Reseña del libro "The Secret Rebellion (en Inglés)"
It is the year 31 A.D. The Jews are a conquered people, divided, their will broken by the brutality of the invading Roman empire. But on the banks of the river Jordan, a small group of rebels devise a daring plan for freedom from their Roman oppressors, and by the time they are finished, the world will never be the same. Thus begins "The Secret Rebellion," Oregon author Martin Baggen's explosive first novel that offers an astounding alternative history of Christianity's beginnings. The revolutionaries are led by (Yohannon) John the Baptist - an intense, hulking holy man who believes that he - with the blood of David running through him -- may be the chosen one to lead the Jewish uprising, and Miriam (Mary Magdalene), an idealistic and passionate young woman who devises a cunning plan to rouse a conquered nation. The plan centers around the faked murder and "resurrection" of the Baptist at the hands of Roman soldiers, bribed to play their part. The "resurrection" will match an ancient prophesy of a leader rising from the dead to unite the Israelites. But it all goes horribly wrong as the Baptist is captured by the Romans and held prisoner in King Herod's dungeons, his fate all but sealed. Miriam fears all is lost, but then along comes Yeshua (Jesus), the Baptist's brash young cousin, who also carries the royal bloodline of David in his veins. A charming and charismatic trickster adept at performing sleight-of-hand tricks, what Yeshua wants is to raise an army to fight the Romans. What he finds instead are Miriam, her father, Nicodemus, and his friend Yosef (Joseph of Arimathea), king-makers in need of a new king. Written from multiple points of view - like the Bible - "The Secret Rebellion" sweeps us through the next two years, as the band of conspirators set up a series of "miracles" for Yeshua to perform, building him into the messiah to unite Judea. But, as with the Baptist, the plot hits a snag, as Yeshua is arrested, tortured, and crucified. And that's when the real plotting begins. "The Secret Rebellion" is an exhaustively researched work, brimming with the author's imagination, yet firmly planted in the real world. "My inspiration was the fact that the New Testament is a story that has woven its way into billions of people's lives, and I wanted to unwind the supernatural and religious aspects and create a sequence of events that could have inspired the biblical stories we have today," says Baggen. "If the miraculous stories of the bible are rooted in truth, but achieved by mortals, then they were certainly incredible personalities." He adds: "I wanted the motives, politics, and methods to reflect the fact that even after thousands of years, a campaign to win over the populous has always required money, deals, dramatization, varying shades of truth, and a charismatic flag-bearer."
