The Convent of the Pure [Paperback]

Sara M. Harvey (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 2009

Secrets and illusions abound in a decaying convent wrapped in dark magic and scented with blood. Portia came to the convent with the ghost of Imogen, the lover she failed to protect in life. Now, the spell casting caste wants to make sure that neither she nor her spirit ever leave. Portia's ignorance of her own power may be even more deadly than those who conspire against her as she fights to fulfill her sworn duty to protect humankind in a battle against dark illusions and painful realities. Steeped in the legends of the Nephilim, The Convent of the Pure is the first installment of a steampunk novella trilogy by Sara M. Harvey.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Harvey (A Year and a Day) cobbles together gothic steampunk fantasy and fluffy lesbian erotica in this romantic, necromantic tale. Two years after Imogen Gyony's death, her spirit still frequently visits her lover, Portia. Both are Nephilim, born of a celestial and a mortal being and raised to be warriors in an age-old fight against the demonic forces out to destroy humanity. When demons capture Portia, she escapes with crossbow blazing and takes on the fiends one by one, determined to bring Imogen back from the dead and save her Nephilim chapter house from being taken over by demon-influenced mages. Readers who aren't put off by the cheesecake cover illustration of buff, busty Portia will appreciate the mix of heat, horror and humor. (Apr.)
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Review

While Harvey's treatment of imagery is a tad heavy-handed, her language and word choice are impeccable. Most fantasy writers who employ a "realistic" style shun adjectives, but Harvey uses them to great affect without over-saturating the writing. The Convent of the Pure reads lightly and unencumbered, with vivid scenes and images as signposts along the way.

The hero is called to action, has initial success, sees the undefeatable monster and faces a setback, gets help and defeats the monster, and then returns to the people. Yes, the story is familiar, but it's also well-written, and perhaps most importantly, it's fun. -- Nick DeMarino, SFReader.com --SFReader.com - Nick DeMarino, November 6, 2009

Product Details

• Paperback: 152 pages
• Publisher: Apex Publications (April 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0981639097
• ISBN-13: 978-0981639093
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,356,720 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Sara M. Harvey is a California Girl at heart. Born in the foggy hills of the San Francisco Bay Area, she resided there for 19 years before striking off to chase the gypsy life from Tacoma, WA, to Santa Cruz, CA, to SoCal, to New York City, to Orlando, FL, to Milwaukee, WI, and finally settling-for the moment- in Nashville, TN.

Sara writes her own brand of genre-bending fantasy as well as non-fiction clothing and costume history books, using both her experiences as a New Yorker and the Masters Degree in Costume History that she earned at NYU.

In Nashville, Sara has settled into the quiet life surprisingly well, if by "quiet" one might imagine rafter-raising Nashville Predator hockey games, a small fixer-upper house inhabited by some crazy dogs, a colorful international neighborhood with a great family restaurant serving amazing authentic Mexican or Middle Eastern food on just about every corner, and a day job teaching fashion and history to Nashville's finest and most energetic up-and-coming designers.

Besides the dogs, Guinevere the border collie mix and Eowyn the basenji mix, Sara shares this joyride with her husband, fellow author, and dearest friend: Matt.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Lovely dark fantasy with strong lesbian leads, May 20, 2009

By 

Michele Lee (Louisville, KY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Convent of the Pure (Paperback)

"I am Portia Gyony," she repeated, and the world bent slightly around the edges.

What would it be like to witness a battle between celestial beings? Sort of like The Convent of the Pure by Sara M. Harvey. Portia is a demon hunter and a Nephilim, a descendant of human and angel. Still mourning the death of her lover Imogen, yet protected by the ghost of Imogen, Portia is trying to complete her training to become a full member of the Gyony (demon hunter Nephilim as opposed to magic user or necromancer Nephilim) community.

Instead she is pulled into a plot to over throw the Primacy, the ruling council of the Nephilim, by a dark-hearted sect of necromancers, one of which helped her keep Imogen at her side after her tragic death. Portia isn't just a tool in the necromancer plot, she is the plot, one of the rare "Pure Bloods", a direct child of an angel and human.

The Convent of the Pure is a fast paced dark fantasy with steampunk elements. The world is rich and enticing, the only real flaw is it's short length. The world really could support a full length book, if not a series as Portia and Imogen are engaging, their romance a sweet up point against the dark tenseness of the world setting. Portia is strong without being snarky or bitchy. There's no stress over her ability to "hang with the boys", no real issue of gender roles at all, which is refreshing. The action is large scale and satisfying without being too easy or overwhelming.

Overall The Convent of the Pure is an excellent, enjoyable tale sure to appeal to readers of dark fantasy, urban fantasy and even paranormal romance.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Steampunk demon-hunting lesbians!, June 28, 2009

By 

Richard Sparrow "Mudd's Angel" (West Memphis, AR United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Convent of the Pure (Paperback)

I'd been looking forward to this since I saw the cover art on the Apex site and Sara Harvey did not disappoint.

Despite a Publisher's Weekly review that mentioned "fluffy lesbian erotica," there was no sex. There was, however, a great deal of intrigue, a fair bit of blood and a really amazing battle scene.

The world-building is excellent. In this reality the nephilim, children of angels and human women, are sought out and taught quietly by others of their kind. Portia and her lover, Imogen, were Gyony, the warrior clan. Imogen died and her ghost still looks after Portia.

But there are those who wish to purge the line of the blood of men and for this, they have brought Portia to the decaying convent where Imogen was raised.

Portia battles demons and a sorcerer as she tries to solve the mystery of who and why.

The cover is gorgeous and the internal black and white art lends an old-fashioned feel to the book.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Should've been much, much bigger, April 29, 2009

By 

S. S. White "Calico Reaction" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Convent of the Pure (Paperback)

The premise: this steampunk fantasy is steeped in the Biblical legends of the Nephilim and is the first installment of a trilogy. Portia is sent to an abandoned convent to investigate news of a demon. She's still reeling from the incident that cost her lover Imogen her life and has little to no confidence in her abilities or magic. Fortunately, the ghost of Imogen is always at Portia's side, giving her guidance when she needs it. However, it may not be enough, as what Portia hunts is far greater and more dangerous than anyone ever imagined, and worst of all, her dead lover might be involved in a plot that will destroy her.

My Rating: there's potential in this book, no doubt, and certainly, Harvey is dealing with original material when it comes to the fantasy genre. Using Biblical mythology/legends that embrace more than simply angels and demons can make for a fascinating read, but my wish is that rather than writing a novella, the author had really THROWN herself into the world and created a story that was bigger and more epic. I wanted to like the book far more than I did, and I blame my distance on the fact that I'm thrown into the action and expected to care about characters that I don't even know in crisis. The info-dumping, while extremely necessary to get through the book, is unfortunate because I'd rather experience and discover the world, not have it dumped on me. It's a fast read that reminds me of a hybrid between Harry Potter and the film The Orphanage in terms of setting and world-building, which is kind of fun. But I firmly believe the novella (or a trilogy of) is the wrong form for this epic set of ideas, of world-building, and even the level of relationships that have formed between the characters. Everything about this story is epic, but the form is far too short to let the reader truly appreciate and experience it, which in turn is a let down. Will I read the rest of the trilogy? No. I'm convinced the two sequels will be told in the same manner, and if the form doesn't work for me, why read more just to get more out of the world and characters? That may not make sense, but it boils down to the fact that this should've been something far bigger, and anything less just won't do. Not for me.