Rating: 
Summary: ummm...not!
Review: A book by a liberal who hates Christianity. From a neutral standpoint, he presents opinion, no facts. This book is full of massive holes. I'll just pick one for starters. For instance, the author says that Jesus didn't die on the cross, but was injured and healed later and moved to another land. No man could have survived a crucifixion. It's been studied, proven, and laid to rest. After over 100 injuries, all bloodied, Jesus was nailed to the cross. One of his arms was dislocated during the process, as was common from pulling one's arms to the nails location. He was nailed through the wrists and feet. He was already in shock, and would have been anyhow from the trauma from the nails. If he did leave the cross, he couldn't have walked far and would soon have bled to death. Zero chance he survived. It's impossible. But the author makes a great point. If he himself can write a book of lies, can't we all and get rich..I have go, time to write a book of lies so I can get rich too! Only conspiracy theorists would like this book, but then again they like facts sometimes so maybe they would hate this book...
Rating: 
Summary: Bogus Fun
Review: A few years ago while doing my own family genealogy I discovered that I am a direct descendent of English King Henry III through a Puritan ancestor. Because the English kings claim direct descent from the Merovingian kings of France this would make me a direct descendent of Jesus (as would millions of people around the world.) Woo hoo! Gives whole new meaning to being the son of God! But, let's face it: Gardner creates his "evidence." On the other hand, so did early church fathers. Christianity is so much a man-created religion that modern people must accept the Christian interpretations by faith alone. Either you believe or you don't believe. There is no scientific evidence for you Doubting Thomas. Gardner is fun because he pokes orthodoxy and makes some people uncomfortable. It is a good (not great) show. If you want to believe that the Christian Church highjacked Western civilization then this book is for you. If you are an orthodox believer you will hate this book. All the while, Gardner is probably laughing all the way to the bank.
Rating: 
Summary: Pass the Reynolds Wrap
Review: Already being well-versed in the "Jesus Lived" conspiracy theory, there wasn't much in this book that was new to me, except for the more detailed and more speculative passages regarding the Gospels of Thomas contained in the Nag Hamadi scrolls, and some eyebrow-raising claims near the end - which I won't spoil. What is unique about Gardner's take on the puzzle is his background as a Royal Genealogist and his claim his contacts have taken the story for granted, for centuries. Apparently, according to Gardner, everyone in the European nobility - or at least his circle, it seems - knew all along they were Christ's descendents. Kind of brings a new twist to the Divine Right of Kings, don't it? In Gardner's world, the descendents of this bloodline are noble, dedicated public servants whose top concern is for the benefit of humanity. Until I read this book, I was always fairly amused, if not bemused and intrigued, by the myth/legend/conspiracy theory so magnificently laid out by the authors of "Holy Blood, Holy Grail" almost 20 years ago, and the entire cottage industry it spawned. Gardner's assertions, however, that these nobles descended from Christ are somehow destined to lead and serve, becomes disturbing to a US citizen raised in the belief that our political system is based on democracy - especially in these times of uncertainty, and especially when the Catholic Church's feet of clay become more exposed with each scandal. If one knows where and how to search, one can easily find and trace the lineage of the almost half of US presidents who came from this very bloodline - right up to and including our current Bible-quoting President.
Rating:
Summary: soo what
Review: Although this book is interesting documenting some vague theories, you Mr. Gardner have to pay your taxes,go to work defecate and expire just like the rest of us untermenschen of the post-antediluvian rinse cycle, so what makes your lineage soo special? Why don't you seek a master and explore the mysteries of light and the inner planes accessible to all of us or help the third world that has been been divvied up and exploited by europe and left in chaos.the anunaki has made a mess of this beautiful planet and made us all slaves. why am drawn to this (...)?Read Black Athena by Bernal or Black Spark ,White Flame by Poe instead of this hokey narcissistic cheese.Any body back then could buy a name or title for themselves.
