The Mara Document
By Michael Jordan
Format: Paperback
(2 customer reviews)
Publication Date: 28 Aug 2021
£9.99
Want to buy as an ebook? Click hereCategories: Contemporary, Mind, Body, and Spirit, Religion and Beliefs
ISBN: 9781913913304Description
At a remote stone circle on the Tuscan estate of the Romagnesi family, a small boy named Sergio is destined to make a horrific discovery that will eventually cost him his life.
Ben Schaeffer, a lapsed British TV documentary maker, is bequeathed a file of papers including photographs of a copper scroll thought to be over 2,000 years old. The file contains a confused account of the scroll’s history and provides obscure hints of its whereabouts. A deathbed letter from his friend persuades Ben to embark on a quest.
Lorenzo (Enzo) Cortesini, a Florence-based surgeon, bears reluctant responsibility towards the Romagnesi family who covets possession of the scroll to further both an extreme religious cult and political aspirations.
Enzo and Ben join forces in the search for the scroll. As the mystery of its location is revealed, disturbing information also begins to emerge about its nature. The reason for Sergio’s tragic death is linked to the scroll, but only when it is finally located and examined does the full extent and significance of its content become clear. This demands radical decisions.
Michael Jordan studied Botany and Zoology at the University of London. A successful writing career followed and he worked for many years as a successful broadcaster as well as publishing twenty-six books across social, religious, anthropology and natural history subjects. He is Chair of the UK Fungus Conservation Trust, a speaker/lecturer to various UK wildlife trusts and is a Consultant Mycologist to the Veterinary Poisons Information Service. He lives in Devon.
Reviews
m l etheridge (Guest Review) - 03 May, 2021
I enjoyed reading this book very much.The main characters I found were very believable and nicely drawn and the story regarding complex relationships very true to life, The slow disintegration of Ben Schaeffer's marriage particularly so. The powerful evil Romanagnesi women were also very believable in this day of in creasing women's rights even though in their case their supposed power stemmed from long held ancient believes and idolatry.
The narrative was compelling and the detailed historical facts and knowledge of the cities and the counties added to the interest. The concept of the Vatican going to extreme lengths to protect their church very believable. The drawn out chapters relating to the horrific finds by both Sergio and the police added to one's need to keep on reading
Dave Higginson-Tranter (Guest Review) - 23 Apr, 2021
A death brings with it a great burden and a determined drive to acquire a scroll whose contents have the power to bring about irreversible upheaval. A race begins to unravel archaic secrets that may tear asunder the very foundations of belief, both political and religious. Immorality and decadence whisper in the shadows as Ben Schaefer defies the odds to fulfill the desires of his recently dead friend.
Character studies are slowly dripped forth with teasing deliberateness whilst conversational text subtly draws one in to an absorbing mystery of both the unknown and perhaps, the sacrilegious. Throughout the delicately woven weft of the story we are a backed into a position of uncertainty and anticipation as the threat of potential seismic change constantly piques the interest levels. Michael Jordan is in no rush to achieve the end game, there are no corners cuts in an account that is wonderfully researched and highly observational.
The Mara Document is the focused nucleus behind every move and every development in the book, a permanent presence holding troubling threat and inestimable power. The delicacy of the plot and the careful manipulation of the content is surprisingly intriguing and like any book worth its salt, it keeps one thoughtful even when one is not turning the pages.
