HERETICS: A LOVE STORY
Thank you for writing this book! I see myself in its pages, as an herbalist, as a naturalist, as a tree lover, as a feminist as a ritual artist…I don’t know what motivated you to write this wonderful story, but as a person who has been engaged in Earth-based ritual for 30 years I am struck by the authenticity of this tale … Folks that live so close to the Earth and her seasonal rounds do develop a different way of being in the world and your story embodies that way of being as “truth”….we don’t say the world is alive we live it… tuned into plants that communicate in a myriad of different ways… animals that enter our fields and respond to our thoughts of them… the closer to the Earth we choose to live the more efficiently she communicates with us… This is a stupendous book… Hope is harbored in our bodies and I loved seeing that in words because our tendency to split away from our bodies that are suffering not only our own traumas but that of the Earth’s… and until we get this we will be separated again and again from hope as a reality…l loved the way you created space for grief! Your characters are so real. I do not want to finish this book.
- Sara Wright
“Heretics: A Love Story belongs in the highest echelon of classic literary fiction insofar as it educates and enlightens while entertaining the reader….Mary Saracino combines acute psychological acumen with extensive knowledge of history to create a novel that will engross your mind, grip your heart and inspire your soul.”
—Sandra Shwayder Sanchez, author of The Secret of a Long Journey
“Heretics: A Love Story reminds me of Grazia DeLedda’s Canne al Vento, a book by the Sardinian Nobel Prize winner who first brought the Barbagia to the world’s attention in 1926. The stellar aspect of Saracino’s novel is that she incorporates all the Afrocentrist research that is no longer able to be suppressed. This is an enormous enterprise to which this novel makes a great contribution because it is so well-written. Saracino has managed to put into a compelling story what she learned firsthand when she traveled to Sardinia in 2004—and she has supported that with a mountain of research! Her psychological acuity makes the characters come alive. This novel is the best attempt that comes to mind of weaving together both scholarship and story writing.”
—Lucia Chiavola Birnbaum, Ph.D.Professor Emerita, The California Institute of Integral Studies author of The Future Has an Ancient Heart: Legacy of Caring, Sharing, Healing and Vision from the Primordial African Mediterranean to Occupy Everywhere & Dark Mother: African Origins & Godmothers
Amazon Customer Reviews of Heretics: A Love Story
Bernadette: Amazon customer review August 20, 2015; 5.0 out of 5 stars Sensory Adventure!
If you want to read a book that will transport you and stimulate your senses, then you should read this novel. I could feel the waves as we sailed the Mediterranean Sea, smell the fresh air in the Italian hills while searching for medicinal plants and herbs, and taste the fresh pecorino cheese. I found myself having strong feelings of disgust and dislike (hate might be too strong) for Antonio, sharing in the profound grief of Shardana’s loss, and experiencing the feelings of excitement and giddiness of Martina’s new growing love. I travelled to Italy many years ago, and through Heretics, I was able to return.
Joseph Kandoll: Amazon customer review June 8, 2015; 4.0 out of 5 stars I loved going back to a time that is known in …
I loved going back to a time that is known in history but with the effect on a place much less known than the traditional stories of that dark time of the Inquisition…also the marvelous power that the women held in their hands, their hearts, their history…a story most hopeful!
Martha Vincent: Amazon customer review July 1, 2014; 5.0 out of 5 stars I was spellbound!
This engaging and beautifully written novel made me want to ditch my current busy life for the simplicity and connectedness of life in Orune, Sardinia. I loved how she deftly described the nuances of each of the major players in this inspiring and compelling story. What a perfect description of how love, compassion and collaboration can heal the deepest of wounds. And I want to find an oak tree of me own…
Trista Hendren: Amazon customer review June 20, 2015; 5.0 out of 5 stars Wow! You will never forget this book!
This remarkably well-written book was a joy to read while simultaneously being very thought-provoking. The characters were so well-developed and real. The scenes will be fresh in my mind for quite some time. I will be recommending this book far and wide!
Elizabeth Magill: Amazon review July 30, 2015; 4.0 out of 5 stars Set in the 1480s in a remote and beautiful mountaintop village in Sardinia
Heretics, by Mary Saracino, is a tale of redemption at the hands of the Divine Feminine, embodied within Her devotees. Set in the 1480s in a remote and beautiful mountaintop village in Sardinia, Heretics tells the story of twin sisters Sarda and Shardana, accused of heresy by Antonio Albondiga, a Spanish priest who is obsessed with finding and killing those who he deems to be heretics. The story alternates between the lives of the villagers—their peaceful ways, their connection to nature, their natural relationship to the Divine Mother—and the priest, who is exiled to Sardinia after a series of violent actions in other towns. As the story unfolds, we become well-acquainted with the characters, so that we know their history, their motivations, their fears and loves. And we understand that, when Antonio encounters those who commune naturally with the Divine Feminine, he will either be transformed or wreak havoc upon a sacred and beautiful people.
