Unable to finish this novel, or get started so DNF. I could not connect at all with the opening. The viewpoint character was too unhappy and though I just finished a novel with multiple, rotating povs, I could not get into this one. The writing is good, don't get me wrong, the story just never caught at me.

What They Said About Luisa by Erika Rummel. I had zero knowledge of this going into it but Luisa Abrego was a real slave who was freed and then married a white man. She was then done for bigamy but this is the story of her told by everyone around her and it started well. I was really into the different characters telling her story and then it got to the middle and the inquisitor man was just so boring. The concept is brilliant and I would like more historical fiction done the same way but I think this was a bit of a let down with some chapters being so good and some not. My take away from this is don’t get married.

This is the true story of Luisa Abrego, a mixed race woman living in the 16th century. She was enslaved and impregnated by her master, and after gaining her freedom, sailed to Mexico with her husband.

This is Luisa’s story. But it’s also the story of the people around her, and the impression she made on them. It’s a story where Luisa is the main character, however, the reader’s view of her is formed through the voices of others. This isn’t so much Luisa’s story, more so a snapshot of different characters in her world who engage with her in some way.

Rummel describes at the start of her novel the choice to write like this - to show what white people thought of Luisa and the lack of understanding of other “cultures and times”. It feels a bold move away from the traditional format of novels. The concept is great, and I really respect Rummel’s approach to this.

Through the different character’s perspectives, we discover life in 17th century Spain and Mexico, the clashes between classes and races, and the influence of the Spanish Inquisition.

This was a very enjoyable, clever and thoughtful read. The style takes some getting used too but the novel feels richer for it.

I found this book interesting, but I can't say I enjoyed it. I know the intention was to tell Luisa's story from others' perspectives, but in the end that didn't work for me. It was hard t connect to her and therefore care about her story so far removed from her perspective. The style did highlight the lack of control that she had over much of her life, and the general lack of control women would have had then, so I understand what the author was trying to do, but it made it hard to really love the book. The story was interesting and the writing was good, so I did finish it.

This is a great concept, but I wish I could have read more from Luisa's perspective. I understand that the story would mainly be told from other people's perspectives, but it would have been good to get her perspective. I can read nonfiction history for other people's perspectives. I want to be transported into the mind of the person the book is about.

Say her name: Luisa Abrego. Her life in her own words would have never been recorded simply because she was a woman, a former slave (possibly of Arab, Moroccan descent), and a victim of the 16th-century patriarchy - mired in religious persecution and misogyny. She is voiceless in this novel. We learn snippets of her life’s events from the lens of those who knew her: a former mistress/owner (whose husband sexually molested and abused Luisa from puberty), an aging parish priest who rehomed her infant son, officiated her marriage to a sailor – leaving Seville for a life in Mexico, a ship’s Captain, her husband, and nephew/son. She was attractive - both men and women commented on her beauty. She was quiet with expressive eyes; she was skilled and possessed strong business acumen evidenced by her operating a successful candle shop. She was a pious, meditative industrious woman who experienced so much loss and persecution.

I loved the author’s presentation of the environment and inclusion of the historical facts of the era It included societal views on slavery and The Trade, women (and their roles/place), and the church’s grift, torture, exploitation (and extortion = money grab) during The Inquisition. Although only a mere glimpse of her life is briefly documented, the author’s imagination gives us plausibility into a life redeemed where she overcomes adversity and hardship to obtain some semblance of happiness.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher, Dundurn Press, for the opportunity to read in exchange for an honest review.

I’ve dnfed this one at 35% - it’s a good premise, and I did like the idea of each chapter being someone else’s perspective and experience of Luisa, but the writing didn’t engage me very much and it felt that very little was happening

This was an interesting novel. It was inspired by a true story and follows a woman in the 1500s, but only through the eyes of the people around her. We never hear her own voice. I thought this was such a good concept and the execution was good, even if the narrative did not always grab me.

