Luther and Katharina by Jody Hedlund

This historical fiction contained many factual events and the names of actual characters. In the 16th century, nun Katharina von Bora’s led an escape from Marinthron, where she had been cloistered since the age of five. The cruel and self-righteous Abbot Baltazar is relentless in his pursuit of the missing nuns. Smuggled writings of Martin Luther and his sweeping reformation focused on the Catholic Church caused rumblings of discontent among priests and sisters who were celibate and unable to marry. The escaped nuns hid at the Black Cloister belonging to Martin Luther, much to the apprehension of Luther’s pastor. Offering sanctuary to the nuns, Luther and his men reside in the barn to avoid disgrace.  Katharina clings proudly to her noble birth, seeking a wealthy bachelor to wed. Scandal follows her everywhere.

Not a student of history, this intriguing novel gave me an insight into the personality and teachings of Martin Luther. The vivid details the religious persecution fostered by the Holy Roman Emperor, and the cruelty of the Peasant’s War were relatively unknown to me. I enjoyed learning about his life and his marriage to Katharina. Martin Luther with a background in law called into question some of the basic tenets of Roman Catholicism, and began the Protestant Reformation.