Unexplained murders, ancient secrets, and hidden passions prompt Johanna, a young and brilliant archeologist, to explore the mysteries of one of the most intriguing sacred monuments: Mont Saint-Michel. In the beginning of the 11th century, ambitious monks decided to erect a spectacular abbey in the name of the archangel Michael, the leader of souls crossing over into the beyond.

A thousand years later, Johanna finds herself trapped in an enigma where the past and present, imaginary and real, become blurred. Ever since childhood she has been haunted by recurring dreams involving murders and love affairs in the ancient monastery. Each ends the same way, with a headless monk uttering a cryptic phrase: ad accedendum ad caelum, terram fodere opportet (To enter heaven one must dig into the earth). Johanna does just that, attempting to discover the key to her visions by embarking on an archeological journey into the depths of Mont Saint-Michel. As her scientific research mixes with the supernatural she desperately tries to maintain her grip on reality, especially when suspicious events happening around her begin to mirror those of the distant past.

Johanna launches into her quest surrounded by a host of men with keen interest in her research: François, the Minister of Cultural Monuments and her married lover; Simon, the cultivated antique dealer with a strange connection to the abbey; Guillaume, the dreamer who develops an intriguing passion for Johanna’s work; and Patrick Fenoy, a jealous archeologist ready to sabotage Johanna at all costs. Intertwined is the story of two 11th century monks, Brother Almodius, the brutal calculator consumed by his dark instincts, and Brother Roman, a romantic who finds himself embroiled in a forbidden, dangerous love affair.

La Promesse de l’Ange is a metaphysical journey, a heart-stopping mystery and an erudite promenade through Romanesque art, architecture, and the Benedictine order. It won the 2004 “Prix des Maisons de la Presse.”