Pope Joan

Summary (from the publisher): For a thousand years her existence has been denied. She is the legend that will not die–Pope Joan, the ninth-century woman who disguised herself as a man and rose to become the only female ever to sit on the throne of St. Peter. Now in this riveting novel, Donna Woolfolk Cross paints a sweeping portrait of an unforgettable heroine who struggles against restrictions her soul cannot accept. 

Brilliant and talented, young Joan rebels against medieval social strictures forbidding women to learn. When her brother is brutally killed during a Viking attack, Joan takes up his cloak–and his identity–and enters the monastery of Fulda. As Brother John Anglicus, Joan distinguishes herself as a great scholar and healer. Eventually, she is drawn to Rome, where she becomes enmeshed in a dangerous web of love, passion, and politics. Triumphing over appalling odds, she finally attains the highest office in Christendom–wielding a power greater than any woman before or since. But such power always comes at a price . . . 

In this international bestseller, Cross brings the Dark Ages to life in all their brutal splendor and shares the dramatic story of a woman whose strength of vision led her to defy the social restrictions of her day.

Review: I've wanted to read this novel for ages because it's gotten so many great reviews and the plot sounded so intriguing. The historical basis for this novel is fascinating. Supposedly, the Catholic church has taken great pains to cover up the fact that a woman, disguised as a man, rose to become pope in the 800s. It is believed that this may be why for centuries after Pope Joan's time period, the pope had to sit on a special open bottomed stool to to be examined to prove his masculinity before being elected pope. 

Cross does a great job of imagining what Joan's life might have been like. Most of the historical basis is mysterious and little is known about her early life. I think Cross had to give rationale for why Joan would want to hide her identity (although the time period and the sexism of it was reason enough), and Joan's abusive childhood and extraordinary  intelligence provide the desire for the character to behave the way she does. It was so unfortunate that, despite Joan's great love for Gerold, she can never be with him if she wants to live the life of a scholar. My only disappointment with this book was the rather abrupt and violent ending. Joan had a fairly tragic life, despite her success, and so I should not have been surprised that her death was the same. 

This novel offered great speculation on what the infamous female pope's life might have been like. I wish we could know the true story!

Stars: 3.5