the Bringer of Happiness

From the award-winning writer and director of The Women's Jail Project and author of Dancing the Labyrinth, comes an evocative tale that unashamedly merges renowned historical characters and events in a spellbinding story of destiny. Narrated by the daughter of Jesus Christ and Mary Magdalene, the Bringer of Happiness is a journey into ideologies, beliefs, and heresies, culminating in the 13th Century massacre of the Cathars at Montségur. As our histories become unstuck, the patterns of power through religion are shifting, making way for new narratives. This book is part of this process. Part history, part myth, part imagination: the Bringer of Happiness is a compelling (almost) true tale. "I should have assumed with parents known to the world as Mary Magdalene and Jesus Christ, I would be different" Sara, whose Aramaic name means 'bringer of happiness' possesses an extraordinary ability to time travel forward into people's bodies. Waking in a young Cathar girl at Montségur, Sara believes it is her destiny to rescue her from the 13th Century siege. She hopes this will protect the writings of Mary Magdalene. Sara is born in Jerusalem in 34 AD. After her father is charged with sedition, the Roman occupiers hunt out his family. With a price on their heads, Sara flees with her mother and family members including Martha, Lazarus, Mary Salome, Mary Jacob and Joseph of Arimathea to Egypt. They live ensconced in an Essenes community until further Roman persecution forces them to travel onward to Narbaresis. Sarah-Marie is a young Cathar living in Montségur in 1244. The Cathars are deemed heretics by the Christian Church for following the teachings of Mary Magdalene. Roman soldiers have already massacred the persecuted communities of Béziers and Carcassonne. Montségur is the last stronghold. The lives of Sara and Sarah-Marie are entwined in a time of mystical realism where the three sisters of fate weave the threads of every person's path, and Persephone is worshipped as the Queen of the Otherworld, shining the light for lost souls passing through death's shadow. Merging history, folklore of the Languedoc, Greek mythology and imagination, this (almost) true tale of death, destiny and soul's purpose is an enthralling expose of spirituality and its mysteries. The Bringer of Happiness is the second (stand-alone) novel in the thematic series Women Unveiled. The novels are united by a distinctive feminine narrative exploring societal boundaries and transitions.