Showing The Betrayal: A Novel on John Calvin by Douglas Bond

Set amidst the backdrop of the scholarship and humanism of renaissance France, and its love of luxury, power, and decadence, this fast-paced biographical novel on John Calvin is told from the perspective of a rival whose envy escalates to violent intrigue and shameless betrayal. The Betrayal is the tale of the private war of one man who was determined to sell all for a convoluted allegiance to the King of France and the jealous Doctors of the Sorbonne, even if it cost him his own soul. Get set for royal intrigue, desperate escapes, violent martyrdom, hazard-all romance and loss, high-risk debate, and sword-point confession in this tale, one that is at last a story of how God uses the humility and unflinching faithfulness of one man to break down the barrenness and bitterness of another—all accomplished by grace alone.

Back Cover Copy
“Privileged Calvin had every reason to pray and revel in God’s kindnesses, but I, that night, looked heavenward with a scowl. . . .
“‘God above, if you are there, you are most unkind to me. . . . Therefore, will I not serve you, will I not worship you, will I not obey you. Henceforth, I give of myself to those powers that most work against you, against your will and ways, and against your servants.’
“It was a prayer that invigorated me, made me feel emancipated from divine oppression and injustice, the master of myself and my fortunes, the bold possessor of new freedoms.”

So begins the private war of one man…

“Anything Doug Bond writes is, almost now by definition, a fascinating read.But to have his skills attached to the life of John Calvin is a double treat.”
— JOEL BELZ, founder, World magazine
“If you enjoy reading the fictional works of C. S. Lewis, you will love this book.”
—BURK PARSONS, editor, Tabletalk magazine
“An exciting read, almost effortlessly and implicitly undoing caricatures aboutCalvin along the way . . . Calvin and his times brought to life in a page-turner!”
—JOEL R. BEEKE, president, Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary

DOUGLAS BOND heads the English department at Covenant High School in Tacoma and is the writer of several successful historical fiction books. Bond lives with his wife, two daughters, and four sons in Washington State.