Just imagine if we had another Jesus and that he happened to be a panel on a talent show just like Simon Cowell? Imagining Simon Cowell as a force for good is tricky in itself but it makes for a good hook to get your attention. The miracle man is a modern update of the four gospels of the New Testament set in modern times and is full of miracles, healing, love, forgiveness and greed. The true skill of the book is that it grabs the attention of the non-believer as well as the religious, and each and every reader will find some controversial topic that will make them think twice. It features all the main religions plus the law of attraction and Whitehouse doesn’t pull her punches. We have Jude, the beautiful lesbian PR whirlwind as Judas for a start. However, although it is obvious that many parts of this book have the potential to offend some people, the book is not controversial for the sake of it. More that it reflects the liberal society of modern America and the UK with journeys into most continents. So you want to know more about a modern Jesus who hosts a talent show and all the gossip about miracles and healing? Whitehouse writes well with good humour and a modern style and the miracles are well thought out and delivered. It all seems real, just as vampires drinking blood from a blood bank as a substitute to killing humans seems reasonable in the vampire novels. However, the miracles and the showbiz is not the real pull of the book once you start reading it. The attraction of the book is the way that people and society respond to someone who extends unconditional love and total forgiveness. The recipients of the healing are obviously delighted but there is confusion and fear from the general public fuelled by the media and fundamentalists. Much of our economy is driven by greed and the desire to have more than our neighbour and this modern Jesus becomes a dangerous person to the top people in business and society. Whitehouse manages to weave a number of modern situations into the story. We have glimpses of the Middle East conflict and there is an audacious attempt at the peaceful resolution of the Chinese invasion of Tibet including the Dalai Lama and numerous celebrities. The ongoing talent competition held in Las Vegas provides tension to drive the narrative on with a magician with the stage name of Lucifer causing problem and heartbreak by using mind control. The reader knows that Josh, the miracle man and modern Jesus is going to die. The question is more will he be re-born? If he is not will his legacy be remembered? Or will the positive resolution of so many problems be quickly forgotten if the world returns to its former ways? As an atheist, this book has not made me want to find religion, but it has made me more motivated to help other people when I can, even if no-one helps me in return. If other people feel this way then this book is a huge accomplishment. ~ Russ King, Activagers.com

Author Maggy Whitehouse has written a re-telling of Jesus in a modern context. What if Jesus arrived on earth today and he was a judge on a talent show similar to American Idol? The book is called The Miracle Man and it begins with a couple who get in a car accident. The wife is killed instantly but the husband somehow survives and gets this Christ-complex. He can heal people and he actually follows the actions of Jesus. He doesn't claim to be Jesus, he doesn't claim to be divine; he just feels a special connection to The Source (his way of referring to God). He feels called to a special calling. He draws people near him, his disciples are more like bodyguards than fishermen and he has no issue with promoting what he can do. I felt like I was reading a book Oprah would love to promote and with how the television show Lost ended, I felt like this book connects with the current postmodern feel for religion. Christians will find this book ultra-controversial. Entertaining You ~

Spellbinding; Josh Goldstone is an angel for the modern world. ~ Jacky Newcomb, Author of An Angel Saved my Life Sunday Times best seller

If you loved the Da Vinci code you'll fall on this book with cries of delight. ~ Jane Struthers, Bella magazine

Praise for previous novel The Book of Deborah I read it in one sitting; not because I was in a hurry but simply because I became absorbed in a well told story. Deborah is a perfect heroine for a story which parallels the suffering and persecution of Christ. ~ Mary Loudon, Times

An emotional, often grippingly mystical tale. Theologically it is highly controversial, but as as story it is heartwarming. Definitely worth a read, if you are not afraid of getting a little moist around the eyes. ~ Kent Messenger

Fascinating, instructive and thought-provoking. I believed in the characters and admired their strength and tenacity. In the light of two millennia of religious intolerance, I welcome such new interpretations and recommend this book to open-minded readers with enquiring minds. ~ Luke Mulrany, Historical Novel Review

Wonderful, has the ingredients of a thoroughly contentious debate. ~ The Bookseller