The Familiar
The richly imagined, spellbinding new Sunday Times bestselling novel from the author of Ninth House
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3.9 • 36 Ratings
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- $15.99
Publisher Description
AN INSTANT SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER
‘A richly imagined, intricate tale of magic and intrigue’ DEBORAH HARKNESS, #1 bestselling author of A Discovery of Witches
‘Riveting… Leigh Bardugo's characters are so three dimensional you want to reach through the page’ DIANA GABALDON, #1 bestselling author of Outlander
‘A wonderful, transporting ride through history… a deeply romantic novel’ KATHERINE ARDEN, bestselling author of The Bear and The Nightingale
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FATE CAN BE CHANGED.
CURSES CAN BE BROKEN.
In a shabby house in the new capital of Madrid, Luzia Cotado uses scraps of magic to get through her days of endless toil. But when her scheming mistress discovers her scullion is hiding a talent for little miracles, she demands Luzia use those gifts to win over the royal court.
Determined to seize this chance to better her fortunes, Luzia plunges into a world of power-hungry nobility, desperate kings, holy men and seers, where the lines between magic, science and fraud blur. With the pyres of the Inquisition burning, she must use every bit of her wit and resilience to win fame and hide the truth of her ancestry – even if that means enlisting the help of an embittered immortal familiar, whose own secrets could cost her everything.
From the Sunday Times bestselling author comes a bewitching novel, brimming with peril in a world where a woman’s ambition can prove deadly.
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PRAISE FOR LEIGH BARDUGO'S BOOKS
‘Reading Bardugo is an immersive, sensual experience... One can’t help sinking into Luzia and Santángel’s world and wishing never to leave’ THE NEW YORK TIMES
‘A compelling, well-researched and vividly written tale of magic and desire’
THE GUARDIAN
‘The Familiar feels distinct from similar tales ? including Bardugo’s own ? because it explores a brutal and shameful real-life history... Bardugo brilliantly explores the wavy line between the supernatural and the divine’
WASHINGTON POST
'A pacy read with electric prose'
INDEPENDENT on Six of Crows
'Impossible to put down'
STEPHEN KING, on Ninth House
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
Set in the Spain of the Inquisition, this gripping, twisty novel follows a poor scullion who has power she’s yet to fully understand. Despite her loose grasp of her own abilities, her miracle-making earns her—or leaves her cursed with—the attention of some of the most powerful people in society. Luzia finds herself surrounded by frauds as well as others who, like her, have genuine magic (instances of which are written in gorgeous, thrilling style). She is unsure of who is showing her real kindness and who is drawing closer with ulterior motives, though getting that right could be a matter of life and death. When a romance begins it is both sparky—author Leigh Bardugo has a talent for capturing frisson—and tentative, with the ever-present threat of betrayal. And amid all this—and Luzia’s need to hide her Jewish heritage—she must try to use the situation to secure fortune and freedom. What’s special about Bardugo’s telling of this story is that it’s as emotionally resonant as it is action-packed.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Two people with magical powers and sketchy pasts plot their escape from the Spanish Inquisition in this poignant romantic fantasy from bestseller Bardugo (Hell Bent). After Luzia Cotado, a housemaid hiding her Jewish heritage, allows her ambitious employer a glimpse of her ability to cast spells using "refranes" (Hebrew-Spanish proverbs), he enters her into a competition for royal miracle workers. Sponsored by Víctor de Paredes, a wealthy social climber, Luzia is trained by his "familiar," Guillén Santángel, an undying retainer who long ago traded away his luck and freedom for immortality. Despite being initially suspicious of each other, Luzia and Santángel find that among the competition's fake psychics, dangerous real magicians, and even more deadly patrons, they can only rely on their own powers and their growing mutual attraction. Bardugo puts an earthy spin on heavenly miracles, with much attention given to the mundane drudgery of daily life that is not erased—even with magic that can unburn bread. Luzia's pursuit of her powers, even at risk of burning at the stake, comes across as both empowering and practical compared to a life of unrewarding toil, making it easy to root for her through the competition. The sharp realism mixes with a genuine feeling of enchantment to create a top tier historical fantasy.
