|
 |
Religious Conspiracies, Female Leaders and Secret Societies Rarely does a novel remain on the best-seller lists for a year as "The Da Vinci Code" (Doubleday, 2003) has managed to do. Even nonreaders are reading and recommending this third novel by Dan Brown. Although demand for it has been unrelenting, religious conspiracies, female leaders and secret societies are elements found in other books in the library’s collection. "Gospel" by Wilton Barnhardt (St. Martin’s Press, 1993) and "The Word" by Irving Wallace (Simon & Schuster, 1972) involve races to translate newly discovered gospels. In Barnhardt’s tale, the 13th apostle, Matthias, who was elected to replace Judas, writes an epistle to his brother, the Jewish historian Josephus, relating his own search for truth. Wallace’s gospel is by James, the younger brother of Jesus, and disputes Jesus’ death and resurrection. Tom Doherty Associates will reissue "The Word" in September. Catherine Alexander excavates six papyrus scrolls in the Sinai Desert written by a female leader of the early Christian church in "The Prophetess" by Barbara Wood (Little, Brown, 1996). While searching for the seventh and empowering scroll, Catherine is pursued not only by government and religious agents but also by the minions of a computer software-, art- and artifact-collecting mogul. In "The Da Vinci Legacy" by Lewis Perdue (Kensington, 1983), a Da Vinci scholar finds himself the target of a murderous conspiracy dating back to the early days of Christianity when he questions the authenticity of material in a priceless collection of Da Vinci’s work. The codex is more than a document; it is the key to a long-lost discovery. A second messiah appears in "Daughter of God," also by Perdue (Forge, 2000). While cataloging Nazi plunder, art broker Zoë Ridgeway finds a relic of the brief life of Sophia, born in the Holy Land in A.D. 310. Gifted with the power to heal, Sophia became the target of the early church. After Zoë’s disappearance, her husband unravels the mystery while fending off groups who want to preserve the centuries-old secret. As in "Daughter of God," Pope Pius XII’s activities in World War II are examined in Daniel Silva’s "The Confessor" (Putnam, 2003). Gabriel Allon, art restorer and part-time Israeli agent, exposes the Crux Vera, a secret society within the Catholic Church, and its plot to assassinate newly elected Pope Paul VII. The Manachaeans, the defunct sect of early Christianity, are alive and active in Jonathan Rabb’s "The Book of Q" (Crown, 2001). After a monk entrusts Ian Pearse, a young priest studying early texts at the Vatican, with a newly discovered ancient scroll, the monk disappears and Ian finds his life in chaos. The Manachaeans plot to usurp power, and Ian experiences religious doubt as he translates the scroll. Although not ancient, the history explored in Deborah Crombie’s "A Finer End" (Bantam, 2001) is Arthurian. Scotland Yard investigates current murders in Glastonbury that uncover events at the abbey 1,000 years ago, and the knowledge of these events might spark violence as it did before. |
