Customer Reviews

The Treasure of Montsegur: A Novel of the Cathars

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I am absolutely delighted with this novel. Rarely do I come across a novel that fully engages me on so many levels. Even more rare that such a novel would be set in 1200 France, as my tolerance for historical fiction in general is pretty low. Yet this novel captivated me. From the first paragraph I was hooked and wanted to know more. In the midst of a very busy work and life schedule, I found myself stealing time to read a page here, a chapter there. Excited about getting to the end but not wanting to really finish the book. "The Treasure of Montsegur" is written in the tradition of a tragic love story, yet its historical relevance is not diminished. The author provides a well-researched background on the Catholic Crusades in France that tortured and killed thousands of people during the 1200s. The novel is framed in the axiom that history repeats itself and is richly layered with historical, religious, spiritual, and tragic elements of the period.

Burnham tells the story in voices as layered as the storyline. The novel centers on the life of a woman named Jeanne. Found in a field by Cathers after the Crusaders raid her village. Jeanne is raised in the Cather faith and eventually becomes a revolutionary in the struggle to maintain the faith despite the Catholic Inquisitions. Jeanne is a fully realized character who loves, sins, betrays, falls, rises, heals. Using both narrative and first person (Jeanne), the author educates the reader on the horrors of the Cather annihilation while at the same time inviting the reader on a spiritual journey of love.

Burnham's writing is absolutely superb. The rhythm of the language and choice of words creates a reading space that provides immediate access to the period and the conditions under which people lived and tried to navigate their way through religious domination and spiritual fulfillment. On many occasions I had to research words and go beyond the first definition to find an archaic definition that would provide greater meaning to the sentence. At times, the reading experience was very much like piecing together a puzzle. The satisfaction of completing a puzzle comparable to the delight experienced each time I found a definition that fit. The story further motivated me to research the actual massacre at Montsegur, leaving me much better informed on the subject than I was prior to reading the novel.

I certainly hope that this novel finds its way into the classroom. What a wonderful way to initiate discussion on the Catholic Inquisitions. After having found an advanced reader's copy of the novel at a thrift shop, I consider this to be one of my greatest reading treasures. Highly recommended!

I found that The Treasure of Montsegur spoke to me deeply on many levels. First of all, the story is immensely compelling; all the more so because the facts that it is based on are historically accurate. It's a passionate love-story with a courageous heroine. It's about chase and pursuit-- running for your life at a time of political terror, and yet all throughout, there's this hopeful and optimistic joy that comes with the search for God. Jeanne de Beziers, the main character, filled my heart with her humanity, her brokenness, and the beautiful light which streamed from her in moments of grace.
Burnham's use of language is a delight. Her words spill from the page with the vivid intensity of light itself, yet her language is spare and lucid, the images turning in one's mind like a smooth stone in clear water. All through the book you are aware of the question: what was the treasure of Montsegur? I won't give away the end, but the answer leaves you stunned in it's simplicity and truth.
This book speaks not only to historical oppression, but has chilling echoes in our own times. Far too many innocents have suffered under the banner of 'national interests', or religious fundamentalism. Separated by the distance of time, we can clearly see how wrong the Inquisitors in the 1200's were to be so intolerant of the Cathars. The Treasure of Montsegur helped me to reflect on our own times, when the narrow righteousness found in all kinds of fundamentalism still continues to be meshed with greed and economic power. At this point in history, the voices of thinking people, the voices of the disenfranchised, and the voices of artists are calling so loudly for humanity to wake up. This book is a brilliant note in that clarion call.
Sophy Burnham wrote those beautiful books on angels and also on prayer (The Path of Prayer, another life-changing book!) Montsegur is a treasure worth reading because it points a vivid ray of light toward the kernel of love and spiritual truth hidden in human beings. You come away thinking a long time about these historical events, and about Jeanne, this haunting heroine. Without being obvious or awkward, The Treasure of Montsegur deftly shines a light on our own times, and on the spiritual nature of the human being. It gave me not only food for thought, but inspiration as well.

After reading some very enthusiastic reviews, I expected to like this book a lot more than I did. Although I did enjoy it, I found it far short of the sort of enduring quality that would set it apart in my reading experience as great literature.

