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The Folger Spotlight

'The Familiar' by Leigh Bardugo

Folger Book Club convenes on Thursday, December 5 with a discussion of The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo. To get ready for the conversation, we compiled some introductory information on this lush historical fantasy.

What is The Familiar about?

The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo

From the New York Times bestselling author of Ninth HouseHell Bent, and creator of the Grishaverse series comes a highly anticipated historical fantasy set during the Spanish Golden Age

In a shabby house, on a shabby street, in the new capital of Madrid, Luzia Cotado uses scraps of magic to get through her days of endless toil as a scullion. But when her scheming mistress discovers the lump of a servant cowering in the kitchen is actually hiding a talent for little miracles, she demands Luzia use those gifts to better the family’s social position.

What begins as simple amusement for the bored nobility takes a perilous turn when Luzia garners the notice of Antonio Pérez, the disgraced secretary to Spain’s king. Still reeling from the defeat of his armada, the king is desperate for any advantage in the war against England’s heretic queen—and Pérez will stop at nothing to regain the king’s favor.

Determined to seize this one chance to better her fortunes, Luzia plunges into a world of seers and alchemists, holy men and hucksters, where the line between magic, science, and fraud is never certain. But as her notoriety grows, so does the danger that her Jewish blood will doom her to the Inquisition’s wrath. She will have to use every bit of her wit and will to survive—even if that means enlisting the help of Guillén Santangel, an embittered immortal familiar whose own secrets could prove deadly for them both.

Critical Reception

“Leigh Bardugo’s The Familiar is an entertaining slice of speculative fiction wrapped in historical fiction and delivered with heavy doses of magic and wit.” —NPR

“Fans of Bardugo’s work will find “The Familiar” a thrilling addition to her canon about oppression and liberation, and anyone interested in this historical period and the themes she’s exploring will find it engrossing. . . an essential read.” —Washington Post

“Lush, gorgeous, precise language and propulsive plotting sweep readers into a story as intelligent as it is atmospheric.”—Kirkus Reviews

“. . . haunting in a way that will stay with you well after the last page.” —Publishers Weekly

Why did we choose this book?

The Folger Shakespeare Library’s collection explores not only Shakespeare’s life and works, but also the plays’ historical context, source material, critical and performance histories, and the ways in which they inspire and are adapted by contemporary novelists. Folger Book Club explores connections between contemporary fiction and the Folger’s mission, collection, and programming.

Set in late Spanish Golden Age , The Familiar takes place concurrent with Shakespeare’s emergence as a playwright in London, offering a view of what was happening elsewhere in Europe as he gained prominence. Moreover, one of the historical characters depicted in the novel, Antonio Pérez, is believed to have inspired Don Adriano de Armado in Shakespeare’s Love’s Labor’s Lost.

About the author: Leigh Bardugo

From the author’s website

Leigh Bardugo is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The FamiliarNinth House and the creator of the Grishaverse (now a Netflix original series) which spans the Shadow and Bone trilogy, the Six of Crows duology, the King of Scars duology—and much more.  Her short fiction has appeared in multiple anthologies including The Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy. She lives in Los Angeles and is an associate fellow of Pauli Murray College at Yale University.

Content Transparency

The Familiar includes potentially sensitive subjects. Expand below for a full list of content (may include spoilers).

December’s Bookstore Partner

For this session, we are excited to once again partner with Solid State Books. With two storefronts, ideally situated in the heart of the bustling and historic H Street and 14th Street Corridors, Solid State Books is a vital intellectual and social hub.  To learn more and see opening hours, visit their website at solidstatebooksdc.com.

We would like to thank the following organization for its generous support of this program

Junior League of Washington

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