The historical fiction novel, Blaze of Silver by K.M Grant, is the third book in the series. In this installment, Earl William and the people of his home land of Hartslove, Ellie, Marissa, Marie, Elric, the squire, Hal, and of course the beautiful horse, Hosanna grieve after the loss of Will’s brother, Gavin in the third crusade. Now, Will has been asked to deliver the ransom to free King Richard. On their travels they drop off Marissa at a convent where she will live and they are hijacked by a Muslim ruler they call Old Man. There, Will must defend himself by competing in a traditional jousting tournament. In this book K.M. Grant conveyed Medieval aspects of convent well through their wealth, intention of joining a convent and vows of chastity and depicted the jousting tournaments through traditions, the relationship between knight and squire and the reason for jousting, well. The economic status of convents were correctly …show more content…
Some included devotion, education opportunity, to be abstinent and to escape their lives at home. In the book Marissa knew she would never marry because she walked with a limp and was not beautiful enough, so she asked to be taken to the convent. She explains to Will her reasoning, “‘I am just the kind of spare girl who moulders away and everybody’s relieved when they die. Even if you give me a dowery, who’s going to marry me? I’ve got no land and I limp’”(67). The character of Marissa is an accurate example of why women would join convents in Medieval Europe. To join a convent or monastery, one must make a vow of chastity. When the pretty girls arrived and the young boys were attracted to them and tried to resist temptation, “The advent of the two young women made the younger monks restless and distracted, and it was best to get them out of sight” (74). Monasteries were under Latin rule and the rules made the nuns and monks take a vow of chastity, poverty and obedience