The Passion of Mary Magdalen: A Novel

I recently finished reading The Passion of Mary Magdalen: A Novel (The Maeve Chronicles).

Eh. It was ok.

I had read a review of the book several months ago, and the premise intrigued me. The author, Elizabeth Cunningham, combines pagan mythology with Christian mythology in one of the oddest tellings of the Christ story that I’ve ever heard/read.

To be honest, I thought this book might fall prey to my 50-Page Rule. For those unfamiliar, my 50-Page Rule is this: If I’m not into or liking the book by page 50, I put it aside. Sometimes I can go back years later and find interest in the book. Sometimes I end up giving up completely and giving away the book without finishing it. I adopted this rule a few years ago when I got tired of wasting my time on bad books or books that just didn’t suit me or my taste.

I had a hard time getting into the book at first. The hip chick-lit style of writing in a story that takes place in ancient times was very off-putting. I’m not particularly fond of chick lit to begin with, and although I’m willing to accept anachronisms and such for the sake of a good story, I wasn’t entirely sure this was going to be a good story.

I did make it past page 50. The book managed to interest me enough to do that even if I did know how it was going to end. But I can’t get excited about it. It was just ok.

I doubt I’ll bother with the other books in the series.