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Palpable Tension
The Matriarch Messiah follows two women who come from different cultural and religious backgrounds yet find themselves bound by an ancient prophecy and mission to save humanity. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?
First and foremost, the conflicts over the ages between people of both Zara’s and Rachel’s faiths and cultures inspired the story of how peace needs to be found so humanity could survive and thrive. The more recent conflicts highlight the need for peaceful solutions as violence only begets violence – which both Zara, a former Kurdish soldier, and Rachel, an Israeli Torah historian and archeologist, find out by the ending chapters of The Matriarch Messiah. Perhaps these notions are naïve, but we all must have faith that we can find peace among us all.
The legend of the cavern of the blue light stemmed from a sense of gender equality in mythology. The Matriarch Matrix is based on an ancient story passed patriarchally from grandfather to grandson. Much of ancient literature including faith text is patriarchal. The Matriarch Messiah shows a parallel but even more secretive women’s legend passed matriarchally from grandmother to granddaughter. So, even though Zara and Rachel have their initial conceptual and contextual differences, both their matriarchal ancestors ask they follow the prophecy handed down by their grandmothers. In this, they must find a solution by working together. A parable for our times.
What was your inspiration for their characters’ interactions and backstories?
In The Matriarch Messiah, the reviews so far call out the “raw and realistic” interactions between Zara and Rachel. As I credit in the book’s acknowledgments, their spats are based on years of watching my two daughters, who ultimately love each other, go at it for, as we say in French, “n’importe quoi” or whatever or nothing at all. At their core, Zara and Rachel are more similar than different motivated by the same end-game of finding the cavern of the blue light. But as in real life, the external optics of upbringing and sense of what is culturally or religiously correct trip them up.
And the love triangle that some reviewers have praised? That was inspired by Romance Writers of America craft sessions. A romance story must find the romance characters stumbling over obstacle after obstacle until they finally resolve their differences. Setting up Rachel as someone who Zara would despise, especially if Peter ends up in her bed, fueled the palpable tension felt through the back half of the book.
What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?
In both The Matriarch Matrix and the sequel, The Matriarch Messiah, I wanted readers to confront their own prejudices and stereotyping formed by our modern world’s premium on “fast take” and “move on” social media. From the reviews, one can discern those who formed judgment very early and did not accept the later challenges to their preconceived notions. Then one can see other reviewers who embraced the “thought-provoking” nature of the reading experience. Much of the social injustice we see today, the intolerance of different cultures and faiths, comes from biases formed from misinformation and/or misunderstanding. My premise is we need to be open to understanding further before we pronounce judgement.
Second, I created the book’s ancients storyline to show a hypothesis of how the seemingly divergent customs we see in the Abrahamic faiths may have started from one source before the days humanity could codify their faith in writing. Myths and religion were passed down orally from one generation to another. Then around 3000 BCE these stories–history was encoded into durable stone and clay. Hence we see a common “flood story” across faiths. The original matriarch, Nanshe, and her descendants hypothetically formed many of the cultural traditions we see in these Western religions. My intent is to show we are more alike than different by showing both the good in what we see today and the horrible acts of war have roots all the way back beyond the first temple at Göbekli Tepe in 9600 BCE.
Will there be a follow-up novel to this story? If so, what aspects of the story will the next book cover?
Nearing first draft completion is the prequel, The Matriarch Mission. Set eighty years prior to the current two books, it takes place in post-civil war Russia. The story provides the background for Rachel’s pursuit of the truth behind Asherah and how her family became intimate with the legend of the cavern of the blue light as shown in The Matriarch Messiah prologue. The protagonist is Oksana, the mother of Rachel’s great-grandmother, Ariella.
As well, we will learn why Alexander Murometz, the ominous puppet master Russian oligarch in The Matriarch Matrix and The Matriarch Messiah, is driven to find the legendary black object at all costs. His grandfather, Zoran Murometz, plays a role in Oksana’s destiny with Asherah and the mysterious Agartthans, who were in real life sought after by Russian and French occultists.
