At the stroke of a pen, Sister Cassandra Lalonde has gone from being a teacher in an orphanage to a nurse in a psychiatric hospital, and her beloved students have been “reclassified” as mental patients. Set against the backdrop of Québec’s Great Darkness of the 1940s and ‘50s, Day of Epiphany tells a haunting, riveting story inspired by true event of the Duplessis orphans scandal, a much overlooked national tragedy.
Invisible to society, and with no rights under the law, the children of Sainte-Madeleine Institute are subjected to experimental treatments and unspeakable abuse. Alone against the combined powers of the Catholic Church, the autocratic government of Maurice Duplessis, and the province’s medical authorities, Cassandra must resort to increasingly drastic measures to protect those under her care. When Cassandra’s plans to save one of her best and brightest students all apart, she renounces her vows and is left to pick up the threads of a shocking criminal scandal with roots stretching far beyond the walls of Sainte-Madeleine.
This is a story of faith and betrayal, irreconcilable loyalties, and one courageous woman’s dauntless humanity in the face of institutionalized oppression. Part historical fiction and part mystery, with the atmosphere of a noir thriller, Day of Epiphany underscores a transformative moment in Canadian history.
Allo Jérome. Félicitations! Je m’en commande une copie.