Title: By Fire, By Water
Author: Mitchell James Kaplan
Publisher: Other Press
Publication Date: May 18, 2010
Paperback: 320 pages
ISBN: 978-1590513521
Genre: Historical Fiction

From the Publisher:

Luis de Santángel, chancellor to the court and longtime friend of the lusty King Ferdinand, has had enough of the Spanish Inquisition. As the power of Inquisitor General Tomás de Torquemada grows, so does the brutality of the Spanish church and the suspicion and paranoia it inspires. When a dear friend’s demise brings the violence close to home, Santángel is enraged and takes retribution into his own hands. But he is from a family of conversos, and his Jewish heritage makes him an easy target. As Santángel witnesses the horrific persecution of his loved ones, he begins slowly to reconnect with the Jewish faith his family left behind. Feeding his curiosity about his past is his growing love for Judith Migdal, a clever and beautiful Jewish woman navigating the mounting tensions in Granada. While he struggles to decide what his reputation is worth and what he can sacrifice, one man offers him a chance he thought he’d lost…the chance to hope for a better world. Christopher Columbus has plans to discover a route to paradise, and only Luis de Santángel can help him.
Within the dramatic story lies a subtle, insightful examination of the crisis of faith at the heart of the Spanish Inquisition. Irresolvable conflict rages within the conversos in By Fire, By Water, torn between the religion they left behind and the conversion meant to ensure their safety. In this story of love, God, faith, and torture, fifteenth-century Spain comes to dazzling, engrossing life.

My Review:

An in-depth historical journey into the Spanish Inquisitions occurring throughout 15th century Spain under the rule of King Fernando and Queen Ysabel, Mitchell James Kaplan takes his readers to two very different sections of Spain; the predominately Christian section of Zaragoza and the Jewish settlement within Muslim Granada where Kaplan details the lives of the families and the effects the New Inquisition has upon them in Kaplan’s stunning debut novel By Fire, By Water.

In Zaragoza lives Luis de Santangel, the royal chancellor of Aragon, a Christian whose ancestors were Jewish making him in effect a converses and therefore potentially in danger. Santangel goes to great lengths to stop the New Inquisition by first traveling to Rome with Cristobal Colon, also known as Christoffa Colombo, to request the Pope’s assistance to cease the persecution of the converses in Spain. During their voyage home, Cristobal hides documents in Santangel’s trunk in hopes of persuading the chancellor to convince King Fernando to finance his travels to Cipangu, the West Indies and from there, on to Jerusalem. These documents bring together an unlikely group of men and a very dangerous mission. Meanwhile in Granada, where the Inquisitors are near, Judith Migdal learns of the death of her brother and sister-in-law. While grieving she knows she must somehow provide for her nephew, Levi, and his grandfather, Baba Shlomo. Judith pleads with Baba Shlomo to teach her to be a silversmith, borrows money from Azoulay, and learns to read and write from her friend Dina Benatar. The craft comes in far handier than merely supplying an income for Judith and her family.

Kaplan writes in a vivid and fluid manner, his characters are realistic, the scenes at times almost too vividly described, yet realistic and believable. It is evident that Kaplan has done extensive research into the Inquisitions in Spain, the war against Granada, The travels of Columbo as well as the New Inquisition, which appears to only be concerned with the heresy of “judaizing”. By Fire, By Water is a breathtaking journey back to the 15th century, to a time of fear, death, hope,faith and discovery. Kaplan quite masterfully details the times and the feelings of the people and By Fire, By Water is a brilliant debut by Mitchell James Kaplan and what I hope to be just the beginning of his writing career. I would not hesitate to recommend By Fire, By Water to anyone who enjoys historical fiction or has not read historical fiction before but enjoys an extremely well written book. By Fire, By Water would make an excellent discussion group choice.

About the Author:

Mitchell James Kaplan has lived and worked primarily in Paris and Los Angeles as a translator, screenwriter, and script consultant. Currently, he resides in Mt. Lebanon, Pennsylvania, with his wife and two children. This is his first novel.

For more information please visit the author’s website.

I received a complimentary copy of By Fire, By Water by Mitchell James Kaplan from the author to review. Receiving a complimentary copy in no way reflected my review of aforementioned novel.