Rating: 
Summary: Biased
Review: This is not an impartial work. It is clear from the introduction that the author is a Catholic apologist for the Inquisition and despises all hertics and infidels. The culmination is the use of the word "recrudescence" of the heresy. An unbiased writer would say "resurgence". Oh, by the way, thousands were burned at the stake before the Inquisition took over the final mopping up operation. Generously, few tortures were recorded (and thus none happened); occasionally prisoners were merely shackled in small rat-infested cells and fed bread and water until they confessed, but they were not tortured. Yecch!Near the end, the Cathars are criticized as being "unsure" of some irrelevant doctrinal points because they did not all agree. Only a True Believer can be truly despicable. There are other books about Montaillou that may be better. If you really have to read this, read "The Perfect Heresy" first. You may think O'Shea is also biased (though I find him quite agreeable), but at least you will start with the broader context and end up with a more balanced viewpoint. It is also a more exciting story.
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