The Apostates

From the WINNER of the Barbara Hammond Trophy

It's 1550 and Bethia has fled Antwerp, with her infant son, before the jaws of the inquisition clamp down, for the family are accused of secret judaising. She believes they've evaded capture but her husband, Mainard, unbeknownst to her, is caught, imprisoned and alone.

Reaching Geneva, Bethia hopes for respite from a dangerous journey, but it's a Protestant city state which tolerates no dissent - and she's a Catholic. And why has Mainard not come?

Perhaps he's already reached Venice where Jews can live openly and the Virgin smiles benignly from every corner... yet, soon she will discover, much is hidden beneath the smooth waters of this perilous city.