The Book of Love (The Magdalene Line) and over one million other books are available for Amazon Kindle. Learn more

FREE Shipping on orders over $25.

Used - Very Good | See details
 
   
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
Start reading The Book of Love (The Magdalene Line) on your Kindle in under a minute.

Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.
Sorry, this item is not available in
Image not available for
Color:
Image not available

To view this video download Flash Player

 

The Book of Love (The Magdalene Line) [Deckle Edge] [Hardcover]

Kathleen McGowan
4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (106 customer reviews)


Available from these sellers.


Formats

Amazon Price New from Used from
Kindle Edition $23.30  
Hardcover, Bargain Price $10.40  
Hardcover, Deckle Edge, March 10, 2009 --  
Paperback $27.00  
Audio, CD --  
Audible Audio Edition, Unabridged $29.95 or Free with Audible 30-day free trial
This Book Is Bound with "Deckle Edge" Paper
You may have noticed that some of our books are identified as "deckle edge" in the title. Deckle edge books are bound with pages that are made to resemble handmade paper by applying a frayed texture to the edges. Deckle edge is an ornamental feature designed to set certain titles apart from books with machine-cut pages. See a larger image.

Book Description

March 10, 2009 The Magdalene Line
Maureen Paschal thought she might rest and work on her book after discovering the gospel written by Mary Magdalene that revealed Jesus and Mary Magdalene were married. The truth of their story rocked the world and made Maureen a target of those who did not like her discovery and a heroine to those who did.

Then Maureen receives a strange package containing what looks like an ancient letter written in Latin and signed with a symbol. She discovers that its author is an extraordinary woman whom history has overlooked -- or covered up -- Countess Matilda of Tuscany, and in the letter Matilda demands the return of her "most precious books and documents." Maureen soon finds herself in a race across Italy and France, where hidden dangers await her and her lover, Bérenger, as they begin to realize that they are on the trail of another explosive discovery: the Book of Love, the Gospel written in Jesus' own hand.

As Maureen learns more about Matilda, an eleventhcentury warrior countess who was secretly married to a pope, she begins to see the eerie connections between herself and Matilda, connections she must trace to their source if she is to stop the wrong people from finding the Book of Love and hiding it forever.

Weaving together Matilda's little-known true story and Maureen's thrilling search, The Book of Love follows two amazing heroines as their stories intertwine through time. Maureen is immersed in the mysteries of the labyrinth, the beautiful poetry of the Song of Songs, the world's greatest art and architecture, and Matilda's amazing legacy...until a potentially fatal encounter reveals the Book of Love to Maureen -- and to the reader.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.


Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Maureen Paschal, last seen discovering the secrets of Mary Magdalene in The Expected One, returns in this overstuffed sequel. Haunted by dreams of Jesus telling her to search for the Book of Love, Maureen, now a bestselling novelist, takes off for France, where her estranged lover, Bérenger Sinclair, reveals that the mysterious manuscript is supposed to be a gospel written by Christ and whose existence is merely a rumor. Both Maureen and Bérenger receive strange clues pointing them toward the story of Countess Matilda of Tuscany, an 11th-century noblewoman and an early champion of the Book of Love. With the help of Maureen's cousin, a Jesuit scholar at the Vatican, Maureen confronts dangerous forces bent on covering up the truth and follows Matilde's trail though Belgium, Italy and France, culminating in a stunning sequence within the Chartres Cathedral. However, Matilda's hefty story line exists uneasily next to Maureen's contemporary narrative and relies too much on long-winded narration to explain Christian esoterica. Series fans and readers into Da Vinci Code–style church intrigue will enjoy the hell out of this. (Mar.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

About the Author

Kathleen McGowan is an internationally published writer whose work has appeared on five continents and in at least fifteen languages. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and three sons. You can visit her website at www.theexpectedone.com.

Product Details

  • Hardcover: 528 pages
  • Publisher: Touchstone; 1st edition (March 10, 2009)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0743299973
  • ISBN-13: 978-0743299978
  • Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.7 x 1.6 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
  • Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (106 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #185,883 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Kathleen McGowan's dynamic publishing career began with the debut of her novel, The Expected One, on the New York Times bestseller list. The sequel, The Book of Love, followed with a similar NY Times bestseller list debut and has developed a fierce cult following around the world. The third novel in the series, The Poet Prince, tells an unprecedented story about the birth of Renaissance art and the secrets hidden in the greatest paintings in history.

