The Parchment Maze

"The Parchment Maze" by the best-selling author Ludmila Filipova is an archival suspense thriller, which topped national best-seller lists for years and which is currently in its sixth reprinting. In 2012, National Geographic made a film based on the book and featuring the author, entitled "Sword in the Stone & the Orpheus Amulet". The novel combines shocking archeological evidence plus a healthy jolt of fantasy. The Parchment Maze itself has a curious history - created in 2007 by Ludmila Filipova and published in January of 2009, could its sensational discoveries be the true and unacknowledged source of the literary angel-mania that swept the globe? The Parchment Maze offers readers a totally new way to look at human history and theories about the "different" ones. Some see them as saints and deities, while great artists such as Ovid, Dante and Orpheus described them as "shades." Thousands of others have called them angels, but few have ever descended to the bowels of the earth to discover their true faces. Today, however, for the first time, a human being is close to grasping their true essence. While studying similarities between Christianity and Thracian Orphism, archeologist Vera Kandilova stumbles across perplexing symbols tied to a prehistoric Balkan civilization that mysteriously disappeared 5,000 years ago. What begins as a purely academic scavenger hunt across Switzerland, Russia, Italy and Bulgaria leads her to frescoes in the Roman catacombs, a medieval amulet, engraved golden tablets, prehistoric clay vessels and ultimately to a cryptic manuscript called The Parchment Maze. The intellectual puzzle quickly gets visceral - after a series of murders, thefts of valuable artifacts and a kidnapping, the clues show Vera the path to uncovering the secret of the legendary incorporeal ones - those who jealously guard the most ancient knowledge from humanity and grant insight only to enlightened individuals such as Jesus and Orpheus. Their secrets have been sought over the centuries by powerful scientists and politicians, including Hitler, numerous popes, secret services and military organizations. Vera is determined to follow a trail of clues to the Lower Kingdom before the handsome assassin Ariman, with pale skin and colorful eyes, can obliterate them - and Vera herself. An underground brotherhood led by the ghoulish Incorporeal One has raised Ariman to be a cold-blooded automaton. However, the merciless killer is also on a secret mission of his own - the only thing that could possibly tempt him from his path is love, since angels are capable of loving as no human being can... www.parchmentmaze.com "Fiction and science combine in an intriguing novel based on real archaeological discoveries and actual icons, a daring combination of Dan Brown and Umberto Eco. Could the legend of Orpheus and his descent into the Underworld be more than just mythology? There is a supernatural love story, there are secrets; there is murder, there is history; from Berlin to Moscow, from Rome to Burma, Filipova's novel is sure to intrigue." Colin Falconer, author of twenty novels, seventeen languages "A carefully crafted literary work that is both entertaining and illuminating for readers. The contribution of the novel to the literature of the occult is quite significant. In my professional opinion, this novel surpasses those of both Dan Brown and Elizabeth Kostova in terms of complexity and theme." Joseph Ceccio, Ph.D., professor of English literature, University of Akron

www.ludmilafilipova.com Ludmila Filipova is one of Bulgaria’s most popular contemporary authors. She is the author of the novels Anatomy of Illusions (2006), Scarlet Gold (2007), Glass Butterflies (2008), The Parchment Maze (2009), Dante’s Antichthon (2010), The Anomaly (2011) and Typo (2012). Most of her books have become nationwide bestsellers and have been translated also into Russian, English, Serbian, Greek, Turkish. Three of her novels are currently being developed into films. The London WAG TV filmed a documentary movie for National Geographic based on Ludmila’s novel The Parchment Maze. The Turkish production company Sinegraf is preparing a historical international television series based on Ludmila’s first novel Anatomy of Illusions. The movie scripts based on her novels Glass Butterflies and Scarlet Gold won first places in the Bulgarian Film Center competition 2011 and the European MEDIA. Ludmila Filipova was awarded as Woman of the year 2011, Culture and Art category. She was awarded also as Writer of 2013 at the Bulgarian award ceremony Ladies Awards/ Beauty & Success 2013. With her novels, Ludmila Filipova was nominated for the European literary contest Prix du Livre Europeen 2008, short-listed for the Bulgarian literary contest Novel of the Year 2009, and as the only foreign novel nominated for the American literary award Hidden River 2009. With her novels Glass Butterflies and Scarlet Gold at 2013 Ludmila Filipova won one of the most respectful International literary contest in Russia ＂Yugra＂. Ludmila was born on Easter 1977 and she is a granddaughter of the last Socialist Bulgarian Prime-minister Grisha Filipov. Ludmila graduated from the Economic University Sofia with high honors and from the City University(US) with an MBA. She specialized in Creative writing at Oxford University in 2009. Moreover, Ludmila works as a TV presenter, acted in several children and adult movies and she writes as a columnist for the most popular Bulgarian newspaper 24 Hours. She worked as an editor in chief of Media&Marketing magazine and as a journalist for BusinessWeek Bulgaria. Ludmila Filipova’s books are based on and inspired by real stories and facts. She travels worldwide in order to gather the necessary information, conduct interviews, study manuscripts and do researches. She had many readings in Bulgaria, Moscow, Rome, London, Berlin, Turkey, Greece, Apolonia Cultural Festival at Sozopol, and gave lectures in Oxford and for young writers at Albena.