It is an interesting story - bloody and violent religious persecution, within religions very close to our own, has an immediate fascination. The writing is good, and the central character is complex and excites our interest and sympathy. Yet for all that the book was for me a much undelivered potential.

My first objection would be that while the central character - Jeanne Beziers - is quite complex and hence a satisfyingly real personality, the remainder of the cast of the novel are rather mono-dimensional. Jerome - the farmer who befriends and "marries" Jeanne - is consistently kindly and gentle. Even his cupidity towards the treasure that Jeanne may be able to (or willing to) bring to him is expressed more as a benign curiosity about possibility rather than malevolent greed.

Other characters - her long-time lover William, her "sister" Baiona, the monk/bishop Guilhabert de Castres, and so on - generally play very predictable roles in a sort of caricature fashion. Generally they continue with no development from their first introduced role to their passing out of the novel. One might exclaim that Baiona "develops" from a fliberty-gibbet girl to a martyrdom embracing zealot, but I really saw her change from the character at the start of the novel to a different one at the end rather than trace a sense of intellectual and personality development throughout the book.

My plea is not so much for characters to act out of character - as is so often the staple of crime writers who engender interest by having people act out the unexpected - but rather the development of the personality of the characters of the novel through the experiences they are given within it.

My suspicion is that the motivation for the book arises not from a wealth of characterization, nor for a sense of how people change with experience, but a love of writing of intense religious experience, and a wish to proselytize for a religion of love that extends beyond and across the conventional structures of an organised church - especially one ready to indulge the horror if the Inquisition in the name of religious correctness. When Jeanne is in the throes of a religious experience, Brophy's writing indulges great adjectival vigour, and often carries us into a well-written out-of-body experience for the main character/narrator. We are offered the possibility that the character is insane - but that is a fictitious option. We know that actually there is a moral if not factual validity in her recalled experiences of miraculous light and transcendental happiness.

But these episodes are really quite specific to the one lead character and provide very little insight into the general behavior of the others of the same religious disposition. Historical fiction can either give us a biographical insight into a personality in history or an analytical insight into an event - but if it focuses its energy on characterization on just one fictitious witness of events, the margin for success and satisfaction is slim.

The core historical event of the novel - the willing martyrdom of several hundred Cathars at Montsegur - becomes almost inexplicable. Jeanne herself is quite hestitant to follow Baiona's invitation to commit to certain death - rationalized as short agony, eternal bliss - before she is prevailed upon to escape for good cause. While there remains a moral tension of weakness versus duty in Jeanne's decision, the tension exists only in respect to her actions, and we are left with almost no first hand insight into the energies that compel her associates to their horrible fate - apparently willingly embraced.

There are other quirks that distract from the book. The most puzzlingly annoying being the episode wherein a mistrel enjoys some future visions of 20th Century life - characterised by electric light, jumbo jets and submarines. As a vision of a better world it does have a slight justification coating of greater happiness for all, but it is a superficial coating. Fundamentally the episode has very little impact on the characters in the plot - and left this reader puzzled as to its writers intent.

But for all the complaint I enjoyed the read.

The story is horrificly fascinating. The terror of the Inquisition and its lack of a moral mandate from the common man are adroitly captured - together with the moral corruption on him by the invitation to cooperate with it - for the sake of his own body, if not his soul.

The main character, Jeanne, is a puzzlingly complex and realistically inconsistent human - a sad victim of both circumstance and her own imperfections. But blessed with a vision of right that is almost inspirational. But in the end that "almost" is what erodes the reading experience to an interesting story. The book has one central character - it fails to really unravel the moral details of its core events, and the lesser characters are never rich enough in their characterization to do more than support the story of Jeanne. And that one central character never comes quite close enough to our struggles with life to connect intensely.

I have been a big historical fiction fan for a long time but this book almost turned me away from it. I only gave it two stars because I did enjoy the historical aspect. I learned a lotabout the Cathars and their long-forgotten customs but this book was just too bad for anything more. The ending was some weird "is she or isn't she" torture/death scene that just threw me way out of the loop. There are many better examples of great historical fiction but this book was just weird.