Rating:
Summary: Entertaining, but unconvincing
Review: Before the popular media latched onto the 'controversial' plotline proposed in the phenom novel 'The DaVinci Code', there were many other books that already investigated some of the dangerous ideas that Dan Brown played with. There were two books that, for me, were the heavy hitters; 'Holy Blood and Holy Grail', the fascinating yet ultimately unconvincing look into the connection between the life of Christ and Southern France, and Gardner's 'Bloodline of the Holy Grail'. 'Bloodline' is an extremely intriguing book. I devoured it relatively quickly, and overall quite enjoyed it. Gardner puts forth the same sort of heretical ideas 'Holy Blood' did, including the possibility that Jesus survived the crucifixion, possibly married Mary Magdelene, and had children whose ancestors make up some of the most important figures in royal history. It does this while tracing a meandering legacy from their union to modern day, and includes the bloodlines links to the Arthurian legend, Tarot imagery, Freemasonry and early American history. As fascinating as this all is, the book really stands on precarious legs. For one, Gardner is happy to provide footnotes for already established facts, yet the more intriguing details are simply stated. The author can easily tell us the name of Christ's daughter, a piece of knowledge that would be explosive if provided with evidence, but in no way documents where this information came from. It's quite easy to be caught up in teasingly naughty tidbits like this (I found myself giving out nanosecond-long gasps) but the reader should quickly realize that much of the 'history' mentioned is not backed up at all. The author also never explains the importance of the bloodline or his theories. If Christ wasn't the Son of God as proposed by the author, then why should we care who His great grandkids were? Gardner seems to show the crowd the ball he caught, but never runs with it. The books other weakness lies in the often bulky geneaologies presented. Pages upon pages of dry information take up the book, especially in the later chapters. However, for all its plot holes, the assertions made never fail to spark curiosity. Definately the book will spark the imaginations of its readers and will cause many to ask questions. 'Bloodlines' never proves anything, with the exception that the ideas presented create a highly entertaining read. If you can get past the endless lists ( the book has more 'begats' than the Bible) and questionable conclusions, 'Bloodline of the Holy Grail' is a fun read.
Rating:
Summary: Of the Line, But Not Divine
Review: Gardner argues that Jesus was of Holy Grail Bloodline in this book on the Holy Grail. He gives an esoteric interpretation to Jesus' story and the new testament, claiming that angels were merely messengers, for instance. He also claims that Jesus was drugged on the cross and then he passed out and rose again after the effects of the drug wore off. He was married to Mary Magdalene and had children by her. Jesus was special because he was of the Grail bloodline, not because he was divine, according to Gardner.
Gardner is stolidly anti-Catholic and he goes on to claim that the church with its apostolic popes is not a legitimate priesthood, but Jesus' bloodline of the holy grail should be the legitimate priest kings in this world, even arguing for a constitutional monarchy for America from the holy bloodline of the Stewarts. The Windsors seem to be an illegitimate line and are not really part of the holy grail line, who are the rightful rulers. The Holy Grail Bloodline families have been kept from ruling by a wily church and royalty not part of the bloodline. The church has also kept books and passages out of the Bible that would give us an unorthodox view of Christianity. Gardner seems to be constructing a conspiracy theory against yet another venerable institution, the church.
Grail line ruler-ship, he claims, involves one of service to the people, not to self, religious tolerance, and inclusion and equality of women and the feminine in religion. The Catholic Church has been involved in a conspiracy to keep the feminine aspects of God out of the Roman Church and made sure Mary Magdalene was labeled a woman of easy virtue, and not the wife of Jesus, which would make her a spiritual figure to be venerated. --So Gardner's theories are conveniently modern.
Basically, we have a turning upside down of things as we have come to know them with Gardner's expose. The Catholic Church is bad and the Knights Templar, freemasonry, the King Arthur tale that the church considers heresy are good. The church is more of a political organization wishing to keep the populace under control with one dogma and accuses those who go against its doctrine as heretics and witches. There was a particularly interesting and compelling section in which he shows how the Roman Emperor Constantine used Christianity to unify his empire. He bought out the religion that was rising in popularity, made himself head of the church, appointed his own bishops, and changed some of the rituals to resemble the pagan rituals practiced by many Romans at the time. He changed the nature of Christianity and made it more pagan and less dangerous to the establishment. This was convincing section that sounds like real life.
Gardner does a lot of name dropping as he explains all these intricate genealogies which makes the book dull at times. I don't necessarily believe his theories, but he does seem to have a lot of documentation which he has gotten from exclusive archives, so it`s not like we can check up on his facts. I'm rather cool to his idea of putting Grail line monarchies on the thrones of different nations. I don't necessarily think that these kings will do the will of the people or safeguard constitutions. From what I've read about Gardner from other sources, I don't readily trust him and fear that he has some hidden, sinister agenda. I just read this book to see what was going on.
