Description
Book Synopsis'Even in the darkest moments of the story, hope tarries in the wings. A wonderful writer, a wonderful read.' Liz Curtis Higgs, New York Times bestselling author 'Wonderfully insightful, with a rich historical storyline. There's more substantial content here than in much Christian fiction - about grace, about leadership and loyalty, about humility, about disability and suffering.' FaithfulReader.com The Hawk And The Dove is the opening title in this a series centred around the fictional Benedictine monastery of St Alcuin's, in Yorkshire, and set in the fourteenth century. At the start of the first novel Father Peregrine is appointed Abbot, at the age of 45. Father Peregrine, whose name in religion is Columba, is an arrogant, impatient man, a hawk trying hard to be a dove, whose struggles to manifest the character he considers to be expected of an abbot provide much of the narrative. Peregrine is surrounded by a company of flawed, human monks who are - for the most part - also serious about their calling, and who - again for the most part - come to love their driven and hard-driving leader. They lived six centuries ago, yet their struggles are our own-finding our niche; coping with failure; living with impossible people; and discovering that we are the impossible ones.
Trade Review“Even in the darkest moments of the story, hope tarries in the wings. A wonderful writer, a wonderful read.” -- Liz Curtis Higgs, New York Times bestselling author
“These tender and charming tales of medieval monastic life have an unexpectedly modern dimension. They highlight the struggles of the human condition both in the present and in the past. They illuminate that all humankind, whether aware of it or not, is on a pilgrimage. Through these stories we accompany Father Peregrine and his monks on their journey as they struggle to overcome their personal defects and to live harmoniously in community for the glory of God.” -- Eleanor Stewart, author, Kicking the Habit
“Poignant, moving, rich with imagery and emotion… Modern readers will easily identify with each character in Wilcock’s timeless human dramas of people learning to love and serve on another while growing in their understanding of a tender and compassionate God. Highly recommended.” -- Midwest Book Review
“Wonderfully insightful, with a rich historical storyline. There’s more substantial content here than in much Christian fiction – about grace, about leadership and loyalty, about humility, about disability and suffering.” -- FaithfulReader.com
“I fell in love with Penelope Wilcock’s Hawk and the Dove series when it first came out. These books are still among my favourites and, incredibly, the series keeps getting better and better. What a delight a first time reader of the series has ahead of them!” -- Donna Fletcher Crow, author, Glastonbury: The Novel of Christian England
“This masterful look into a bygone era reminds us that Christians of every age have faced the same basic struggles: how to worship God in spirit and truth, and to love our neighbours as ourselves. Many thanks to Penelope Wilcock for showing us, through the power of literature, an old way to new life.” -- Bryan M. Litfin, Professor of Theology, Moody Bible Institute
“Penelope Wilcock has created a wonderful cast of characters to fill the marvellously accurate fourteenth-century monastery in her medieval series. For the lover of medieval mysteries this is a series not to be missed.” -- Mel Starr, author, The Unquiet Bones
