Author Description

[This novel] brings to life one of the great romances of all time and evokes the vibrant color and tumult of the Middle Ages. In the early twelfth century, William reaches Paris full of hope and without a penny. There, on the same day, he meets the two people who will dominate his life: young Heloise, with whom he immediately falls in love, and Abelard, the world-renowned philosopher. Through the eyes of William, we follow every turn in the greatest love story of the Middle Ages. We witness, in harrowing and lush descriptions, the scandal of the famous theologian falling for his educated and charming student; their flight and secret marriage; the barbaric revenge of the girl"s uncle; their years of separation; the writing of the famous letters; and finally the demise of a broken Abelard, whose books have been burned, a man who finds his ultimate solace in the thought of the woman who has never ceased to love him. [In the novel, the author] brings literary grace to a story that is palpably infused with sensuality, conflict, and intellectual ferment. [It] is intelligent and bawdy, philosophical and romantic - a universal story of star-crossed lovers. -Dust jacket.