Fire and Song

Tells the story of the Jewish martyr Luis de Carvajal, and his sister, Leonor, who died together in Mexico City in 1596, exploring his determination never to lose heart, no matter what, and to cling to his faith and cultural identity in the face of totalitarian oppression.

It is 1596 and in Mexico the Inquisition is at its most efficient. A young man trembles in his cell as he prays for salvation, torn between the Christianity he was schooled in and his ancestral faith. What heresies will the Holy Office uncover? Can he protect his mother and sisters?

He is Luis de Carvajal. His forbears had fled the Inquisition in Spain to Portugal and then from there to the New World. But the lives they try to rebuild as conversos in Mexico are just as perilous, for the Inquisition is determined to root out heretics throughout its realms. Luis's quest for true faith unfolds a tense and moving narrative, as he and his family's spirit and ingenuity are tested again and again.