In this historical novel, which takes place in the 13th C, the fate of the Cathars is examined through the eyes of Jeanne, a young orphan who joins this religious group but never really commits herself to the Albigensian (Cathar) version of Christianity. Historically, this group, which believed in pacifism, vegetarianism, chastity and charity work, was persecuted by the Catholic Church - in fact, a crusade was launched against them in the 13th C, and little is known of exactly who they were and what they believed. Author Sophie Burnham uses the character of Jeanne to champion the idea that these `perfected heretics' were martyrs, and that the fortress of Montsegur, besieged by a hostile army, was their last stand as an alternative to the Catholicism in pre-Reformation Europe. The plot follows Jeanne, a complex and flawed young woman who appreciates and craves the companionship of this group, such as Lady Esclarmonde (based on a real woman, as many of the characters are), whose `perfection' Jeanne envies, but cannot emulate. Jeanne makes bad choices in men, lives what in any age would be termed a `loose' life at times, and even at the end of her life, cannot find earthly peace. The `treasure' referred to in the title is real, and according to Burnham, even Hitler was interested in finding it. (You could also argue that, in the context of the novel, there is more than one 'treasure' that is lost and found by the characters.) In the world of the novel, Jeanne knows its location, but chooses to leave it a secret, with tragic consequences. Although I recommend reading this novel, I will say that at times, Jeanne and the plot left me frustrated. The misery experienced in the book becomes unrelenting - Jeanne does have an epiphany, and the ending is historically accurate, but I was left wanting more: more history, more answers, more spirituality.

Treasure of Montsegur

I really, really wanted to like this book, and was disappointed.

The story of the Cathars and the treasure is fascinating (my interest was piqued by a visit to this region of France some years ago).

However, I thought the telling of this melodramatic fictionalisation was pedestrian and a little laboured. It was a bit Harlequin-romance dressed up as something more.

Nevertheless, a plaeasant and undemanding read if you are looking for somethign with an historical basis, and a topic not covered elsewhere in popular fiiction.

First and foremost, this book is not really about the treasure of Montsegur, at least not in the physical sense, so if you are looking for a good treasure hunt book (in the mode of the DaVinci Code, for example), forget about it.
The treasure is a spiritual revelation, and although this book has some moments of fine writing, it also has some deep flaws. The most glaring of which are the terrible "telling of the future" scene and the weak ending.
However, the book does a nice job of portraying the thoughts and the magic behind the Cathar legend, and the deep evil of the Catholic characters (esp. the Inquisition).
All in all, a book that you can get through, and maybe even enjoy, but not a keeper.

Jeanne was raised by a Cathar holy woman. The man Jeanne loved married her best friend, and eventually, the three of them faced death by burning after the siege of the Cathar enclave at Montsegur. A bitter reprieve, however, sent Jeanne out of harm's way and on a mission to save precious remnants of her Cathar religion. She cannot forgive herself for failing in that mission and for not mounting the pyre with the two people she loved most.

Thirteenth-century France is a perilous place for Christians whose doctrine differs from that of the Roman Catholic Church, but poverty confers the protective mantle of invisibility. Once lady of her own manor, Jeanne is now just another beggar, a hag dependent upon the charity of her betters. When her latest benefactor recognizes her for a Cathar -- hence a heretic -- Jeanne must flee for her life.

With the Inquisition bearing down upon her, Jeanne stumbles upon an unlikely deliverer who diverts the inquisitors from her trail and then takes her in. She finds unexpected love with this strong and simple man.

But Jeanne's past continues to haunt her. Her happy interlude ends, and she must face her darkest fears. At the lowest point in her life, she discovers the true treasure of Montsegur and finds in herself the grace and courage of perfect faith.

Ms. Burnham recreates her setting with integrity. Though her story is more about religious wars in general than medieval France, she paints historical detail over her narrative with spare but sure strokes. The Treasure of Montsegur is worthwhile for its illumination of the Cathars' plight and for the extraordinary character of Jeanne.