By using various people around her as the narrators, Luisa never quite develops into a fully formed person. We only see her as others see her and through her actions and words. This was definitely a novel way to tell someone’s story, but I am not quite sure it fully worked for me. Because of this, the reader is kept at a distance from her as well. Maybe that is where the strength of the novel lies, but I think I prefer being more in the head of characters.

My conclusion is that this is really a story told well and in an interesting way, but that I prefer a more intimate narrative, where I feel more connected to the main character. Still, the writing was good and I would recommend this as an interesting portrait of a person and a time period.

What They Said About Luisa by Erika Rummel
Pub date: June 18th, 2024

The story is told from the perspective of multiple characters. They all talk about Luisa Abrego, a half caste enslaved woman who, after she was set free, got married with a white man and sailed from Seville to New Spain (Mexico). Years after, she confessed her bigamy, but in fact, she was only married to one man but the old laws were dictated so different in that time.

Luisa is the main character, and we can learn from her through diverse perspectives. All the characters see Luisa in a different way and had met her in different circumstances.

The novel is very rich in history, presenting Colonial Mexico, and portraying the system of castes, the kind of punishments during the Inquisition, and the life in Zacatecas during that period with its mines and the natives of the place.

The polyperspectivity was good, but some narrators were stronger than others, and there were some slow parts, but it was also enlightening because of all the historical context provided, and I enjoyed learning from it.

Thank you, Dundurn Press and Netgalley, for the digital ARC.

What they said about Luisa is interesting historical fiction based on the real-life story of a Spanish woman Luisa Abrego. Luisa was a mulatto slave in Spain of the 1500's. She was later freed by her master and tried to make a life for herself first in Seville then in Mexico. This is the story of her journey and struggles. I suggest going into the book without reading too much about the story. I love the structure of the book - its told in a number of voices of people who encountered Luisa during the period. In doing so it gives an interesting perspective into life in Seville as well as Mexico of the time. Christianity was at its peak, the Church all powerful and the dreaded Inquisition in full force. You also learn about the difficulties and dangers of trans-Atlantic crossings, the conflict between the new settlers and the Indigenous People and the machinations of the mining industry in Mexico. The author has done a lot of research into all these aspects. I would have loved to know what happens after the current story ends and hopefully there may be a sequel. Overall, an entertaining, quick and easy read

Looovee the authors note before the start of the novel explaining why she chose to write the story and in this way! Author is a retired history professor specialist in this time period, which I love to see in historical fiction because their passion always comes through.

Story is told through the people who knew Luisa (or had contact with her rather). Not much is known about this real life woman, especially after her trial in colonial Mexico, so this was a unique way to bring her back to life during the aftermath. The book was really engaging and I enjoyed reading the different perspectives! Although we never hear from Luisa and I felt like we didn’t get enough time to connect to her or any other characters. The POVs paint different pictures of Luisa in a “gossip” style of storytelling so you as the reader can infer the truth vs bias held about Luisa.

The chapters are long and every one is from a different character’s POV, some of them were better than others. I hated Pedro’s chapter the most because he’s such a dick and a lot of his chapter was repeating everything that happened in the previous chapter.

I liked some characters more than others, for example I really enjoyed the chapter from Alonso’s POV (he worked for the Inquisition tribunal) he was really complex and had some thought provoking sentiments. I also liked Juan Diaz because his chapters painted a very well thought out setting/background info for Colonial Mexico (also he just seems cool)!

I felt like I got to know this time period and how people lived their lives in general. However I wish we heard from Luisa at least once. From the title and synopsis I understand not hearing from her and it’s a unique way to write a historical novel but it felt like Luisa was silenced in history and then once again silenced through the novel. Overall I enjoyed the book and will be interested in reading more from the author but I didn’t love it.

This is the story of Luisa Abrego, a quiet woman who actually lived in the 1500s and was tried by the Inquisition. The narrative is unusual but effective. The story takes place in Spain, Mexico, and the perilous Atlantic voyage to and from Mexico. The author, Erika Rummel, has researched documents relating to Luisa's trial and life and conditions in Spain and Mexico in the 1500s, a time rarely addressed in historical fiction. Luisa was of mixed black/white race (mulatto), resulting in her being a slave. Racism, class standing, the low status of women, intolerance, and religion all play a part in the story.

