By Diane Feen
Boca Raton psychologist Liz Alexander has many talents. She is an excellent therapist, she does past life regression therapy, and has the common sense of three wise men.
But when she said she was writing a book, I yawned and thought to myself, “So what else is new?”
But after she handed me a copy I realized I owed it to her (and myself) to read it. And what a story she told (with writing partner and clinical psychologist peer, Jean Bratcher).
Author Liz Alexander discusses her book.
It turns out that both women are adept at past life regression therapy and both understand the ramifications of delving into the past to explain (and express) the present. If you are familiar with the work of Dr. Brian Weiss (author of “Many Lives Many Masters”), you will remember that he healed many patients by regressing them to former incarnations.
Whether you believe in this form of actualization (or therapy) does not matter when reading “The House of M. Lucretius.” But what does matter is that the book is beautifully written and tells a tender moving tale of love and life in ancient Pompeii as it relates to the character’s lives in the present.
The book starts out following the life of 27-year-old Maggie Knaveen, an attractive, intelligent scientist. Maggie is what you would call a workaholic, and when she meets a dashing lawyer named Mark Hampton, she brushes him off like lint. Eventually they do fall in love, but Maggie is unable to commit.
So she does what most of us fantasize about: she runs away. But not to Cleveland or Palm Beach, but to Rome, Italy. It is in Rome that the book becomes mesmerizing. We travel with Maggie to Pompeii as she discovers the past life of Claudia Quinta, a gracious and beautiful woman married to a powerful loving man named Marcus Lucretius. It is their courtship and day to day existence that is absolutely riveting.
The story is told so vividly that you almost feel their pain and pleasure as they navigate the household dramas (and traumas) of life in ancient Pompeii.
We watch their courtship and their daily lives in a house filled with cooks, assistants, valets, relatives, and staff. We also get to eavesdrop on the slow yet subtle love that develops between the two main characters, Claudia and Marcus.
When Claudia goes to the Villa of Mysteries and the ancient bath house, we get to go with her. The bath house is where royalty (and the well heeled) used to go to soak and schmooze in ancient Pompeii.
Not only do the temples and forums come to life on the pages of this book, but we get to witness (and delve deeply) into the personal lives of Claudia and Marcus as they unravel in front of our eyes. There are gladiatorial battles in the forum and ceremonies that entertained people nearly 2,000 years ago in ancient Rome.
“The House of M. Lucretius” by Boca author Liz Alexander
As we near the end of this amazing journey we realize that Maggie is having flashbacks of her former life in Pompeii, and that reality is what helps her navigate her present life.
Although the book is fictional, there is a bit of truth to its premise. “In my practice as a psychotherapist I see this type of thing happening. A childhood experience starts the difficulty that the person is trying to overcome, but the problem was really started years or centuries ago,” says Alexander.
Whether you believe in reincarnation or not, this book is stunning in its descriptions and character development. We live and learn about ancient Rome in its most primitive and primordial form.
The House of M. Lucretius is available at www.ArcheBooks.com or at: http://www.amazon.com/gp/search/ref=sr_ex_n_0?rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck%3AThe+House+of+M.+Lucretius&keywords=The+House+of+M.+Lucretius&ie=UTF8&qid=1264973290
Caption:
1 – “The House of M. Lucretius” by Boca author Liz Alexander
2 – Author Liz Alexander discusses her book.