Brigid of Kildare by Heather Terrell

Rich in historical detail, Heather TerrellΓÇÖs mesmerizing novel Brigid of Kildare is the story of the revolutionary Saint Brigid and the discovery of the oldest illuminated manuscript in the annals of the Church, a manuscript that contains an astonishing secret history.

Fifth-century Ireland: Brigid is IrelandΓÇÖs first and only female priest and bishop. Followers flock to her Kildare abbey and scriptorium. Hearing accounts of BrigidΓÇÖs power, the Church deems her a threat and sends Decius, a Roman priest and scribe, on a secret mission to collect proof of BrigidΓÇÖs heresy.

As Decius records the unorthodox practices of Brigid and her abbey, he becomes intrigued by her. When Brigid assigns Decius a holy taskΓÇöto create the most important and sacred manuscript ever madeΓÇöhe finds himself at odds with his original mission and faces the most difficult decision of his life.

Modern day: Alexandra Patterson, an appraiser of medieval relics, has been summoned to Kildare to examine a reliquary box believed to belong to Saint Brigid. Hidden within the sacred box is the most beautiful illuminated manuscript Alex has ever seen. But even more extraordinary is the contents of the manuscriptΓÇÖs vellum pages, which may have dire repercussions for the Catholic Church and could very well rewrite the origins of Christianity.

Genre: Fiction/Historical