least favorite was Minou, the main character herself. I liked her quite well in the first book, but in this book, she made several choices that I felt were very immature for her. She purports herself as an independent and strong woman but lets the decisions of others decide how she will act. This just doesn't make any sense to me. So, unfortunately, there aren't a lot of redemptive characters in this book. For myself anyway.

World: 3.5
- Since I have read quite a few of Mosse's books I'm very in love with medieval France. The locations were much easier to follow in this book because they weren't obscurely French. In many of her other novels, the French terminology and locations are lost on me. But, while reading The City of Tears I didn't find the world to be distracting from the story. This made it easier to read.

Plot: 3
- This was something I struggled with throughout most of this book. There are three main sections in this book and they are all several years apart. So you will read one section and it will have its own plot and climax. Then you skip several years in the future and have another plot and climax and conclusion. It's the same for all three sections. So technically you are reading three different stories about the same group of people. It's a very interesting way to write a book. That said, there were a lot of "dry" sections. With not a lot happening with the plot or the characters. It took me a good month to get through this book.

Writing Style: 3.5
- I do enjoy Mosse's writing style. The character's language feels authentic. I don't know much about how people in medieval France spoke, but the way Mosse has written their dialogue and the way that they word things makes the story feel authentic. It was very easy to imagine wandering the streets of Paris or taking a horseback ride through the Midi.

Enjoyment: 3
- I will say that I enjoyed the beginning and the end of this book. The middle was not my favorite. There was only one thing that I was curious about and that is a relationship that springs up toward the end of the book. I don't want to say what it is because it would be spoilery, but it just didn't seem like it would have actually happened in the time period this book is set in.

Overall, The City of Tears got a 3.2/5 star rating from me. It was an ok book. It was long and there were some very boring bits, particularly in the middle. I enjoyed the writing style and of course medieval France, but other than that this book didn't really stand out to me. Oh, I should mention the "cliffhanger" ending. It didn't come as much of a surprise to me but it does set up for the final book in the trilogy.

This is the second book in the saga The Burning Chambers, that Kate Mosse wrote about important episodes in the history of France. The story of this book takes place during the 16th century in Europe where Minou Joubert, together with her family, attend a royal wedding in order to create an alliance between the Catholic Crown and the Huguenot king of Navarre. The religious war has lasted 10 years, people long to finally have peace in their respective countries. However, Vidal, the most controversial enemy, has other wishes, among them, to continue the search for a relic that would surely change the course of history. Minou will witness all these events and will have to be very cautious and resourceful in order to solve these problems that impede peace. This is a very entertaining story, Kate Mosse makes the reader feel immersed, she describes various historical elements that I found very interesting. It is difficult to narrate such a dense subject as a novel and I feel that the writer did a magnificent job. There are several characters so I recommend writing them down so that you can follow the thread of the story. If you are interested in learning more about European history, this is the perfect book. I thank NetGalley, St Martin's Press and Minotaur Books for providing me with a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

The author does a great job of portraying the woes of one family as they may have experienced during the Religious Wars of Europe. The family came across as authentic and the sufferings were deeply felt. However, I think it would have enlightened the reader if there had been a prologue included that reviewed the era. It would serve to remind the readers of Martin Luther and the Protestant movement and the split in the Catholic Church that led to the Religious Wars. I don't think it would detract from the story at all, but would add clarity at the very beginning.

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for this early copy!

Did not finish. I have come to realize after years of trying that I just do not connect with historical fiction.

Well written continuation of the story. The character development and world creation always pulls me into the story. The plot flows well and keeps the reader engaged. I look forward to more from Kate Mosse. I recommend this series to anyone that enjoys a good story no matter their genre preference.

Thank you Netgalley and publisher for the darc of this work in exchange for my honest review.

This book was received as an ARC from St. Martin's Press - Minotaur Books in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own. Thank you to the team at @minotaur_books and @katemossewriter

The incredible follow-up to #1 Sunday Times bestseller The Burning Chambers, Kate Mosse returns with The City of Tears, a sweeping historical epic about love in a time of war.

An amazing epic family saga, in August 1572, Minou Joubert, and her husband Piet travel to Paris to attend a royal wedding which, after a decade of religious wars, is intended to finally bring peace between the Catholics and the Huguenots. Sadly this doesn’t come to pass. When Mosse’s characters come vividly to life through these stunning pages. Having to endure the horrors of the St. Bartholomew’s Day massacre, which was a massacre of Huguenots. Who were members of the French Protestant minority thar were horribly attacked by Catholics.
With the devastating outcome Minou’s family will be scattered throughout as their enemy, Vidal is searching for a ancient relic.

This is a gripping book of reformation, with extensive meticulous research makes this one incredible historical fiction!

#cityoftears #katemosse #minotaurbooks #partner

This is the second novel in Kate Mosse's historical epic series, THE BURNING CHAMBERS, and I recommend readers begin with the first book if they want to understand the backstory. This book picks up several years after the first one left off, with Minou and Piet now as parents. Their daughter, Marta, is precocious and plays an important role in the book, so readers should not dismiss her because of her young age. The story is set during the time of the medieval religious wars in France, when the Catholics and Huguenots were battling to the death. Catherine de Medici's dysfunctional sons rule the country, but many historians would have you believe that she was the one pulling the strings in the royal household. Coincidentally, prior to reading this book I had just finished a Jean Plaidy book called EVERGREEN GALLANT, which dealt with this exact same time period, so I had a decent understanding of the players and the politics of this time period.

On the eve of St. Bartholomew's, when a bloody massacre occurs between the Catholics and the Huguenots, Minou's daughter Marta goes missing. Minou and her husband Piet have reason to believe that Marta is dead, and they flee from Paris to escape death. Since they fall on the protestant side of the church fence, they know that they aren't safe if they remain in France. But I'm not sure they were any safer in Amsterdam, where more religious wars are being fought.

This book reintroduces us to the villain from the previous novel, Vidal, and his son. Other reviews can better summarize the plot than I can, but let it suffice to say that if you like Dan Brown's books, you will probably like THE CITY OF TEARS. I was hoping for a greater emphasis on the history, but the book is more concerned with swashbuckling action and soap opera theatrics.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.