Historical fiction book · Curated
Pope Joan
Donna Woolfolk Cross · historical fiction
In the ninth century, a canon’s daughter hides her sex, takes her dead brother’s name, and rises from a Fulda monastery to Rome as scholar, healer, and—according to the legend—pope. Donna Woolfolk Cross’s international bestseller is medieval biographical historical fiction of learning, disguise, and a woman the church spent a thousand years denying.
Why read it: A gateway medieval biographical novel—head-term historical fiction of the female-pope legend, set on the Continent rather than in Norman England.
About this historical novel
Pope Joan by Donna Woolfolk Cross is historical fiction set around 814–857 in the Medieval period with key settings including Ingelheim, Fulda, Rome, Frankish Empire. In the ninth century, a canon’s daughter hides her sex, takes her dead brother’s name, and rises from a Fulda monastery to Rome as scholar, healer, and—according to the legend—pope. Donna Woolfolk Cross’s international bestseller is medieval biographical historical fiction of learning, disguise, and a woman the church spent a thousand years denying.
On HisFic we tag it under 4. Biographical fiction and 1. Literary historical fiction so you can pair it with similar story types. Recurring themes include disguise, learning, faith, power, and women. A gateway medieval biographical novel—head-term historical fiction of the female-pope legend, set on the Continent rather than in Norman England.
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Plot summary
In the ninth century, a canon’s daughter hides her sex, takes her dead brother’s name, and rises from a Fulda monastery to Rome as scholar, healer, and—according to the legend—pope. Donna Woolfolk Cross’s international bestseller is medieval biographical historical fiction of learning, disguise, and a woman the church spent a thousand years denying. A gateway medieval biographical novel—head-term historical fiction of the female-pope legend, set on the Continent rather than in Norman England.
Subgenres
Eras
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Regions & places
Europe
Ingelheim · Fulda · Rome · Frankish Empire
Themes
- disguise
- learning
- faith
- power
- women
Tags
bestseller · book-club · biographical