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It may seem as if a book such as the Magdalene Legacy is just an attempt to jump on the bandwagon of the success of Dan Browns work and the Da Vinci Code in particular. To a lesser degree and in terms of timing that may be true, but its author, Laurence Gardner, has been publishing books around such subjects for years. Its very probable that Brown is a fan of his work as he is an obvious source of information, along side the much more controversial and widely reported "Holy Blood and the Holy Grail" by Michael Baigent and co. So whilst the timing of the books release may seem to be a corporate strategy, it only seems that way because this book is the natural response to the hype of Browns work. Before the Da Vinci Code there was less of a need to set the record straight in the sensitive yet less than popular subject matter that is suddenly fashionable to the point of a Tom Hanks movie lead role. With so many people taking Dan Browns theories as read, this book is a natural next step for those who wish to untangle fact from plot device. Brown is after all a fiction writer, a fact that many people have lost sight of. Gardner is however a writer of academia, the popular end of the market maybe, but academia none the less.

With a training in Art restoration a career in ancient and medieval genealogy and a string of books dealing with subjects ranging from modern Freemasonry to biblical history, Gardner does seem well qualified to restore the balance in a subject area that seems to be in danger of being blown out of all proportion. For those not familiar with Browns Da Vinci Code a small overview of the nature of the work is needed. Ignoring the specific plot lines, the book deals with the idea that Jesus survived the crucifixion and lived to have a family by his wife, Mary Magdalene. This family endured and became an established part of European ruling houses, right up until the present day. Whilst this fact was kept secret from the vast majority of the population a select group of guardians kept the secret alive and many of those in the know where artist and intellectuals who included clues in their work. One of the most important of which was Leonardo Da Vinci and for those who know how to read his work there are many revealing answers to these difficult questions.

Its certainly not a new idea and for those who have an interest in the new Testament and the Dark Ages from a historical point of view, rather than a point of faith, there is little in Browns work that

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