The Priest's Madonna - Softcover

Hassinger, Amy

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0425213870 ISBN 13: 9780425213872

Publisher: Berkley, 2007

Synopsis

Inspired by the story of a southern French holy man who inexplicably came into wealth in 1896, the tale of Marie Dernanaud, a housekeeper who is rumored to be her priest employer's lover, recounts her struggles with faith and her knowledge about the secret source of his wealth. Reprint. 25,000 first printing.

About this title

About the Author

Amy Hassinger is a graduate of Barnard College and the Iowa Writer's Workshop, where she studied with Marilynne Robinson and Frank Conroy. She teaches in the University of Nebraska's MFA in Creative Writing.

From Publishers Weekly

A historical romance that mixes literary heft and pop-fiction indulgence, Hassinger's ambitious second novel (following Nina: Adolescence) makes for a busy, derivative read. Marie Dernanaud, raised a religious skeptic, is immediately attracted to Bérenger Saunière, the devout, charismatic priest who takes over the parish of her small town, Rennes-le-Château, in the 1890s. While hiding their dangerous affection for each other behind arguments over religion and revolution, Marie, who narrates, and Bérenger oversee their church's renovation, which turns up some curious artifacts: a map, a book and an ancient stone carving that might hold a Da Vinci–esque code. (Wearyingly, the stuff does in fact have its origins with the Knights Templar.) With the help of the enigmatic mayor's wife, Madame Simone Laporte, Marie tries to piece together the mystery of the church, but Bérenger has confessed that he's being fed a steady diet of cash by a powerful financier who wants access to whatever they find—including possible proof of a bloodline (here's Simone's interest) descended from Jesus and Mary Magdalene. Hassinger believably conveys Bérenger's transformation from gentle clergyman to angry, corrupt doubter, and mixes in some tantalizing ancient doings in Judea, but all the competing interests sap the dynamism from Marie, who never achieves a distinct voice.
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About this edition

• Publisher: Berkley
• Publication date: 2007
• ISBN 10: 0425213870
• ISBN 13: 9780425213872
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 336