Part of what brings the story to life is the history—this, indeed, is a tale of the Divine Feminine told by a scholar who knows Her background, where when and how She has been worshipped. The history of those who held ancient wisdom about a Mother Goddess is entwined with the history of Spain, and of Sardinia—in fact, the history of patriarchy itself. We hear how and why some conquered others through the stories that Antonio’s father tells him as a boy, and we watch the making of a man who is so full of murderous, self-righteous, gluttonous rage that he is in danger of destroying himself.
With gripping scenes of violence as well as idyllic scenes of pastoral innocence, Heretics alternately keeps you on the edge of your seat and lulls you with a sense of deep peace. Reading this book is like taking a crash course in patriarchal history—and finding out that the answer is, and must always be, love. For that, as the Divine Feminine always shows us, is the true path to salvation.
THE SINGING OF SWANS
“Women who fly through the night skies, priestesses who receive initiations, and girls who do vision quests in ancient sacred caves—all this wonderful pagan lore Mary Saracino juxtaposes against an all-too modern heroine’s chaotic awakening to the deeper purpose of her life. This well-researched page-turner is packed with herbal knowledge, her-story lessons, and a genuine understanding of ancient and contemporary women’s spirituality. Rich and powerful—I hope it will become a movie!”
- Vicki Noble, co-creator of Motherpeace, author of Shakti Woman: Feeling Our Fire, Healing Our World & The Double Goddess: Women Sharing Power
“The Singing of Swans is a remarkable narrative calling—even compelling—us to connect with our own ancestral roots, to seek our own inner wisdom, and to reclaim our own inner voices!”
- Margaret Starbird author of The Woman with the Alabaster Jar & Mary Magdalene: Bride in Exile
“The Singing of Swans is more than a novel. It combines an immense amount of learning, a great novelist’s ability to weave the present, the past, the far past, and the future into a spell-binding story…and to transmute all this into an offer of life to all of us trapped in contemporary deadening cultures. This novel may give you the courage to quit your dead-end job, book a flight to Italy, and, like Madalene, ‘exhilarated by the possibilities,’ howl‘ at the brilliant blue Sicilian sky.’”
- Lucia Chiavola Birnbaum, author of The Future Has An Ancient Heart & Dark Mother: African Origins and Godmothers
GOODREADS REVIEWS The Singing of Swans by Mary Saracino | Goodreads
Nicole: A friend recommended this book, so far I have read 106 pages and I am LOVING it…most interesting read…
Donna: This book is a winner in all areas. It takes place in the here & now, as well as in a family’s past. A Woman discovers a lost ancestor through a book & a small
statue of a dark Woman left in a box for Her to find. In this book, it opens the door on Her past ancestors, who story She never knew. She comes from an Italian family, one who believed in the worship of a Mother Goddess, of olive-skin. The Heroine search comes about due to a lay-off from Her job. As She finds Her ancestor came from Sicily, She wants to go there and find out what its all about. As She arrives at the hotel, She meets a Woman who helps Her put the pieces of Her past together.
Yes, the loving Goddess is involved. Her small statue becomes an important piece in Her discovery of what is Her heritage, left to Her. You take a trip along with Her to Italy, and go to several important places there. Her discovery you too share. Read this book and take the journey.
Linda C. Wisniewski: Amazon customer review October 1. 2007; 4.0 out of 5 stars Madalene and the Goddess (Reviewed by Linda C. Wisniewski, Author of Off Kilter: A Woman’s Journey to Peace with Scoliosis, Her Mother, and Her Polish Heritage)
Mary Saracino’s novel, The Singing of Swans, is so chock full of goddess lore I am tempted to keep it for a reference book. The author has crammed her story with well-researched information about the Dark Mother, Cybele, or Demeter, who she calls “humankind’s first deity, and our most ancient memory.”
The story begins with Ziza, a woman who flies through the roof of her house on a night in September, 1575 and meets with other “keepers of the blood ways,” shamans, healers, herbalists and astral travelers. They are the Benandanti, and four times a year they leave their bodies to battle the Malandanti, their arch enemies, thus ensuring a bountiful harvest.
In the second chapter, we meet Madalene Ross, a workaholic software specialist in Minneapolis who smokes, drinks and is troubled by strange dreams of old women chanting and holding handfuls of herbs.