This book is wonderful! I'm enjoying it so much, I wanted to write a review before I was done to let people know it's well worth it. Obviously well researched and well written. I do not agree with any bad reviews about this book because I think it is an honest appraisal of the time period. Why would the Roman Catholic Church stand against the Cathars? What "friction" could there have been that would have caused them to turn against the Good Men and Women? Well, there is only one answer to that...because they were a threat to the Roman Catholic hold over the majority of society. I am not anti Roman Catholic, quite the opposite, I am Roman Catholic...I'm just trying to be honest about how the Church of that period operated. Any religion other than the "True Church of Rome" was considered heretical and therefore, a threat to the establishment. This book shows that in an unbiased manner, in my opinion, and it's well written and enthralling to boot! Pick this one up. You won't be disappointed.

To write a straight-up history of the 13th-century Cathars that presents the perspective of the Cathars themselves is well-nigh impossible. This is because those who persecuted them were so efficient, cruel, and ruthless, obliterating the movement. "History is written by the victors," Churchill reminded us; in the case of the Cathars there were simply no Cathars remaining who could (or would) tell that story. Even the exact nature of their beliefs is not entirely clear, as what we do know comes from the vantage point of the movement's detractors--and it is not certain that they fully understood the Cathars. In short, to present a three-dimensional "human" account of the Cathars one has little choice but to do it by way of fiction.

Writing an historical novel about the Cathars is thus at one level the easiest of writing assignments, as the writer is insulated from claims of distortion. But at the same time it is the most difficult, as the risk is great of carrying the story beyond believable history. Burnham deftly manages to create a story that is consistent with what we know of the Cathars, and for the most part avoids presenting an over-romanticized picture of the cult and its adherents. To do otherwise would ultimately reduce her characters' believability and thus preclude her telling the very human story she wishes to convey.

It is through Jeanne Beziers that Burnham tells the story of the sect. Jeanne comes from blue-blooded stock, but finds herself having slid to the bottom of the social ladder, living and moving discreetly, trying to remain inconspicuous lest questions about her Cathar background arise and she face the same fiery fate she watched destroy her fellow believers. Jeanne is almost uniquely positioned to tell the story of the Cathars, as she has been close to the great personalities and events of the movement. It was she who was preserved so to guard the secret of the treasure of Monsegur--a treasure most envisioned in material terms, but which is likely either the translated Gospel of John that Jeanne guards or, as she believes at her life's end, simply herself.

The book stands or falls on the believability of Jeanne. The first time I read the book, I thus judged the novel a failure, as Jeanne seemed inconsistent--at one moment mature beyond her years, the next petty and adolescent; at one moment clear and determined, the next rather in a fog and seemingly confused; at one moment fully her own person, and the next little more than a mindless follower of an odd religion. I even wondered if Burnham intended Jeanne to be an unreliable narrator, in the manner of Kusuo Ishiguro's protagonists. But in my second reading of the book it became clear that to the degree Jeanne appeared to lack coherence, it was because she did lack coherence--as a result of trauma, maltreatment, betrayal, and physical deprivation--as well the isolated and truncated life dictated by her beliefs. Her ultimate disjointedness was during her last session on the inquisitor's rack, in which she is removed from her body and reality before her death. It was a scene strikingly similar to that I heard from a Navy officer captured and tortured in the First Gulf War.

If the book has a weakness it is that Burnham's own 21st-Century values now and then intrude, less in Burnham's obvious endorsement of the Cathars' appealing traits, than in how by contrast she depicts the Roman Catholic Church. Indeed, to the degree there is any depth in those charged with guarding Catholic orthodoxy, it is in their degrees of evil and ignorance. Without excusing any of the horrors for which they were responsible, Burnham could have added more humanity to the book's Roman Catholics--and in fact thereby heighten the enormity of their cruelty by making them more believable.

The Treasure of Montsegur is an enjoyable and informative book that brings the Cathars to life in the way a mere historical account could not. It presents a valuable picture of life within a cult, within a hostile society. It carries with it lessons not only for those tempted to be so withdrawn from the world but also for those who must determine the best way to contend with such people and movements. The book contains ample parallels to modern-day cults and heresies that may appear to have much to commend them but which in the end rely upon a distorted and insulated perception of reality.