Radegonde’s Journey Begins: A New Historical Novel by Lauren Small
It’s release day for Radegonde and the First Crusade!
Brickhouse Books proudly announces the release of Lauren Small’s new novel, a sweeping work of historical fiction that brings the First Crusade to life through the eyes of those too often quieted: women, Jews, Muslims, and the formerly enslaved.
In the dead of winter 1096, a young French seamstress joins a makeshift band—a formerly enslaved African, a Jewish scholar, a runaway monk, and a Muslim girl—on a perilous trek from northern France to the Holy Land to “liberate” Jerusalem. Along the way, they confront fanaticism and war, but also discover unexpected solidarity, forgiveness, and hope powerful enough to reshape their understanding of faith, justice, and one another.
Deeply researched and richly told by Lauren Small, a scholar of comparative literature and narrative medicine, Radegonde and the First Crusade reframes a pivotal chapter of history as an intimate, character-driven story of transformation. Early praise calls it “superbly researched and beautifully written,” a gripping, essential read for anyone who wants to see the Crusades—and their lasting impact—in a new light.
