The flourishing of mysticism in the Hispanic world attracted considerable attention during the early modern period and, in recent years, has been the subject of extensive study by scholars. In this new collection, Hilaire Kallendorf has brought together both younger and more established scholars in the field to show the breadth and depth of that scholarship. In the introduction, Kallendorf articulates a clear tension that pervades the collection. On the one hand, she explains how she hopes to “expand the mystical canon” (3). On the other hand, she wants to “introduce graduate students or new scholars” to the subject matter (3). As a result, the collection lacks continuity; however, some of the seventeen articles by scholars in Spanish literature, Religious Studies, History, and Music are better at achieving the first goal, while others succeed at the second.

Although Kallendorf hopes to “expand the mystical canon,” not surprisingly, many of the essays deal directly or indirectly with the most well known mystic of the period, Teresa of Avila. Her mystical writings and the scholarship on her works provide the framework for most of the scholarship. Some of the authors like Luce Lopez-Baralt, focus solely on one aspect of Teresa's work. However, many of the authors are clearly working to “expand the mystical canon” either by looking at lesser-known figures like Cecilia del Nacimiento and Juana de la Cruz or by taking very different perspectives on what constitutes mystical activity. In his essay on religious autobiography, Francisco Durán López takes a very broad view of mystical activity, nearly equating all authors of spiritual autobiographies with mystics. Freddy Domínguez, in his study of María de la Visitación, sees mystical activity as the source of authority for an otherwise problematic holy woman. In contrast, Glyn Redforth focuses on the limitations of mysticism, arguing in his essay on Luisa de Carvajalthat that “a mystic must want to be seen as such” (294). Still others expand the canon by taking different approaches to mysticism and mystical writings. Christina Lee considers Cervantes's use of mysticism in his novel The Trial of Persiles and Sigismunda and Tess Knight looks at the presence of music in mystical writings. Both María Mercedes Carrión's study of the use of mudéjar elements and Maryrica Lottman's piece on the garden in Teresa's work focus on the relationship between mysticism and space. As a part of this attempt to expand the canon, two of the essays explore the connections between old world mysticism and new world spirituality. Herrera's study of the influences of Catherine of Siena and Teresa on Jerónima Nava y Saavedra in Bogotá and Francisco Morales's discussion of the connections between Franciscan mysticism and Nahua spirituality both take a more Atlantic approach to “Hispanic,” but the collection is quite clearly situated on the peninsula.

As for the second objective of the text, only three of the essays can truly be considered introductions to the subject matter: José Adrian de Freitas Carvalho's survey of Portuguese mysticism, Alastair Hamilton's overview of the Alumbrado heresy, and Darcy Donahue's essay on Ignatius Loyola. Each of these articles provides enough basic information for someone new to the field to get a grasp on the main figures and the formative issues. However, even these works lack a clear introduction to the state of the field. Indeed, one of the difficulties of employing this book as an introduction to Hispanic mysticism is that few of the scholars situate their work vis à vis the other secondary literature. For that, readers new to the topic will have to make use of the very extensive bibliography at the end of the volume. Moreover, the essays do not engage one another and there is no concluding essay, so the reader is hard pressed to come to any comprehensive conclusions about the state of the study of Hispanic mysticism.

As diverse as the contributions to this collection are, I was struck by three significant lacunae. First, I was surprised that although gender analysis has been a critical feature of the scholarship on women religious and mystical activity, it does not receive its own treatment and is only briefly mentioned in a few essays. Second, the volume would have benefitted from a contribution by an art historian. Finally, there is no comprehensive discussion of the Catholic Reformation Church's complex relationship with mysticism. An essay that probed the Church's ambivalence about this controversial spiritual endeavor would have helped to provide critical context for the rest of the essays.

Overall, A New Companion to Hispanic Mysticism offers some fine examples of recent scholarship, but it will be most useful to scholars already familiar with the key figures, texts, and issues associated with Spanish mysticism.