It is told through the various perspectives of assorted people who encountered Luisa over the years, but we never learn of Luisa's view. Among the voices of those who formed opinions of the quiet and elusive Luisa are the bitter thoughts of her slave master's widow, a kindly priest, an abbess, a miner, a ship's captain, a representative of the Inquisition and others she meets during her life journey. Although her voice remains absent in the storytelling, we build up our own impressions and empathy for her during a time of great prejudice, class distinctions, and religious intolerance.

During this time, the Catholic Church reigned supreme with its spies informing on those suspected of heresy. The past sales of indulgences, where people paid sums of money for their sins to be forgiven, fees to have a child gently cared for in one of their orphanages, and the confiscation of wealth and land by Inquisition victims greatly enriched the power and wealth of the Church. The author mentions a strange rule that an engagement with a witness was classified as a legitimate marriage.

Luisa was impregnated by her slave master, who gave her her freedom and a sum of money in his will. She found employment helping an elderly couple in their modest home while caring for her baby. She then dated a local apothecary's helper who asked Luisa to marry him. He jilted her and married someone else. Next, a sailor, Jorge, proposed marriage. He was going to Mexico to mine silver and asked her to accompany him if she could afford her own passage with some leftover funds. Her child was too young to make the dangerous journey, so she paid to leave him in the gentle care of nuns.

Once the ship docked in Mexico, they travelled to their destination as a married couple. On the journey, the group was attacked by indigenous warriors. Luisa was grabbed by one of the natives and displayed her determination to live freely by bravely stabbing her captor to death. She was rewarded by the warrior's horse for her efforts and heroism. The fact that she killed another human weighed heavily on her conscience, along with the law she committed bigamy when accepting a marriage proposal, even when jilted.

Her husband Jorge was believed killed in a mine cave-in but severely wounded and near death. Luisa's son was faring poorly in the orphanage. He had been put in the care of an insane nun and later sold to a cruel landowner. Luisa returns to Spain, now believing she is a widow, and turns herself into the Inquisition for the sin of bigamy, with the murder of the native weighing heavily on her mind. Her prime objective is to retrieve her son, who is now back in the orphanage. She has established a small business.

The story ends with a lot of hope for the future. Thanks to Netgalley and Dundurn Press for this compelling story, informative and well-researched, in return for an honest review. The publication date is set for June 18. 4.5 Stars!

In a short note at the beginning of Erika Rummel’s fascinating novel, What They Said About Luisa, the author explains the historical inspiration for the book. Luisa de Abrego, a formerly enslaved woman from Seville, had the first known Christian marriage in the New World. She married Miguel Rodríguez in St. Augustine, in what is now Florida, in 1565. Ten years later, however, de Abrego accused herself of bigamy before the Inquisition in Mexico City. This article from ABC Sevilla, in Spanish, has images of de Abrego’s marriage certificate and trial documents. These documents are the only way we know about Luisa de Abrego. Without them, we wouldn’t know her name, of her enslavement, and of her journey across the Atlantic Ocean to Florida and Mexico. Because there is so little documentation about de Abrego herself, Rummel explains that if we want to know what her life was like, we would have to piece it together based on the better-documented attitudes of people who would’ve left more trace on the historical record: the rich, the privileged, the male, the white. Rummel takes that premise and runs with it.

