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Juan Miñana
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The Jaquemart Kindle Edition

by Juan Miñana (Author), Cath Forrest (Translator) Format: Kindle Edition
4.0 4.0 out of 5 stars 7 ratings
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A summer of plague in 17th Century Barcelona. A doctor fights the epidemic while a mysterious patient does battle with time itself. An atmospheric historical novel with a metaphysical twist by Juan Miñana.
A jaquemart is an automaton, the mechanical statue that strikes the bell with its hammer to mark the hours on a public clock. The intricate clockwork innards that bring it to life are crafted with delicate human skill.
Royal watchmaker Juan de Ameno works obsessively on a jaquemart for the clocktower of Barcelona cathedral, a bronze figure with a sinister resemblance to himself that he hopes will bring him some kind of immortality. As the Black Cloaked Lady of the plague spreads death through the wards of the Holy Cross hospital, where monks tend the sick and aromatic bonfires burn in the courtyards, Doctor Buenaventura Deulocrega tries to persuade him to take a gentler, more human approach to the passing of Time.
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  1. Print length
    280 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  4. Publication date
    September 23, 2020
  5. File size
    2593 KB
  6. Page Flip
    Enabled
  7. Word Wise
    Enabled
  8. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
  9. See all details
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Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B08K2KXWV3
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Jack & Mare Publishing (September 23, 2020)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ September 23, 2020
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 2593 KB
  • Simultaneous device usage ‏ : ‎ Unlimited
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 280 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.0 4.0 out of 5 stars 7 ratings

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Juan Miñana

Juan Miñana

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Customer reviews

4 out of 5 stars
4 out of 5
7 global ratings

Top review from the United States

Patrick Murphy
2.0 out of 5 stars Atmospheric but boring
Reviewed in the United States on February 2, 2021
Verified Purchase
I purchased this book ( Kindle ) on the recommendation of a friend who knows the translator. It was apparently self published so I wanted to support her . As some of the reviews say, it was very atmospheric but it dragged on and on. Kind of like torture. It was interesting that the setting has towns and cities trying ( unsuccessfully ) to deal with a plaque. Don’t know if what they did is historically accurate ( large bon fires around the town burning aromatic herbs to clean the are and people chewing garlic ) but It seems plausible.
Would I recommend it? Maybe.
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Top reviews from other countries

I. Lewis
5.0 out of 5 stars Vivid depiction of life in medieval Spain
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 20, 2021
Verified Purchase
Through simple, vivid prose, the reader is transported to the world of medieval Spain and observes the lives of Franciscan healers during an outbreak of plague.

The healers spend their days mixing, grinding, boiling and transforming strange ointments and potions, and the text is dense with sensory depictions of the sights, sounds, colours, smells and activities that make up their world.

"As usual, Ot would not be accompanying the master on his rounds that day. They talked for a moment by the blaze of burning rosemary, lavender, and thyme. Buenaventura Duelocrega watched him disappear towards the kitchens, rattling his brittle old bones and panting garlic-breath. Then he gave a deep sigh, looking around at the stone arches, the white and blue bakery, like a little arab temple, the spiked railings guarding the open cellars, the sharp tips of the cypresses against the windows of the Founders’ House, which were beginning to shine as though glazed in sugar. He too was still chewing his garlic – fiery medicine. On the stairs leading to the Saint Roque ward there was a bare patch trailing up all the steps, as though they had been brushed very lightly by something going up or down. The master paused for a moment, half way to the upper floor. The moans and sighs coming from the ward could already be heard when the friar on duty opened the doors for him."

A vague and subtle air of mystery is always in the background as the story unfolds, and we encounter the jaquemart, a mechanical statue "in which the arts of watchmaking and magic blend into one".

"He had visited the old man’s workshop, where he was repairing a complicated astronomical table clock that had arrived broken at the palace, among gifts from a French ambassador. Turriano had been summoned from his home in Toledo to mend the delicate mechanism. His sight was failing him, his hand unsteady, but the boy had shown enough aptitude to follow his master’s instructions with dedication. He could name the tools in the chests. He was learning how to polish with a file, tinker with the beat, adjust the fragile springs and understand the function of every cog. He also listened to the wizard’s stories, as he told of fabulous devices, astraria in towers, Italian clocks more accurate than the sun. It was in this workshop that Juanito de Amenós first heard tell of a jaquemart. For several nights his dreams were filled with the image of a moving statue, in which the arts of watchmaking and magic blended into one."
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Nat Jansz
5.0 out of 5 stars More than ever we need to read this book set in Barcalona during the 17th Century plague
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 1, 2021
Verified Purchase
Translated from Catalan with luminous clarity by Cath Forrest, this tale of the 17th Century plague years in Barcelona will pique your curiosity and introduce you to some beautifully layered and enigmatic characters. Medical practice and the state of knowledge about plague and its vectors in the 17th century is interwoven so adroitly into the fabric of this tale that modern notions seem to dissolve. I found myself marvelling at the wisdom and observational skills that were so essential to physicians at the time. Highly recommended.
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AMB
5.0 out of 5 stars A wonderful story
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 17, 2021
Verified Purchase
This brilliantly researched historical novel takes place during the plague in Renaissance Spain. Not only is the atmosphere and detail of the times meticulously conjured, but the characters in the story are quirky and engaging. A book guaranteed to intrigue and give pleasure and whose characters will stay with you.
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