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The Jesus Thief #2
The Secret Madonna
This is the sequel to THE JESUS THIEF, a scientific/religious thriller. In THE SECRET MADONNA, the cloned child has been born and, with the help of his devoted mother and the scientist who cloned him, has eluded the world's pursuit for ten years. Maggie and Jess have lived blissfully on Italy's Lake Magiorrie in the little yellow villa that is their home. Maggie believes Sam is dead -- the man she loves who saved Jess's life. Is he? If not, will he remember her and help her or give his allegiance to the powerful man who wants Jess destroyed? Most importantly, is Jess, her child, just an exceptionally loving but ordinary boy, or a reincarnation of the Son of God?
- GenresFiction
278 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2008
4 people are currently reading
39 people want to read
About the author
J.R. Lankford
6 books11 followersProbably the best way to introduce myself is via the openings of my first two published novels. Writing them gave me more joy than any other work I've done.
THE CROWNING CIRCLE
Copyright © 2001 J R Lankford
All rights reserved
Republished as
MURDER WITHOUT MOTIVE
Thursday, 9:03 a.m.
Oaklawn District, Chatsford, Ohio
Gloria Wentworth Hampton stood in her driveway, her face shaded by her broad-brimmed gardening hat. She wished the shadow would somehow widen, darken, descend to the ground, and envelop her. Since coming to America from England a year ago, she’d often felt this way.
“Do come with us, Mum. Won’t you please?” her daughter begged, pulling at her skirts.
“Maybe another time, darling . . . ” Gloria began and, from recent habit, looked up and down the sidewalk. It was vacant except for a boy, perhaps eighteen, wearing jeans and plaid shirt. To Gloria he looked the typical American male, who thought himself a Wild West cowboy. She glanced away, feeling suddenly empty, wondering why she’d become so judgmental.
“Gloria, really!”
Her husband, Jim, held their son’s hand and looked exasperated.
“Surely we should go as a family,” he said. “It’s their Founder’s Day.”
“Please, Jim, I just — I don’t feel good about that air show. None of us should go."
THE JESUS THIS
Copyright © 2003 J R Lankford
All rights reserved
Wednesday p.m., January 12—Turin, Italy
For the better part of his forty-two years, Dr. Felix Rossi had wanted to be here in the Capella Della Sacra Sindone, the chapel at the top of the stairs in the Duomo, Turin’s Renaissance cathedral, when priests came to open the tabernacle. Only six times before in the twentieth century had it happened and rarely in the presence of anyone but the priests. He’d wanted to stand beneath Guarini’s famous glass-paned dome as the sun cast dazzling kaleidoscopes of brilliance down through the tabernacle’s iron gates. The day had, at last, arrived.
In awe he waited with Father Bartolo, black marble beneath their feet, a white marble balustrade surrounding them, angels at each end. Everywhere in this chapel its designer, Guarini, had put statues of angels. For over four hundred years they had been here—blowing trumpets, playing harps, flying on spread wings, hovering in a frozen watch as they guarded Christianity’s most famous relic. Sunlight flashed off the pair of gold Cherubs above the gates and the two Archangels leaning on their staffs as if to regard only him. In the brilliant light, Felix Rossi could barely see, but he couldn’t look away. He would remember this moment until he died.
THE CROWNING CIRCLE
Copyright © 2001 J R Lankford
All rights reserved
Republished as
MURDER WITHOUT MOTIVE
Thursday, 9:03 a.m.
Oaklawn District, Chatsford, Ohio
Gloria Wentworth Hampton stood in her driveway, her face shaded by her broad-brimmed gardening hat. She wished the shadow would somehow widen, darken, descend to the ground, and envelop her. Since coming to America from England a year ago, she’d often felt this way.
“Do come with us, Mum. Won’t you please?” her daughter begged, pulling at her skirts.
“Maybe another time, darling . . . ” Gloria began and, from recent habit, looked up and down the sidewalk. It was vacant except for a boy, perhaps eighteen, wearing jeans and plaid shirt. To Gloria he looked the typical American male, who thought himself a Wild West cowboy. She glanced away, feeling suddenly empty, wondering why she’d become so judgmental.
“Gloria, really!”
Her husband, Jim, held their son’s hand and looked exasperated.
“Surely we should go as a family,” he said. “It’s their Founder’s Day.”
“Please, Jim, I just — I don’t feel good about that air show. None of us should go."
THE JESUS THIS
Copyright © 2003 J R Lankford
All rights reserved
Wednesday p.m., January 12—Turin, Italy
For the better part of his forty-two years, Dr. Felix Rossi had wanted to be here in the Capella Della Sacra Sindone, the chapel at the top of the stairs in the Duomo, Turin’s Renaissance cathedral, when priests came to open the tabernacle. Only six times before in the twentieth century had it happened and rarely in the presence of anyone but the priests. He’d wanted to stand beneath Guarini’s famous glass-paned dome as the sun cast dazzling kaleidoscopes of brilliance down through the tabernacle’s iron gates. The day had, at last, arrived.
In awe he waited with Father Bartolo, black marble beneath their feet, a white marble balustrade surrounding them, angels at each end. Everywhere in this chapel its designer, Guarini, had put statues of angels. For over four hundred years they had been here—blowing trumpets, playing harps, flying on spread wings, hovering in a frozen watch as they guarded Christianity’s most famous relic. Sunlight flashed off the pair of gold Cherubs above the gates and the two Archangels leaning on their staffs as if to regard only him. In the brilliant light, Felix Rossi could barely see, but he couldn’t look away. He would remember this moment until he died.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
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August 6, 2011I may have been a little to eager when I started reading this book and I am sure that I had high expectations after having waited six years for this sequel to come out. But, I found that this book fell short of my expectations. Not for lack of content, but instead I felt like the writer was focused too much on the details of the locations in which the book was taking place. It almost felt as though she were bragging about her own experiences traveling there, which would have been fine if it added to the books quality, but it didn't. This added fluff instead detracted from the story trying to compensate for a lack of a true plot. The reader expected the plot to be about the boy, Jess (the clone), but instead it was about Sam (the bodyguard), and his struggle with amnesia. The author took much of this character's inner thoughts and made them overwhelmingly graphic and disturbing. So much so, that I as the reader found it awkward and hard to focus on the rest of the story. Finally, the story ended without giving the reader any real closure.
After the story was over it says that J. R. Lankford is currently working on a third part to this story. I hope that it is better than this volume and that maybe she is able to use it to bring some closure to me as the reader.
After the story was over it says that J. R. Lankford is currently working on a third part to this story. I hope that it is better than this volume and that maybe she is able to use it to bring some closure to me as the reader.
February 14, 2013
I put this book down for awhile thinking that I didn't care for it. Later I realized it was the personality change in one of the characters that put me off. So I picked it back up and ended up not putting it down again until I finished it. I really am enjoying this series and can't wait to download the next book!
March 12, 2014
Easy read however I'm finding that I'm caring less and less about the characters.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews