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Located high in the Andes, the city of Potosi is the richest in the Western Hemisphere. Silver mined from the mountains has corrupted more than one man. It’s also deliberately tainted with impurities—a crime charged as treason if discovered.
Inez de la Morada defies her father (the rich and powerful mayor of Potosi) and flees to the convent of Santa Isabella de los Santos Milagros, where she’s later found dead inside a locked room. It’s believed that she committed suicide, but Mother Abbess Maria Santa Hilda believes otherwise and has Inez buried in sacred ground.
Fray Ubaldo DaTriesta, the local Commissioner of the Inquisition, despises the Abbess because of her Protestant ways, and he’ll do anything to have her punished by the bishop. When he hears of Inez’s death, he thinks he’s found a way to be rid of the Abbess: by falsely accusing her of blasphemy.
Meanwhile, the King of Spain discovers that the silver of Potosi is impure, and he sends the Grand Inquisitor to mete out punishment. Fearing that the city is about to lose its prosperity, everyone scurries to hide their sins.
More than ever, Abbess Maria Santa Hilda must find a way to prove that Inez hadn’t taken her own life. With the help of her fellow sisters, a Jesuit priest with a dark secret, and a tomboyish girl who sought sanctuary to avoid an unwanted marriage, she races to gather proof and get it to the Grand Inquisitor before it’s too late.
Filled with mystery, danger, and dark secrets—all combined with a fast-paced plot—City of Silver is one of the best novels I’ve read all year. If you think that a mystery centered on a convent full of nuns will be boring, think again. These are no ordinary nuns. They fight for justice armed with prayer and bravery in a time when women were to obey and never question a man’s authority.
Abbess Maria Santa Hilda is especially extraordinary because she takes charge and searches for clues to Inez’s death—determined to keep her buried in sacred ground, even if it means that she might have to face a terrible punishment for her disobedience.
I can’t think of enough words to convey just how wonderful City of Silver is. I want to run out in the streets, shove the book into people’s hands, and beseech them to read it. With a beautifully written plot, a puzzling mystery that keeps getting more and more tangled, and a cast of exceptional and endearing characters, it doesn’t get any better than this. Trust me; City of Silver is one novel that you’re not going to want to pass up.