I suppose some will cry that this is heresy, but usually people like that are so biased that they never bother to read anything that questions their faith for fear of losing their salvation, their friends, and the culture that surrounds and supports them and their beliefs. Trouble is, how do you know a handed down truth is true, if you never hear an argument that would test it? But you are perfectly within your rights to view the book as satanic deception to drag you into the pit of hell. Who knows, you could be right.
Rating: 
Summary: Clever Conjecture or Christian Capitulation?
Review: I enjoy this type of book! It creates questions, stimulates people into researching for themselves, and raises issues which show how we are still in an evolving society.
When Lincoln Baigent and Leigh released Holy Blood Holy Grail many moons ago it created a storm. In comparison this book seemed to filter in without too much of a fuss, far less than the Dan Brown book which is still doing the rounds, but that shouldn't detract from the fact that this is a very good read indeed.
Ascertations are made which certainly would make your standard "conditioned" catholic reader reach for the nearest holy water in an attempt to cleanse their hands after holding such heretical ideas in them! Not only is the idea of Mary, "Mother of God" being a virgin reputed, (it's a mis-translation), but Jesus was conceived out of wedlock, ergo James Jesus's brother had a good claim to the Davidic title of "the Christ"!
The speculation of Jesus's marriage to Mary M is there too, along with the bloodline which flows through to the present day, with links to HRH Prince Michael of Albany, the man in direct line to the Scottish Crown, amongst many others.
The fact that we know certain things were added to our common bible, (The earliest transcripts never even had a resurrection!), and that others which could have been included but were not, only adds to the mystery. Throw in the Priory of Sion, and an author cited in at least one article I've read to be a reptilian shape-shifter, and some geometrical code-breaking, and what you have is a book that commands your attention even if that attention is laced with scepticism throughout!
Rating:
Summary: Conspiracy Threory Run Amok
Review: I got this book to try to understand the "facts" behind The Da Vinci Code and the recent revival of the Gnosticism heresy. What I got Christianity is one big conspiracy to hide the truth. From the beginning, the hypothesis of this book is that everything in the Bible was false (with no proof to back it up) and anything that was left out is true. Considering this book is written by a Freemason, I should of expected nothing more. This book has been thrown in the dumpster with the rest of the garbage, Real rating "-100 stars"
Rating:
Summary: A Stretch, But Interesting None the Less
Review: I, like many others, got interested in the whole subject of Jesus' marriage and children, possible cover-ups etc... after reading Dan Brown's "The Da Vinci Code". I made the mistake of making this the first book I read about the subject. This is one of the more radical books out there, so I would advise anyone interested in all this to work up to "Bloodline of the Holy Grail", after they have already got a foundation of what they believe from some of the more level-headed and fact-based authors. (N.T. Wright's "Who Was Jesus?" is a good one.)
After further exploration of the subject, it has become clear to me that many of the claims made in this book are based on half-truths, assumptions and exaggerations. However this book also has its rare moments of enlightening fact. I would recommend this book to anyone able to discern the enlightening fact from the obvious fiction. "Bloodline of the Holy Grail" is worth investigating, but don't make it your new Bible.
Rating:
Summary: A Book Worth Reading For Theologians
Review: If you have strong faith (Catholicism, Christianity) and believe in the literal written and fundamental English translated language of the Bible, this book is not for you. It is principally for theologians and historians, who accept Jesus to have been a human man and not divine. He altered the course of history, that is for sure and established Christianity from his native Israel into present day Western society. Gardner quotes from sources that are rare and hard to find, older books from medieval sources, and uses art and tarot cards and the myth of Arthur and the Holy Grail in their connection to the truth about Jesus. He proposes that he was of the Qumran community (where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found) and he married Mary Magdalene. He did not die on the cross and instead had someone else die in his place. From Magdalene, he was given a lineage, many of which lived their life as early Christian priests. This I can believe, but the claim that kings and queens of France and England (the Stewarts, etc) were descendants of Jesus/Mary is only a desire to claim "divine right of kings." This book is full of mystery and realism, that it can be like cracking a code to seperate fact from fiction. That is our job to do. Nevertheless, let the faithful be faithful. Believe what works for you. This is a great book. Changed my way of thinking. Look for his other books revolving around the Grail.
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