Soon she is stalked by a homeless woman who appears out of nowhere and tells Maddie “Your Mother wants to talk to you.” And then Madalene finds a note that says “Go to the Lake” written in her own handwriting.
In her closet, in a box her deceased mother saved for her, Maddie finds a notebook labeled “Rossolino Family Tree” and a small figure of the Virgin Mother with dark skin. Still troubled by disturbing dreams of women healers, Madalene suddenly loses her job in a corporate downsizing. She gives in to an overwhelming desire to travel to Pergusa, Italy, in search of her family’s roots.
Meanwhile, the author takes us back to the women of the Benandanti as they struggle through the years. The leaders of the Catholic Church try to demolish their traditions and force them to conform to church teachings. Some of their tactics are violent, but the women persevere. In secret, they keep their worship of the Dark Mother alive. She is called the Black Madonna by all who join them, accepting her as the virgin mother of Jesus, which the church allows. But in secret, they worship her as the Divine She, a deity in her own right.
I first learned about the Black Madonna as a child, when I saw a painting of her in my Polish Catholic church. I was told that in the original painting in Czestochowa, Poland, her skin was blackened in a fire. Imagine my surprise and joy to discover, as an adult woman, that her image is older than the Church and can be found throughout the world. Most recently, I visited another Black Madonna in a four-hundred-year old church in Puerto Rico, and was told her skin was darkened by the sun.
Back in the present time, Madalene arrives in Pergusa and finds the lake is dying from pollution. She meets an eco-feminist working to save the lake. In a dream, she meets Ziza and the other ancient women, learns about the long tradition of the Dark Mother and talks with her own mother, who urges her to use her intuition, which she has always ignored, as well as her brain.
Madalene realizes what she needs is to reclaim her self, in all its complexity, just as others are reclaiming Lake Pergusa. For me, she is a stand-in for women as a whole, throughout history, especially in times of patriarchy. Saracino is realistic in her portrayal of the violence of women’s struggle for personal power and self-determination in ancient times. We would do well to remember this and realize that even today, voiceless women suffer at the hands of male-dominated societies around the world, a story we don’t often see on the evening news.
Without being heavy-handed or taking political sides, Saracino educates the reader about women’s spirituality, herbalism and Italian culture and traditions, while keeping us turning the pages, rooting for Madalene and following her adventures to the conclusion.
Donna Henes: Amazon customer review March 8, 2011; 5.0 out of 5 stars The Divine She Shines!
I am a fan of Mary Saracino’s poetry, so I was delighted to read this novel. And I was definitely not disappointed. The writing rings with purpose, passion, power and poetry. I love her description of the Feminine Divine, The Great Goddess, the Black Madonna, as the Divine She. Sicily has long been high on my list of must-do pilgrimages, and now it is so much more real and enticing to me. I’d leave tomorrow if I could! Though I have long been an avid researcher and devotee of the The Goddess, Saracino’s depictions give Her life in a new and enchanting way. I highly recommend this lovely book for those who already know and love the Divine She and also for those who are not yet acquainted with Her. All readers are in for a real treat.
F Ranoli: Amazon customer review November 16, 2006; 5.0 out of 5 stars A great read! This book kept me up at night.
I could not put The Singing of Swans down. From the first page, I was hooked. There are plots within plots, characters to fall in love with, all twisting and dancing together to delight and inspire the reader. I felt transported to ancient Sicily and completely caught up in the lives of the Healers, Priestesses and followers of the Black Madonna.
Mary does an excellent job of making their lives and experiences personal and real to the reader. It is rare that a book will so totally capture my attention – I found myself thinking about the characters while performing the mundane details of my own life. I was so absorbed in the story that I began to feel like Ziza, Ibla, Fiora, Madalene and the others had become my friends and family.
The Singing of Swans is a well researched book and I highly recommend it to everyone. You will be entertained and enriched by the history of a culture and time almost forgotten. Bravo Mary, This is a great book!
Bernadette: Amazon customer review May 15, 2007; 5.0 out of 5 stars The Singing of Swans
The Singing of the Swans is a book that captivated and mesmerized me. i loved that i could be trasnported back and forth into such different time periods and places without a passport, into the the worlds of rosalina and the high priestesses, ilba and the black madonna, and madalene with her caffeine infused life which would soon take on a new meaning. mary writes with such clarity and color, that i could feel the ground and stones under my own feet. this is a wonderful read and left me with wanting more. i wish that i too could fly…
NO MATTER WHAT
“Unflinching, insightful, beautifully written…”
- Dorothy Allison, author of Bastard Out of Carolina
“In this strong first novel, Mary Saracino creates a strong narrator who quickly engages our sympathy. Saracino excels at creating the inner turmoil of the child with an adult burden and the powerful emotions at work in this dysfunctional family. The book is absorbing…”
- Rocky Mountain News book review (Denver, CO)
“…a fine novel…”-
- Minneapolis Star Tribune book review
Amazon.com customer review of No Matter What
This book was a real page turner. It’s a powerful read with interesting characters. The story is well written and it’s told from the perspective of a ten-year old girl. It’s a coming of age story, but it’s definitely an adult novel. The author’s sequel just came out this fall and I can’t wait to read it.
