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Every now and then a new young-adult novel appears that startles readers with its breathtaking originality. "The Passion of Dolssa" by Julie Berry fits into this category.

Set against the backdrop of the Inquisition, this is the story of two young women and their unlikely friendship — the earthy peasant Botille and the high-born mystic Dolssa, who is being pursued by a fanatical priest for her alleged heresy. The beauty of this lush, intelligent book is that it convincingly portrays life in medieval Europe while also providing insight into contemporary experience.

Berry shares her thoughts on the newly launched "The Passion of Dolssa."

How did "The Passion of Dolssa" come to be?

Years ago I thought it would be fun to recast "Macbeth's" three witches as teenage sisters running a roadside inn. I also thought it would be interesting to write about a teenage matchmaker. And I've always been drawn to the mystics. None of these ideas coalesced until I first stumbled upon the history of the Albigensian Crusade in southern France and the inquisitions that followed it. I began looking into it more. Eventually I had a "eureka" moment while driving one day. I parked the car and wrote in my notebook, "Write a novel about a mystic girl accused of heresy who escapes execution and is helped by a tavern-keeping girl who's also a matchmaker." Et voilĂ .

What kind of research did you do?

My sister and I retraced Dolssa's journey from Toulouse to Bages and every step in between. The castles, abbeys, cathedrals and museums were a dream come true for this little Francophile. Strolling through vineyards, sinking my toes into the Mediterranean and daydreaming in fields of poppies ("coquelicots") were even better. And the food!

As for couch-based research, I filled a gigantic basket full of books, maps, dictionaries, pamphlets and notebooks on heresy, the Albigensian Crusade, architecture, cooking, politics, prostitution, Dominicans, clothing and word origins. That basket and I spent the better part of two years together. It was rigorous and absorbing work, frustrating as I tried to penetrate such a knotty historical narrative, and finally joyful as I began to gain a better understanding. I also corresponded with historians, whom I peppered with questions. Their patience and generosity are why this book exists today.

Yet your research never overwhelms the story itself. How did you achieve this kind of balance?

It's so tempting to swim blissfully in the warm waters of research and emerge believing all your readers will be as mesmerized by the details as you were. I tried hard to steer the novel between the Scylla of too much research and the Charybdis of not enough. It was difficult. Readers without prior knowledge of the history would need a wagonload of information in order to understand Dolssa and Botille's motivations. A preface, my wise editor insisted, was out of the question. And she was right. Her guidance deserves much of the credit for helping the pieces fit.

Did you learn anything new or unexpected that particularly fascinated you?

The events in 13th-century southern France were flabbergasting to me. We might assume that we're sophisticated or jaded enough to be unfazed by the horrors of history, but when we face certain atrocities head on — Hitler's concentration camps, gas chambers, Stalin's labor camps, Bosnian Genocide — if they don't break our hearts, then we don't have hearts in the first place. The Albigensian Crusade and its merciless inquisitional aftermath are all the more bewildering because they originated in the highest rankings of the church, from pastors for Christ. They felt they were doing his work by ordering this butchery. That's what's so chilling about it. St. Thomas Aquinas, a revered 13th-century theologian, wrote about the regretful necessity of this war. It doesn't negate his life's work; if anything, such thorny complexities should make us consider what we may be condoning through our actions or silence, our votes or purchases, that is inconsistent with our deep values.

What were the hardest and most rewarding things for you about writing this novel?

Dolssa, the mystic, who has traded everything life might offer her for the chance to be one with the divine, is the most ethereal character in the book and the hardest to pin down. How can modern readers understand what it's like to see God, or believe that you do, and to want him more than you want life itself? I rewrote and rewrote her passages in search of the truest way to share her passion with readers.

The project plumbed my own hidden corners. That made it terrifying to write, and even more so to share with the world. But it was also a moving experience. It sounds [like a] cliché, but I felt I knew my characters intimately and loved them desperately. They are the writer's reward. I cry every time I read the scene about Martin and Lisette's baby, still, and I wrote it, for heaven's sake.

I once heard a writer say that religion is the last taboo in mainstream literature for young readers. Any thoughts on this front?

If this is so, I hope it's changing. "The Distance Between Lost and Found" by Kathryn Holmes is a timely mainstream example and very well done.

Teens have pressing questions about religion, whether they are raised with religion or not, and whether they're disposed toward belief or nonbelief. Why, they might ask, do some people seem so sure of their faith, yet I feel sure of nothing? Why does religion make people do the horrible things they do? Why can't others understand the beautiful things I've felt? Why are some religious people so admirable and kind, while others seem self-righteous and judgmental? Why do people look down at me for going to church? Why is religion something I'm told not to talk about except in a small handful of settings? Religion is a puzzling landscape, especially if we step outside our certainties to examine it anew. And that, I think, is where most teens are, with their certainties still forming, and opinions very much in flux. Surely we can move past our fear of causing denominational offense or being accused of evangelizing and talk about religion with teens. —

Meet the author

Julie Berry will read from and sign copies of "The Passion of Dolssa."

When • Tuesday, April 26, 7 p.m.

Where • The King's English, 1511 S. 1500 East, Salt Lake City

"The Passion of Dolssa"

By Julie Berry

Viking Books for Young Readers

496 pages

$18.99