A forbidden secret…
The Church’s fate in the balance… priest Michael Dominic’s assignment to the Vatican’s legendary Secret Archives results in his discovery of a hidden papyrus: the unpublished writings of Mary Magdalene — a lost record buried in Rome’s deepest recesses. The forgotten relic’s heretical revelation threatens the Vatican’s very legitimacy, and pits Michael against ruthless and powerful enemies.
Desperate, he reaches out to Hana Sinclair, an investigative reporter with a record of tackling contentious subjects. Together they defy the Church elite, and embark on a search through the shadows of history to unearth the truth. As the pressure builds to silence the pair, will the Vatican resort to the unthinkable in order to safeguard its wealth and power?
Based on historical facts, this international thriller takes readers on a white-knuckle race through the holy sites of Europe. Get your copy of this award-winning tale and discover why Gary McAvoy’s devoted fans say, “I didn’t want this book to end!”
EDITORIAL REVIEWS”A great thriller that weaves numerous storylines together effectively. Recommended to those who love a good thriller with historical implications, as well as the reader who enjoys Vatican and Catholic politics… McAvoy creates a wonderful story that never stops building throughout… [He] captures the secrecy and deep-rooted history of the Vatican and its politics throughout this piece, with a strong story and plot that moves in many directions. McAvoy pulls the reader in and keeps them guessing, while also refusing to place a damper on the action. Juggling modern and ancient Church issues, McAvoy does not lose his reader at any point, as his writing is so clear that the attentive reader will likely want more.” — MATT PECHEY, REEDSY DISCOVERY.”Exquisitely written and highly entertaining, The Magdalene Deception is an investigative mystery in a very similar vein to The DaVinci Code…The real quality to this book is the author himself – the writing is superb. There is an outstanding attention to detail in McAvoy, and the setpieces he weaves are vivid, colourful and authentic; this author treats his audience as intelligent and attentive, and this is always hugely beneficial to any writer. As well as being an evidently well-educated historian, McAvoy also knows his stuff in terms of modern-day information networking and the technology in present day use alongside ancient practices and customs…” — MATT McAVOY BOOK REVIEWS (UK)PRAISE FOR GARY MCAVOY’S PREVIOUS WORK:“McAvoy has done a great job of bringing to life a history that is still alive and still terrifying, and now, perhaps, even richer.” — T. JEFFERSON PARKER, Edgar Award-winning author of Silent Joe, California Girl, and The Room of White Fire.“McAvoy has exhaustively researched…and produced a book that will keep the reader gripped until the very last word.” — TAWNI O’DELL, New York Times bestselling author of Back Roads, an Oprah’s Book Club selection.more
Ever since the publication of The DaVinci Code, I have had a fascination with the area around Rennes-le-Chateau/Carcassonne in southwestern France. As an adjunct to the area itself, I found the story of the Cathars and the Albigensian Crusade against them to be very interesting. Over the last decade, I have read several books, fiction and nonfiction, about the area and the people. In 2011, I even visited both cities.
THE MAGDALENE DECEPTION by GARY McAvoy is yet another entry in the Cathar legacy. The story opens in March 1244 as the last holdouts in the Castle Montsegur are about to surrender to the Crusaders led by King Louis of France. The night before their “final solution”, four Cathar men secretly depart the Castle with the treasure and holy relic(s) of the group. That event has been the subject of many books. What was the treasure and what were the relics that went missing?
Flash forward to the present. Father Michael Dominic has been installed at the Vatican through the good offices of his patron/godfather Cardinal Enrico Petrini of New York. His assignment is in the Vatican Archives, a place I would dearly love to visit because of all the secrets hidden there. The printed archives are being digitized and Father Michael is an expert in that field. When Napoleon sacked Rome in 1809, he took 3,000 crates of stuff to Paris. In 1814, only 700 were returned. The rest is still in France.
While doing research for his supervisor Father Calvino Mendoza, Dominic discovers a document that will lead him to Rennes-le-Chateau (a very small hilltop village), Paris and the story of Abbe Berenger Sauniere. The latter was a priest in that town late in the 19th and early 20th centuries. He built and rebuilt the local church and a manor house. When he died, he left everything to his friend and housekeeper Marie. Her grandniece is still alive and has some of Sauniere’s papers. One question that has baffled historians for a century is “Where did Sauniere get the money for his building projects?”
With the help of Hana Sinclair, a reporter for Le Monde newspaper and heiress to a Swiss banking fortune, and Karl Dengler a member of the Swiss Guards of the Vatican, Father Michael finds a document that could bring down the whole of Catholic religiosity.