Amazon.com customer review of No Matter What
I picked up this book at Northwest Bookfest in Seattle last week because the author was there signing copies and I liked her. It is turning out to be a wonderful read. I find it hard to put down, too. The characters are exasperating but sympathetic, and I keep wondering what will happen to them.
Amazon.com customer review of No Matter What
I read this book in three days. Once I picked it up, I couldn’t put it down. Mary Saracino did a great job through the voice of a child named Peanut. It was original, and very explosive
FINDING GRACE
“A timeless narrative so beautifully written it was hard to put down. Finding Grace left nothing to be desired, a gut wrenching story where things truly end for the best.”
- Judge’s comments, 1999 Colorado Authors League “Top Hand” Award for Mainstream Fiction.
VOICES OF THE SOFT-BELLIED WARRIOR
“As much an intimate story about the art of writing as it is about her struggle to literally gain back her voice, Mary Saracino’s memoir is a brave and intricately drawn map of her long journey from trauma to recovery.” –J
- Judith Katz, author of Running Fiercely Toward a High Thin Sound & The Escape Artist.
“This is the book that I’ve been waiting to read. This is the book that I will read and reread. This is the book that shows the pain. But this is the book that shows the possibility, too. A stupendous achievement. Saracino speaks here as she has never spoken before; as no one has ever spoken before.”
- Louise DeSalvo, author of Vertigo & We Begin with Food: Italian American Women Write About Identity, Ethnicity, and Sustenance
Rocky Mountain News Review of Voices of the Soft-bellied Warrior
“Saracino’s gift of clarity, unflinching honesty and fine turn of phrase…will captivate readers.” —
Joan Hinkemeyer, Rocky Mountain News — Rocky Mountain News, October 5, 2001, page 30D
Amazon.com Customer Review by D.M. Solis of Voices of the Soft-bellied Warrior
Mary Saracino takes readers on a very candid, sensitive, and creative journey through the healing process told through her personal accounts, journal entries and dreams, as well as through descriptions of her artwork. A must-read if you are a survivor of tragedy or abuse, if you care about a survivor, or if you are a compassionate advocate or healing professional.
Writers, visual artists, and other creatives will also find this a fascinating memoir for understanding the creative process and how we use our personal stories of tragedy and triumph to make art.
Beyond that, Voices of the Soft-bellied Warrior provides a good overview of traditional and alternative healing approaches, and makes a solid case for a holistic blending and balancing of the two.
This writer tells a compelling story, allowing herself to be vulnerable, yet keeping her writing crisp and sharp. I never once felt the emotional manipulation associated with many books and especially movies of this genre. Mary Saracino confronts some truly sensitive issues with honesty, literally holding up a mirror as she grows through the healing process, but also with professionalism and respect for the reader. After reading this book, I want to read more of her work.
SHE IS EVERYWHERE! VOLUME 3: An Anthology of Writings in Womanist/Feminist Spirituality
“Filled with essays, stories, poetry, and works of art, She Is Everywhere! is a huge cauldron filled with a nourishing stew of Goddess spirituality. No matter if you’ve been devoted to the Goddess for twenty years or you’re a newbie just meeting her, this is a book worth reading and savoring. But it’s not fast food! You need to carefully chew and savor what you’re reading and seeing. When you do, you’ll be nourished for a long time.”
- Barbara Ardinger, Ph.D. (www.barbaraardinger.com), Secret Lives & Pagan Every Day.
“Reading the provocative and inspiring work of these fifty contributors expressed through cutting-edge essays, twenty-four poems, and two dozen photographs of art and sites related to the essays, I was transported between many worlds, cultures, and spiritual traditions which had at their center the honoring of the Sacred Feminine in her many and diverse manifestations…. I propose that this volume, an important addition to college courses in women’s spirituality, women’s and gender studies, philosophy, and religion, is also comari. As we, the readers, move within this laboratory, we are encouraged to bring forth from within our bodies, hearts and minds the values of justice with compassion, equality for all people and transformation that characterize the world/s where She is Everywhere.
- Louise M. Paré, Ph.D.
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