Magdalen Rising: The Beginning

Secret about Maeve's past

Young Magdalen and Jesus, brimming with youthful charm and arrogance, find each other and fall in love, forging a bond that is stronger than death. Their pleasure is overshadowed by a brilliant but unbalanced druid who knows a perilous secret about Maeve's past. The prequel to The Passion of Mary Magdalen.
Hardcover, 384 pages
Published April 1st 2007 by Monkfish Book Publishing (first published April 1st 2000)

Cunningham masterfully weaves Celtic lore with Hebrew tradition to give us this fascinating interpretation of the beginning of the legacy of Jesus and Mary..
Elizabeth Cunningham's book (originally sold under the title _Daughter of the Shining Isles_) tells the story of a woman raised by goddesses on a holy island. She goes to the druids college and there meets a man with whom she falls in love. Little does she know that this man would someday be known as Jesus Christ. A fanciful retelling of the story of Jesus and Mary Magdalen, when they were teenagers training in Celtic lands to become bards. He was called Esus, and she was Maeve. Maeve was brought up on a magical Isle with 8 Mothers, who told her that her Father was a God. The Irish worship Nature and all its glory. Esus is confused about Celtic custom and lore, but there are many missing years of his life that have not been commented on in the Bible. It is thought he traveled all over Europe and other places, to learn more about all peoples and their lives

This book is a superlative discussion of paganism and Christianity, and explores the idea of what the "lost years" of Christ might have entailed.
I would recommend it for fans of strong women, Celtic fantasy, Biblical reinterpretation, myth and magic, Goddess fiction, the Mists of Avalon. In a nutshell, Mary Magdalen is re-visioned as a Celtic ex-pat and Jesus' wife, a magical and strong and sometimes foolish woman, and her tale spans the course of four well-researched and well-written books. Written with cheek and humor and glory and beauty, all at once.