Arrayed against the “good guys” are some malevolent individuals who will not hesitate to kill. Among the antagonists is Cardinal Fabrizio Dante, Vatican Secretary of State. His muscle is supplied by Petrov Govic a Croatian liaison to Interpol in Lyons, France. His father was a major leader of the Croation Ustasha who out Nazied the Nazis during WWII when it came to eliminating Jews and Romas in Croatia. The apple did not fall far from the tree.
A rip-roaring adventure with great characters. Even if you know nothing about the Cathars or the geographic areas, you will find the story riveting. There is even a hint at things to come and a tinge of romance. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!
GO! BUY! READ!
The Magdalene Deception by Gary McAvoy was an exciting read along the lines of Dan Brown’s Angels and Demon’s. A lot of intense build up as the two main characters, priest Michael Dominic and friend, Hanna Sinclair, an investigative reporter, investigate and uncover an old relic long buried and extremely important to the Christian church. This find can change the course of Christianity forever. Set, in part, in the Vatican library, this novel was suspenseful and intriguing as it leads you through various mini-plots as the main one unfolds. McAvoy pulls you in with a lot of history, seems to have done his research and makes you wonder if this is a true story. An enjoyable read. I received this novel as an early audio version in exchange for my honest opinion.
“What we have here is the classic riddle, wrapped in a mystery, and literally hidden inside an enigma.”
The Magdalene Deception by Gary McAvoy is a thrilling caper that turns the long-standing belief of Jesus’ resurrection on its head. Father Michael Dominic is assigned as an archivist at the Vatican, and Hana Sinclair is a reporter on the hunt for evidence on gold stolen from Jews during WWII. When Father Dominic accidentally discovers a document allegedly written by Mary Magdalene herself, the thrill ride begins in earnest. The Catholic Church has frequently engaged in cover ups and harbored secrets to protect the Holy See and everyone connected with the universal church. Some documents in the Vatican archives have not seen the light of day in over a thousand years. Until now!
The action is slow at first as the author sets the scene and introduces the major characters. Father Dominic is likable and relatable as he revels more in the ancient documents than in his priestly duties, even though he has plenty of faith and integrity as a man of the cloth. Hana and Father Dominic form a friendship and an alliance as they head to France to uncover more evidence to support both of their quests, but they have a shadow who has been instructed to steal any document that the duo discovers.
The action picks up remarkably when Father Dante at the Vatican reveals his true colors to the reader as someone who will go to great lengths to ensure Father Dominic does not succeed in revealing the valuable document to the world. Blackmail is a powerful tool for the greedy, and the Church will not give up its treasures, ancient documents, and secrets easily, as both Father Dominic and Hana discover. McAvoy masterfully pieces the story together with many points to ponder on the ramifications if the truth about such a major tenet of the Christian faith is revealed and if this ancient document falls into the wrong hands. The characters are all well developed and interesting, propelling the story along and luring the reader into the characters’ lives, foibles, and intentions, both good and evil.
No matter your beliefs, The Magdalene Deception will appeal because it is a fast-paced thriller that captures both the imagination and the attention to the earth-shattering possible veracity of Mary Magdalene’s declaration. While this story is a work of fiction, the author does base several aspects on historical facts, spinning quite the exciting tale. While it is hard not to compare this story to Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code, Gary McAvoy presents a unique story that is just as thrilling and intriguing in its own right. Well done!
I received a free copy of this book from Partners in Crime Virtual Book Tours in exchange for my honest review.
First and foremost I have to say that I am a Christian and I do believe emphatically in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. As a work of fiction I found the book to be a very well written, well researched, absorbing, entertaining and intriguing story.
The story revolves around a priest, Michael Dominic who through his position to categorize and archive documents in the Vatican library discovers something which could potentially turn the world of Christianity upside down.
The story is written around the conspiracy of Mary Magdalene much like Dan Brown’s novel, Gérard de Sède’s book ‘The Accursed Treasure’ in 1967 and Michael Baigent and Richard Leigh, with Henry Lincoln published the Holy Blood and the Holy Grail in 1982, before him. With various subplots, all well executed Mr. McAvoy skillfully holds your attention.
STEP ASIDE DAN BROWN!!
I haven’t read a novel that was so intriguing, fascinating, thrilling, edge-of-your-seat exciting, and historically accurate and informative in a very long time. The main protagonists are Michael Dominic, a priest transferred to the Vatican to work in their Secret Archives due to his expertise in medieval paleography and codicology, and ancient documents and texts; and, Hana Sinclair, a journalist and cousin to one of the Vatican Guards Michael befriends. In the course of his new position as an archivist, Michael discovers an ancient document, purportedly written by Mary Magdalene, which would destroy the very foundation of the Roman Catholic Church and Christian dogma if its’ contents were ever to become known. Trying to decide what he must do with the newly discovered information and document, Michael confides in Hana and Dr. Simon Ginzberg, another scholar of antique writings, and man considered to be a “treasure” of the Vatican.
