The Legend of The Grail Undone Again! (Labyrinth - Kate Mosse)

Member Name: marandina

Product:	Labyrinth - Kate Mosse
Date:	13/06/06 (811 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Meticulous detail, good story

Disadvantages: Perhaps too much historical detail at times.

There’s a whole esoteric appeal to the ancient legend of the Holy Grail painted on a canvas of romantic images from the Medieval Ages; figuratively, of course. All those crusaders, knights in shining armour and ethereal mysteries surrounding Christ’s last supper and the chalice that may have been lost therein. Quite frankly, I’m a sucker for a good yarn and with a historical setting and no shortage of subterfuge then “Labyrinth” by Kate Mosse was a book I decided to try a little while back. Short listed by “Richard & Judy’s Book Club” the sticker on the front screamed and as a contender for the British Book Awards 2006 as well as riding high in the best seller charts for weeks, I decided to find out what the hype was all about. Kate Mosse is an author I hadn’t tried before. Having already had four books published of which two were fiction, Kate Mosse is a guest presenter for BBC 4’s “Saturday Review” and “Open Book” as well as being a book reviewer for “The Culture Show” on BBC2. Along with her husband, they are the co-founders of the Chichester Writing Festival at West Dean.

Alice Tanner is working on an archaeological dig in the French Pyranees. When she stumbles upon a hidden cave, she finds two skeletons lying side by side along with a stone ring. In the cave there is also a Labyrinth pattern on the wall that seems to draw her in. Suddenly over come with fear and apprehension, she stumbles and falls as the sound of footsteps closes in from behind. When the police arrive at the site, the dig is closed down for further investigations and Alice interrogated by the authorities. Treated somewhat harshly by her inquisitors led by the austere Paul Authie and the disappearance of Shelagh, her best friend and deputy on the dig, Alice decides to leave her hotel in Foix. Before she has had a chance to leave, she is passed a note by a nervous young man who, minutes later, is killed by a hit and run. Alice suddenly realises that she is involved in some kind of subterfuge of which the Labyrinth is involved somehow.

Meanwhile, in Carcassona, Alais wakes in the year 1209 yearning for a stroll down by the river. She is the daughter of a prominent nobleman. At the side of the riverbank she discovers a man drowned in the river who, on closer inspection, appears to have been murdered. Turning to her father, Intendant Pelletier for support, she finds him unduly concerned about the dead man although almost frantic at the fact that his left thumb has been sliced, clean off. It’s from that incident that the myth of the grail unravels as Alais is drawn into a web of intrigue and deceit to parallel the current day struggle of Alice in 2005.

The first thing that strikes you is the anachronism that runs through the story. Clearly, the events of modern day more than echo those from the 13th century and with the link being made so clear then the reader is quickly introduced to the notion of re-incarnation (for Alice, read Alais and several other direct similarities spanning the eight centuries that separates the plots). Written in the third person and often from either Alice's or Alais’ perspective, the tale flits between past and present as the individual plots unfold and intertwine as the story progresses. Technically, this takes some doing and the level of historical detail is meticulous. Couched in fact, the story reflects the struggle of the French Cathars against the internal crusades launched against them by the Vatican and the terrible fate of thousands of practising Christians at the hands of fellow Christians who held different beliefs. Herein lies the first criticism of the book. Mosse begins with an author’s note at the very beginning which outlines the circumstances of that struggle commencing in 1208 with Pope Innocent III’s demands that the Cathars be ruthlessly repressed. Having already finished the book, it took a programme called “Richard Hammond and The Holy Grail” on the BBC to explain why the Cathars were so ruthlessly persecuted and this would have been useful knowledge to have when reading this book. The fact was that the “Bon hommes” as they are frequently referred to in the book believed in a different God to that of the Classical church and proclaimed that the God worshipped by orthodox Christianity was an impostor, and his church was a corrupt abomination deeply infused by the failings of the material realm. This meant that man's "Spirit" was thus trapped in a flawed, physical realm created by a usurper and ruled by his corrupt minions. Maybe this point isn’t critical to most readers when enjoying the story but, for me, knowing this would have gone a long way towards explaining the images of brutality dotted throughout the story, which Mosse does convincingly.

Whilst the book lacks this key point explained, its main strength is the incredible level of detail that the author goes into. Her second main point in the author’s note at the start explains the frequent use of the langue d’Oc, which is the language of the Midi from Provence to Aquitaine. Often using older French spellings and references, Mosse infuses a rare degree of carefully researched authenticity that brings the sights, smells and sounds of both modern day, rural France as well as transporting the reader back to times gone by with a highly credible method of writing.

The story itself is strong from start to finish. With relentless pace, the author takes us on a journey of joy and despair, love and hate, trust and betrayal using characters carefully crafted from genuine historical figures. Both Alice and Alais fit neatly into the heroine mould (although, again, fuller pen-pictures would have added to the mind's eye image of these noble ladies) and the sinister element of the Noublesso Veritable Cult led by the indomitable Marie-Cecile injects the suspense and ritualistic murder to the proceedings. Alais' evil sister, Oriane, introduces an element of sex into the story that she employs like some latter day *Christine Keeler, adding to the spice and the internal strife within the family driven by the need to both protect and exploit the legend of the Grail depending on which character is involved.

Yes, we have the well-worn path of the Holy Grail thrown in (again, the relationship between this part of France and the Grail legend is neatly explained in Hammond’s programme) but this is a different take on one of the most popular legends that survives to this day and massively underlined, if it needed to be, by the popularity of Dan Brown’s literary works.

Ultimately, “Labyrinth” is a long, demanding read with complex plots and copious amounts of historical detail. Some readers will get lost (me included) in the political aspects of the 11th century story and the motives behind much of the violence perpetrated in the name of the Church. For the most part, “Labyrinth” successfully weaves a web of action and adventure not dissimilar to “The “Da Vinci Code” and other comparable conspiracy stories although, running underneath, is an immortal love story that concludes neatly with the kind of cyclical finale that you might expect from such a meticulous writer. “Labyrinth” will appeal to older readers due to the explicit violence and complexity of much of the story with the genre overlapping the historical fiction and love story/action categories. Beware, it’s a long read which has its flaws but if you are into the Holy Grail Legend and everything it entails then this may well be for you.

Thanks for reading

Mara

pp.697

Published by Orion Books. R.R.P. is £6.99 although I picked this up at Tesco for £3.73. Amazon are advertising it for £3.99

ISBN: 0-7528-7732-1

More info about the author at www.mosselabyrinth.co.

*Christine Keeler was a British model and showgirl. Her involvement with a British government minister discredited the Conservative administration of Harold Macmillan in 1963 in what is known as the Profumo Affair (just in case you didn't know)

Summary: Write up of the book