We see Luisa’s story through a glass darkened by prejudice, lust, avarice…honestly, through quite a few of the seven deadlies. From the wife of the man who enslaved Luisa, Doña Ana, we learn that Luisa was manumitted and given a generous inheritance. We also learn just how furious Doña Ana is that her husband seemed to care more for the welfare of an enslaved woman than his own family. Doña Ana believes there has to be some kind of trick. From Don Fransisco and Captain Juan Diaz, we see how Luisa came to travel across the ocean to Mexico and what she had to leave behind. Alonso de Herrera, a lawyer who reluctantly works for the Inquisition, untangles the legal and church laws Luisa is caught up in. Other characters share their perspectives: a landowner who squeezes every drop of profit from the land and people of Zacatecas, a dying priest who tried to do right by Luisa, a nun who definitely did not try to do right by Luisa. What They Said About Luisa is an incredibly rich book because we learn not just what the title promises but also what they reveal about themselves.

The only thing that marred my experience of What They Said About Luisa was the abrupt shift in the last quarter to the incredibly strange and brutal experience of the child Luisa left behind in Spain when she traveled to Mexico. The abrupt change of focus from the stories of Luisa and the people who knew her makes this last section feel like an extended coda rather than an integral part of the whole novel. Even this I might have been able to roll with but the boy’s life is so packed with the bizarre that it read like a sprint through early Gothic literature. There might be reasons for this section’s inclusion but, for me, this quarter erased a lot of what I was thinking and feeling for Luisa with a large, “Huh?”

In this complex multiple perspective novel, readers travel to sixteenth century Spain and Mexico to uncover the true life of Luisa Abrego, an enslaved woman living in Seville. Based on a true sixteenth-century trial and historical documents from the real Luisa’s trial, readers explore the complexity of sixteenth century racial hierarchies, the roles of Catholicism and the Inquisition in private life (especially when it comes to marriage), and the politics of empire and colonialism as experienced by women and enslaved people. Each chapter, told by a different character who witnessed some aspect of Luisa’s trial, gives readers a new insight into this trial and makes the entire situation (and thus the entire novel) even more complex. As the story unfolds and more elements get introduced, readers gain a greater understanding of the complex social systems and matrices of power that Luisa interacts with in the sixteenth-century Spanish empire. Full of complex characters and a wonderfully detailed historical and narrative background, Rummel’s novel is really immersive and complex with its exploration of sixteenth century history in such a vibrant narrative. The characters and multiple perspectives do not overwhelm the reader, instead adding to the depth and complexity of setting and narrative detail Rummel creates in this novel.

What They Said About Luisa immediately peaked my interest when I heard about it.⁣⁣ A true story of an emancipated slave claiming her livelihood and (ultimately) thriving? Yes, please!
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Set in Seville and Mexico during the Spanish Inquisition, this story told of the life of Luisa Abrego. We see the beginnings of her story as a slave deeply taken advantage of by her master, her resulting emancipation and a series of tragedies that shape her life and those around her. ⁣⁣She bravely forges a life for herself despite obstacles at every turn, including some that are frustratingly self-inflicted.
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The twist? We literally read this book as a series of POV’s of the people surrounding Luisa; 𝘸𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘴𝘢𝘪𝘥 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘓𝘶𝘪𝘴𝘢. In some ways, I did feel like this was a clever way to give a different perspective than the standard hist fic. Mostly, though, I felt as though the “gossipy” style made it hard to connect with the characters, especially Luisa. It also wasn’t lost on me that she was silenced both by her circumstances and also by the way the book was written.⁣⁣
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There were a number of things that were almost there in this novel. I give the author a lot of credit for a unique idea and for her incredibly descriptive writing. On the whole, though? I liked this novel, but couldn’t find a way to love it. ⁣
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I received this book through @netgalley . All opinions are my own.

Based on a true story, this was an enthralling read about a woman named Luisa from everyone’s point of view except her own. This is a story of human triumph over adversity and explores the question of what makes a person who they are. The well-meaning few truly give hope to humanity throughout the story. Various points of view, not only in regard to Luisa, but also to the time period as well, added beneficial dimension to a traditional historical fiction novel. While telling Luisa’s story, insight was presented into the Spanish Inquisition, enticing the reader to inquire further about the topic. A duel setting between both Spain and Mexico highlighted the cultural diversity, as well as racial strife and religious corruption in the 1500s. This was a daring format to write a book but it was very engaging. What They Said About Luisa would be a good fit for readers looking for a highly emotional book taking place during the Spanish Inquisition.