Both Hana and Dr. Ginzberg are investigating the Vatican – Hana is trying to establish the Vatican’s involvement in the misappropriation and theft of treasures and gold bullion stolen from Nazi and Ustasha victims. She believes they are being held in the Vatican vaults. Dr. Ginzberg, as a as a survivor of Dachau Concentration Camp, is investigating the Vatican’s complacency during the Holocaust, and in particular the role of Pope Pius XII in collaborating with the Nazis. A very powerful man in the Vatican secretly hires a Ustasha assassin to halt the progress of these investigations. In the course of surveilling Michael and Hana, the assassin learns of the existence and significance of the Mary Magdalene text and receives instructions to secure that document at any cost and deliver it to the man who hired him.
This novel spans the ages and key historic events beginning with Jesus Christ on earth and Mary Magdalene, the annihilation of the last of the Cathars in 1244 (ordered by Pope Innocent III in 1209), the prophet Nostradamus, and the trial of Galileo, the 1885 mystery of Rennes-le-Château and the sudden acquisition of wealth by Abbé Bérenger Saunière, the rise of both the Nazi Party and the Ustasha and the atrocities and genocide committed against Jews, Gypsies, Mentally and Physically incapacitated individuals, Serbs from Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina as well as Croatian Communists by both groups before, during, and after World War II, and the role the Vatican played in each of these events including protecting and aiding in the escapes of Nazi and Ustasha war criminals after the Allied victory, as well as the plunder and concealment of billions of dollars worth of artifacts, art pieces [paintings, statutes, bronze works, manuscripts, etc.], money, gold and jewels stolen from the victims murdered during the genocides.
Mr. McAvoy shows he is a master craftsman and student of history who challenges the reader to release previously held beliefs and to instead re-interpret Church teachings and their actions over the past two thousand years within the reality of hindsight, and possibility and information refuted by documented evidence. The novel is well-written, well-researched and thoroughly intriguing. I was unable to put it down once I started reading and the adventure was well worth late nights and lack of sleep. I cannot wait for Mr. McAvoy to publish a sequel.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Gary McAvoy has set us up to be teased by this book. He has used an old heresy to get us. The so-called revelations by the fictional document are shown up by the meticulous research the author has done. The beautiful rooms and gardens of the Vatican are well-portrayed in this book. Father Dominic and Hana Sinclair get to travel around Europe in this story, and those locales are as well-researched as the Vatican locations. I enjoyed reading this book.
I read the description of this book & knew it was right up my alley. Unfortunately I struggled. I couldn’t keep focus. I restarted it 3 times and then finally had to force myself to listen to it.
That my friends is not enjoyable.
This had sort of a “Davinci Code” feeling to it. The idea of this book is great, but the beginning just seemed to drag on an on. It is very descriptive, which is great, but it droned me too sleep to many times.. I wanted this story to keep me on the edge of me seat.
I think this could have been a great story had it had more movement.
Special thanks to Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), Members’ Audiobooks & NetGalley.
#TheMagdaleneDeception #NetGalley
Da Vinci Code Like, But Disappointing in the End
Audiobook Review:
I could tell pretty quickly that the author was trying to create his own version of a Da Vinci Code like book. Since that book came out, many authors have imitated the style and/or plotline, some better than others. This one started out well, though perhaps the author had a bit too much of an explanation about Vatican history that felt a little too much like an info dump. As the book progresses, the author adds various strands that seem unrelated or tangential, though you hope the author will pull it all together in the end. The time the author took to create the separate strands and propel them into motion seemed to take up the bulk of the book, not really leaving enough room for tension to build on all plot and subplot lines. The story seemed disjointed at times and wrapped up too quickly. I didn’t think all the storylines truly intersected at the finale when they should have, making the end seem not quite in line with what went before. While it was an interesting listen, in the end, it left me disappointed.
I received a free copy of this audiobook, but that did not affect my review.
I had higher hopes for The Magdalene Deception by Gary McAvoy, unfortunately it fell a little short. Was it a bad book? Not at all, hense a 3 star rating. Was it descriptive? Yes, it was. I felt like I was there, but there was so many details it drug out too long. A good read for those who like these sort of books.
Thank you to BookSirens for the free digital copy in exchange for an honest and voluntary review of the book. All opinions are my own.