Elenor--Ramsay--Thomas--Gregory--The sending--Bird of the east--France--Ambrose--Ascension--River--Paris--Pipeau--Book--Frogs and owls--The lady in the barrow--Mulberries--Poitou--Heroes--Possessions--Martin--Astray--Pierre Maury--The saracen--Contradance--Bonds--The brigata--Calvary--Slowing--The valley--Misericordia--Martin's wait--The ramsay scallop

The year is 1299.Fourteen-year-old Elenor reluctantly awaits the return of her betrothed- a man she hardly knows-from the Crusade. Thomas, broken and disillusioned from years of fighting finds the very idea of marriage and lordship overwhelming. So when the village priest sends them on a religious pilgrimage before the marriage, both are relieved. The journey means a postponement of the dreaded nuptials, and a last chance for adventure. As Elenor and Thomas wend their way toward the shrine of St.James they meet many other pilgrims-each with their own extraordinary tales to tell and ideas to share. There is Etienne, a passionate student of philosophy; Brother Ambrose, gentle teacher of schoolboys; practical marthe, eager for a decent life for her children. And gradually Elenor and Thomas come to realize the glorious possibilities of the world around them... and within each other.

English