Kathleen's unique style of historical fiction combines unprecedented field research with inspired storytelling. Her books have sold over a million copies and are published in almost 40 languages while appearing in approximately 80 countries.

Her first non-fiction work, The Source of Miracles, is a life-changing handbook about prayer and spiritual practice which was influenced by Kathleen's studies of Catharism in France. It was chosen by Oprah's book editor as a holiday gift selection in 2009.

Kathleen has just released her first ebook in her series, Legends of the Divine Feminine, based on the provocative Scottish folktale, THE BALLAD OF TAN LIN. This series is a unique hybrid of fiction and non-fiction, with each featuring a novella followed by extensive author's notes on the history, research and inspirations and how each tale brings us to a new understanding of what the Divine Feminine means to us today. A percentage of all profits from theis series are donated to charities supporting women and children (see below for details).

Kathleen is currently at work writing her fourth full-length novel, The Boleyn Heresy, an explosive and previously untold account of Anne Boleyn's heretical education in France. These lost years of Anne Boleyn have been thoroughly researched in multiple languages, using sources inexplicably ignored by most Tudor scholars, to provide an exciting and controversial account of the infamous queen who changed the world.

Kathleen is a dedicated activist, and commits a portion of her time and royalties to organizations that protect women and children from the horrors of human trafficking and sexual slavery. She has teamed with The Emancipation Network and Made by Survivors to fund and participate in programs which provide shelter and safety for victims of abuse, and raise awareness of this global epidemic. Visit www.MadeBySurvivors.com to see how you can join Kathleen in saving lives.

Kathleen shares her life with her partner, author Philip Coppens, and her three sons in the US and Europe.

www.KathleenMcGowan.com
www.LegendsoftheDivineFeminine.com
www.AnneBoleyn.com
www.TheSpiritRevolution.com
www.MadebySurvivors.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
30 of 36 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Fearless and Uncompromising March 5, 2009
By peej
Format:Hardcover
I was floored by this novel.
At a time when so much of what I read is grave and bleak and hopeless (the Dow dropped below 7000 today,) Kathleen McGowan has managed to lift my heart and spirit to a new and enlightened place. As epic as this book is in its breadth, there is something about it that feels so personal - as though the author were whispering an enormous secret right in my ear.

And did I say epic?
Here are just a few of the fascinating concepts/topics McGowan tackles in this novel:
Matilda of Tuscany
Pope Gregory VII
The Song of Songs
Solomon and Sheba
Hieros-Gamos
The Libro Rosso
The Order of the Holy Sepulcher
DEMORI
The Unicorn Tapestries
Ariadne and Theseus and the Labyrinth
The Pater Noster
The Volto Santo
...and even Good King Wenceslaus!
(As you can imagine, I did a lot of Google-ing along the way - so fun!)

In addition, as an avid traveler, I enjoyed all the exotic locations in the book such as Orval, San Benedetto Po, Lucca, Galamus and the beloved Chartres Cathedral to name but a few. Plus, as a lifelong student of art and architecture, I loved all the references to the works of Lippi, Bernini, Brunelleschi, Ribera among Salvador Dali and many others.

All at once, The Book of Love is a secret adventure through history and a deeply moving love story that spans the centuries. Seriously, I can't remember when reading one novel has inspired me more. Inspired me to read more, investigate more and travel more.

Ultimately, there are lessons in this book that are fresh and profoundly relevant to our world today. Kudos Ms. McGowan, I can't wait for The Source of Miracles and The Poet Prince.
Was this review helpful to you?
27 of 35 people found the following review helpful
2.0 out of 5 stars *SIGH* June 4, 2009
Format:Hardcover
Okay, I finally finished this book - but it took me 4 weeks. As an avid reader, I can easily read a riveting book within a few days. However, this book is slow and plodding. Yet I did have high expectations since I enjoyed the author's previous book, The Expected One.

