Sharan Newman Books In Order

Publication Order of Catherine LeVendeur Books

Publication Order of Crime Through Time Books

Publication Order of Guinevere Books

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Publication Order of Short Story Collections

Publication Order of Non-Fiction Books

Publication Order of Anthologies

Sharan Newman is a popular American author and medieval historian. She is famous for writing thriller, mystery, and historical fiction novels, and is particularly well known for developing the Catherine LeVendeur series. Author Sharan was born on April 15, 1949, in Ann Arbor, Michigan, U.S. She obtained her master’s degree from the University of Michigan State in the subject of Medieval Literature. Following this, Sharan went on to pursue doctoral work in Medieval Studies at the California University in Santa Barbara. Eventually, she specialized in the history of the 12th century France. Currently, Sharan is an active member of the Medieval Association of Pacific and the Medieval Academy. Instead of using her vast academic knowledge to teach, author Sharan decided to write novels about the Middle Ages with the use of her education. And over the years, she has penned 3 Arthurian fantasies and around 10 mysteries set in France during 12th century. These mysteries feature the lead character in the role of Catherine LeVendeur, who is shown as a one time student of the Heloise at Paraclete. The books of this series also feature Catherine’s husband named Edgar, who is described as a Solomon and Anglo-Scot, and a Jewish merchant from Paris. All the books focus mainly on the lives of the minor nobility and bourgeoisie, as well as depicting the uneasy relations among the Jews and the Christians during that time. In some parts of the series, author Sharan has incorporated several events from 12th century like the Cathers’s rise and the Second Crusade.

In writing the books, author Sharan did a lot of research at Paris’ Bibliotheque Nationale, where she serves as a Grand Lecturer. Sharan also visited the Scientifique France Meridionale at the Toulouse University and the Trier University for studying about the Jewish History. Apart from all these institutions, author Sharan also went through a number of departmental archives. While doing all the research work, the main motto of author Sharan was to give out interesting details to the readers and make them develop an interest in the historical facts. The Catherine LeVendeur books have been shortlisted for several prestigious awards. Author Sharan was awarded with the Macavity Award for the first book of the series in the category of the best debut mystery. She also won the Herodotus Award in 1998. Most recently, Sharan received the Bruce Alexander prize in 2004. In order to go for a change, author Sharan has set the plot of her recent mystery novel in Portland, Oregon. Besides the mystery and fantasy books, author Sharan has written a nonfiction book as well. It is called ‘The Real History Behind the Da Vinci Code’. This book is written in the format of an encyclopedia and it gives out information on a number of topics that are described in the novels of Dan Brown. For this purpose, author Sharan appeared in television and radio programs at international levels. She also became part of a few documentaries related to the book. While Sharan was doing research for the book, she realized the importance of Queen Melisende for the Jerusalem Kingdom and that very less is written about Queen Melisende. As of now, author Sharan is working on the biography of Queen Melisende.

The Catherine LeVendeur series written by Sharan Newman is comprised of 10 books in total, which were released between the years 1993 and 2004. The debut novel of this series is entitled ‘Death Comes As Epiphany’. It was released by the Forge Books publication in the year 2002. At the start of this novel, it is depicted that Catherine is a scholar, who has arrived at the Paraclete Convent for conquering her sins and her pride. The Paraclete is famous for prayer, Heloise, learning, and abbess. Soon, it is learned that a manuscript that the convent had produced for Abbe Sugar has disappeared. Following this, the rumors spread among the people saying that there were sacrilegious passages in the book, which are going to be used for condemning the famous lover of Heloise named Peter Abelard. Now, for saving her Order and protecting everything that Catherine holds dear, she must search for the manuscript and find it at any cost. Catherine must also discover who dared to alter the tests in the manuscript. And once she starts doing it, she will risk a lot, including disgrace, her family’s and the Church’s wrath. She will also have to confront the evil inside her and the one present in the society. And if she is not careful enough, Catherine LeVendeur might end up losing her soul. With this book, author Sharan has tried to weave a sparkling romance and dark mystery in the form of a richly detailed and fascinating tapestry of the day to day life in 12th century’s France.

Another well known book written in this series is called ‘Strong As Death’. The Forge publication released this novel in the year 1997. Author Sharan has set the story of this novel in France and Spain at the time of the year 1142 A.D. The central characters mentioned by author Sharan in this story include Catherine LeVendeur, Edgar. At the beginning of the novel, it is shown that Catherine has experienced more than her fair share of thrills and adventures being the former novitiate of the Paraclete Order. Mostly, her path has been filled with murder and intrigue. Finally, when she decided to have love in her life instead of her churchly devotions by accepting the love of the Saxon nobleman named Edgar. With this decision of hers, her family hopes that the routine of a married life might help this unusual and headstrong woman to settle down. However, fate has a different way of showing things that are way beyond the expectation of everyone. Catherine experiences multiple miscarriages and stillborn child’s birth and then she gets inspired with a prophetic dream. Edgar and Catherine LeVendeur decide to go on a pilgrimage and visit the Compostela monastery. They petition the St James for blessing them with a child. When reach there, both of them take up the holy water and indulge in praying. Also, the journey shows many difficulties to Catherine and her husband as they come across mad monks, crusaders, etc. The past deeds of the pilgrims turns into a bizarre game. And when a few pilgrims get murdered gruesomely, the evidence trail point in the direction of an ancient sin and a villain who has been hiding for a long time and if Catherine decides to go for the quest, she might end up losing her life.