In The Nostradamus Prophecy, Theresa Breslin is fearless in taking on a bewilderingly complex period of French History, the Wars of Religion, and at the beginning of the novel runs into the danger of providing too much background and allowing fact to swamp the narrative.
She manages to avoid this trap by tying events to the story of Mˇlisande, her engaging young heroine, and her family of minstrels, as they try to survive on the margins of great courts and by the patronage of powerful men at a time of savage violence and murderous hatreds. The story is given a different spin through Mˇlisande's involvement with the legendary prophet Nostradamus. However, Breslin firmly resists the temptation to take us down the quasi-mystical path trampled out by Dan Brown and Kate Mosse and uses the prophecies in ways that fit the time and add texture to the novel. As events gather pace, the novel begins to gain narrative tension and we are led to a gripping conclusion. In this, it is all that a good historical novel should be.