What did you know about the Spanish Inquisition and their methods before reading the book?

The threat of being suspected of heresy by the Spanish Inquisition hovers over Luzia even before we meet her in The Familiar. What did you know about the Spanish Inquisition and their methods before reading the book? Did you learn anything new about it?

I was familiar with the historical and religious issues of the Spanish Inquisition. I was not aware of the magical powers the converso may or may not have had and what they did with those powers. This made for a very interesting plot.

I knew some historical/religious things from reading other books. Not much about magic and implications it had in the inquisition, though I guess magic would be heretical so I could have implied. This book was very interesting as it unfolded the storyline around all of this.

Having previously read novels that included features of the Spanish Inquisition, I was quite familiar.

I didn’t know very much. I was so sad to see that Jews were persecuted, especially with what is going on in the United States today. Will it ever end?

I know the Spanish Inquisition was terrible and did horrible things to people, but I simply can't hear "Spanish Inquisition" without mentally thinking "Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition! Bring out the comfy chair!" (Sorry, I know it's just wrong, but...)

Monty Python aside, somehow I knew of their persecutions, but I can't really remember where I picked up the knowledge. And I don't think I knew that their "specialty" was targeting conversos.

I have read historical fiction in the past based on this time period. I am not a huge fan of this time, or the puritan times, as the women are put into such hard sided boxes - due to the time period, they just cannot be strong independent smart women, thus not that appealing to me. I think Bardugo tried with her females but they were still held to the rules of the time. I felt there was opportunity for more supporting cast members that were persecuted that were missed.

I knew nothing so I found the book quite interesting.

I studied in Spain during college, and I've met Spanish people who only recently learned that their ancestors were conversos.
One of my favorite novels -- People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks -- features a text and people who created that text pursued by the Inquisition.
Another favorite that takes place during the Inquisition: The Rose of Fire, which is part of Carlos Ruiz Zafon's The Cemetery of Lost Books series.

I had the basic knowledge of the inquisition from history classes-I was aware of the torture and horrible injustices that occurred in the name of religion. I do not recall much about the conversos-other than they existed and that they were always targeted.

The Spanish Inquisition was bad for a great number of people. Spain was a very powerful country at that time and what it did in the Inquisition reverberated throughout Europe and Asia. King Philip's loss to the " Wicked Queen" Elizabeth devastated him driving the Inquisition more.

I had always associated the Spanish Inquisition as a forced religious practice to convert or torture and kill those who would not convert. I hadn’t really thought about the “heretic” being used to convict those suspected of witchcraft, although knowing how men in power have always used witchcraft as a means to silence smart women in the past, I should have deducted that rationale!

I knew about the persecutions, trials and the deaths and how outrageous things were shamefully done in the name of religion.

I was an undergraduate European history major so knew a fair amount. The author gets the details right, especially that the condemned were turned over to the civil authority because the Church couldn’t shed blood (seems as if this didn’t always apply with warrior popes)

I knew very little about the Spanish Inquisition beyond torture and execution were the primary means of controlling people. I did not remember all the categories of people who were arrested, imprisoned and then subjected to torture in order to force a confession to their various “crimes”, which often was simply being different. I would imagine many people “confessed” just to put an end to their torture and agony, which probably resulted in execution anyway.

I knew it was brutal and violent.

I had a wonderful undergraduate teacher who taught the Renaissance classics, one of which was Voltaire's Candide, in which Voltaire tackled the Jesuits, Torquemada and the auto-da-fe, so I believed I knew quite a bit about Spain's condemnation of heretics and apostates. My knowledge, however, was minuscule compared to the milieu and powerful players described in The Familiar.

I learned about the Spanish Inquisition in school, but I don't remember most of the finer details. I know that's its stated purpose was to root out heresy, but in reality it helped the monarchy consolidate power. It lasted several hundred years and led to widespread death and suffering.

I learned about the Spanish Inquisition in school, but I don't remember most of the finer details. I know that's its stated purpose was to root out heresy, but in reality it helped the monarchy consolidate power. It lasted several hundred years and led to widespread death and suffering.

I knew very little and found myself putting the book down to do research. For me, that is a bonus when a book has me doing additional reading to learn about the time period or place and in this case both!

Only from Monty Python, which I doubt was historically accurate, though their presentation was funny.

I was pretty familiar with this topic. I'd been to Spain and knew that the Catholic Church was built upon the foundations of Synagogues and Mosques. However, her descriptions make it very personal and real.

I was somewhat familiar with the Spanish Inquisition from novels, history books and Monty Python (lol).

I knew some things about it, but it was something else to see it depicted so vividly in the book. I've read about the expulsion of the Jews from Spain and Portugal and about the lives of conversos, but reading about the spies, trials, and methods of torture was distressing, to say the least. It must have been hard for Bardugo to write some of those parts. I also thought her portrayal of the experience of hiding one's religion and knowing it only in fragments was insightful and nuanced (if heartbreaking).

Not much - this is not an era that I enjoy reading about.