This novel is an anthem of tolerance and liberation of the soul. The Heretic is the story of a man and his passion that led him to engage in life. In this award-winning novel, receiving the Premio International - Spain's highest literary award - Miguel Delibes takes us to 16th-century Spain. When Martin Luther nailed his twenty-five theses to a church door, sparking a movement that would split the Roman Catholic Church. A child was born who was destined by the political and religious revolution rooted at that time in Europe. His mother died giving birth to him, and his father blamed him for her death, turning away from him. His only source of affection was his wet nurse and caretaker, Minervina. The child grew up in harsh conditions but became a successful merchant and joined the religious reform movement secretly spreading through the Iberian Peninsula, a historical stronghold of the Catholic Church where the Spanish Inquisition executed terrifying acts against reformers. Through the story of Salcedo, Delibes paints a powerful picture of that period in Spain's history, recreating with striking accuracy and high artistic craftsmanship the cultural and social atmosphere of Europe during a memorable era of religious tyranny and European history.