What They Said About Louisa, is exactly that. A collection of impressions and interactions from chosen people from Louisa’s life.

The book begins in Spain when Louisa is sixteen. She is a black slave who has become pregnant by her master. Upon his death he grants her her freedom. But how is she to care for herself and her child? She happens to meet a white man who proposes marriage to her. He wants a helpmate to go with him to Mexico while he starts up a silver mining business. She agrees but has to leave her son behind.

The book is interesting in that Louisa is never given a voice. Everything I learned about Louisa was all from each persons bias, ignorance or brief knowledge of her. One thing that was hard for me to get used to was that each person seemed to have a similar voice. I imagine that this is because it’s the same author but it felt a bit unrealistic.

So many tragic things happened to the people in this book. I was wondering when anyone would get a break! But I guess that during the inquisition nobody is going to be let off the hook!

I have never read about this era. I was surprised at the strange rules of the Catholic Church. The fact that they set up a whole system of spies to police people and get them to report their neighbors was scary. Kind of like the communists but with sins?!

Because Louisa was black, she was ostracized in Spain. I thought it would be better in Mexico but it was just the same. Most people in the community looked upon her as a slovenly, half-breed slave. Because she was very beautiful but quiet they decided she was a tease and a whore. Poor Louisa!

I wish I could have heard Louisa’s side of the story but the book is based on paperwork from the trial of the real Louisa.

I thought the book was interesting and gave it a 3.5 rounded up.

Trigger warnings: sex, child abuse, lewd acts, racism and misogyny.

Many thanks to Erika Rummel and Dundrun press for the ARC via NetGalley!!

16th Century Spanish raciat & bigotry culture, with each chapter providing a different insight of Louisa Abrego's explotative experiences of after slavery and her life before and after.

The style & presentation 'shows you', rather than let you feel & develop your oen understanding of Louisa's perspective, which means it is hard to tell who she really was...was this the author's intention? It apprars as a well researched account based upon 16th Century Trial transcipts, but appreciate a more well developed character personal perspective.

Thanks to Dundurn Press and Netgalley for giving me early access to this book for a review in return.

When I saw this book I was really fascinated by it. The cover is great and the synopsis sounded really interesting, I was so excited that I got approved to read it. This book was even better than I expected.

This book follows the life of Luisa Abrego. Once a slave who was impregnated by her master, who then marries a white man and moves to Mexico. While in Mexico she has a run in with the Spanish Inquisition, before returning back to Spain. The book is exquisitely written and researched, and is based on the 16th century trial records of the real Luisa.

The strength of this book comes from how it is told. Although Luisa is the titular character, she does not have her own perspective. It is all outside accounts of her life and the impact that she has on others. This was not what I expected going into the novel and during the first few chapters I was skeptical, but as I got further into the novel, and as more characters were introduced, I fell in love.

There is an obvious weakness with this method of storytelling, and that is that we never hear from Luisa. She is, mostly, a silent character. She is described as shy and quiet, and often doesn't speak.; That means that there is very little dialogue with her, so that it is really difficult to tell who she really is. If I could change one thing about the novel, it would be that the afterward would take place from Luisa's perspective.

The best part about this book is how unique all the different voices are. The author does a wonderful job at creating all these full and actualized characters who have distinct voices. I was really impressed that while I was reading it I could hear such distinct voices in my head for each of the characters. It takes a lot of skill to write this way.

Overall this was a very enjoyable read. The characters are wonderfully flushed out and realized, and the history in it is vivid and ever-present. I would highly recommend this book.

Really enjoyed the pace and writing style of the book which also provided better understanding of the situation in the world in the sixteen century. Slavery, the power of church, inquisition, lives of different people from different parts of the society, all these things were interestingly presented by Erika Rummel, a master storyteller and historian. Great story, very attractive from the beginning to the end .