Book cover of In the Shadow of the Bull

Book description

In a world of Goddess worship, sacred snakes and sacrifice, human jealousy, resentment and betrayal still run wild . . .

Ancient Crete, 1450 BC.When her sister Arge drops to the floor in convulsions and then dies at her wedding, fifteen-year-old Martis, a young poet and bull leaper in training,…

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Why read it?

1 author picked In the Shadow of the Bull as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

I love this YA murder mystery in which we visit Ancient Crete.

The premise of having a young girl investigate her sister’s death on the day of her marriage, takes us around the everyday lives of the people, both the women-dominated society and travelling merchants.

The brilliant touch is making the sleuth a trainee bull-jumper, showing that young women, as well as men, carried out this spectacular sport and ritual. I learned a lot and lived the history. 

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These Blue Mountains by Sarah Loudin Thomas,

A moving story of love, betrayal, and the enduring power of hope in the face of darkness.

German pianist Hedda Schlagel's world collapsed when her fiancé, Fritz, vanished after being sent to an enemy alien camp in the United States during the Great War. Fifteen years later, in 1932, Hedda…

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