The majority of the book is about Matilda of Tuscany rather than the heroine from the prior book (Maureen.) For me, TEO promised to delve into the alleged Cathar's "Book of Love" and its contents in this second book of the trilogy. Unfortunately, very little further information is revealed on that 'lost' book. Maureen supposedly finds the book which she cannot translate due to its undecipherable language. Then she magically absorbs light from it, and it glows, and she is able to understand the contents. Weird, huh? Yet we still don't learn what the BoL contained since it's never really explained.

Other than that silliness, it was difficult to keep up with all of the flashbacks. The reader has to contantly flip back-and-forth to try to keep track of characters, time-frames and events. For me, this is just too much work since I want entertainment from a good novel! It just got too exasperating and was a very fragmented read.

I honestly could not recommend this book to anyone unless they are suffering from insomnia- this book is the perfect remedy. I'm generously giving it a 2-star since I can tell that the author worked diligently on her new novel. But overall, it reads like a cheap modern romance - not a historical novel but instead a modern story set in medieval times. If you're looking for an experience of medieval immersion, get another book. However, if you're looking for a 21st century "emotion-fest" set in 12th century clothes, this book is for you.
Was this review helpful to you?
24 of 34 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Spirited Read, Working on Many Levels March 1, 2009
Format:Hardcover
You don't have to be caught up in any controversy to enjoy this book. You just have to love a compelling plot, filled with surprising historical details, tantalizing mystery and a cool, compelling message. It's a great read no matter what you believe about Christianity.

And really, it has a soul, this book. You're just rollicking along with it and by the end, you realize you've been moved - deeply. How many pieces of pop culture manage that?
Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Story
Very easy to read fantastic story with a radically new, thought provoking and challenging view of some of our history
Published 1 day ago by Zvone Vodnik
4.0 out of 5 stars Very thought provoking.
This is a fasinating book with many true facts imbedded in it. Very thought provoking and leads to many doubts about the Roman Catholic church.
Published 10 days ago by David Comeau
5.0 out of 5 stars Magdeline Series
Please purchase the entire series. You will not want to miss the whole story line.I fully recommend the books to read.
Published 11 days ago by mspowell
5.0 out of 5 stars Fabulous!
Got lost in the story, marvelled over the research that went into the writing.. and absolutely could not put it down!
Published 14 days ago by debra wood
3.0 out of 5 stars The Book of Love
It had a long slow beginning. The ending is the best part. It was nothing like the Expected One though.
Published 15 days ago by Cathy R Bailey
5.0 out of 5 stars Love it
I love this series I enjoy the prayer so much I printed it out A beautiful concept with a fast moving plot I couldn't decide which historic story line I enjoyed more
Published 1 month ago by Amber Perry
5.0 out of 5 stars Profound Interpretation!
This book opened up my mind in ways I never thought I'd go regarding Jesus and Mary. It resonated with me and even though she writes this as fiction I know in my heart that much... Read more
Published 2 months ago by R. Widger
5.0 out of 5 stars A Captivating book
Normally I don't write reviews unless something touches my heart and this book did. This shouldn't be compared to the DaVinci Code because it has so much truth in it. Read more
Published 2 months ago by maria
5.0 out of 5 stars Halfway thru the book and I can't put it down.
Bravo! I add more words because your template require only. Gosh, Isn't Bravo! enough? I guess not. Three more words.
Published 2 months ago by J. James
5.0 out of 5 stars The Time Returns
For me Kathleen McGowan's "Magdalene Line" trilogy is a spiritual tour-de-force which finally made sense of 2000 years of history and a lifetime of confused teachings of western... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Stephen Marcus
Search Customer Reviews
Only search this product's reviews

What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?


Forums

Search Customer Discussions
Search all Amazon discussions

Topic From this Discussion
Mathilda of Cansossa at Vatican: correction Be the first to reply
Advice about visiting Chartres CAthedral Be the first to reply
Who else loves The Book of Love, let's discuss...
Do you want just hear what the people say who " been to Montserrat, Orval, Chartres that has heard about this topic and wants to share," or you preffer to hear from people who live, or lived in Europe, and have their knowledge? I just need to say that the Americans who are recently... Read more
Jun 10, 2009 by Elise (plt) |  See all 7 posts
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 



Listmania!




Look for Similar Items by Category