While The Matriarch Mission goes to beta readers in April, I will outline The Matriarch Mandate while on the shores of Mallorca, which will follow the stories of the first two book’s characters eighteen years later. What is worse than fighting oppressors in deadly combat? Raising teenagers!
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The Matriarch Messiah is a thrilling science fiction adventure that will leave you breathless. This sequel to The Matriarch Matrix picks up the story six months later, plunging you deeper into a world of conspiracies, forbidden love, and the fight for humanity’s future.
Zara Khatum, a woman haunted by ancient visions, finds herself drawn deeper into the heart of a perilous quest. Guided by a mysterious voice, she seeks to fulfill an ancient prophecy and find the cavern of blue light – a sanctuary rumored to hold the key to saving humanity. But the path to salvation is fraught with danger, and Zara is torn between her destiny and her heart.
A shadowy organization, known as NiQihs, seeks to exploit the power of the legendary black object, the source of Zara’s visions, for their own sinister ends. They are not alone. The world’s superpowers, driven by greed and ambition, race to control the artifact, threatening to unleash unimaginable devastation.
Joining Zara in this dangerous pursuit is Rachel Capsali, a brilliant Israeli archaeologist driven by a personal quest to uncover evidence of Asherah, a forgotten goddess who held a pivotal place in ancient Israelite faith. Unbeknownst to them, both women are bound by a shared destiny – a prophecy foretelling the cavern of blue light and a final, heartbreaking truth: two women will fight to the death, and only one will save us all.
Adding to the complexity, a passionate triangle forms as Rachel vies for Peter Gollinger‘s affection, a man deeply entangled in the ancient mystery. Zara, torn between fulfilling her destiny and her own feelings for Peter, finds herself caught in a web of conflicting desires.
As Zara and Rachel navigate a treacherous landscape of hidden agendas, betrayal, and relentless pursuit, their rivalry for Peter’s affections intensifies. Can love survive the forces that threaten to tear them apart? Will the quest for salvation lead to a heart-wrenching sacrifice?
Dive into a world where:Ancient prophecies clash with modern technology: Discover a world where ancient legends are woven into the fabric of a technologically advanced future.
Intrigue and betrayal threaten to shatter everything: Uncover a web of conspiracies, hidden agendas, and deadly secrets.
A passionate rivalry for love unfolds: Zara and Rachel’s destinies are intertwined, leading them to a final confrontation where only one will survive, but their struggle for Peter’s love adds another layer of complexity and tension.
The stakes are higher than ever before: With the world teetering on the brink of nuclear war, Zara and Rachel must find the cavern of blue light, uncover the truth behind the black object, and face the ultimate sacrifice to save humanity.
The Matriarch Messiah is a must-read for fans of science fiction thrillers with a touch of romance and a dash of the mystical. Prepare to be swept away by a journey where ancient secrets, forbidden love, and the fate of humanity hang in the balance.
Staying True
Maxime Trencavel Author Interview
The Matriarch Matrix is a unique blend of genres combining history and centuries of speculation regarding ancient alien invasions of Earth. What made you want to start writing this novel?
I few years ago I read a news release on the world’s oldest temple built 12,000 years ago at a site called Göbekli Tepe in the Anatolian region of Turkey. Somehow hundreds of nomadic hunter-gathers came together and built a complex of monolithic pillars weighing tens of tons each. 6,000 years before Stonehenge and the Great Pyramid of Giza, pre-pottery Neolithic man figured out how to work together to build a stone complex seemingly unrelated to ordinary living.
Archaeologists would say that mankind was far more advanced than we give credit for coming out of the Paleolithic age, coming out of the ice age. Alien theorists would say that Göbekli Tepe is further proof of alien intervention in human history. Given some believe this complex represents the oldest temple known to modern man, some may believe that divine inspiration guided mankind into the modern age.
In 2016, more time came into my life and I wrote a story line pitting people with these three inherent beliefs into a search for a legendary object which will save the world from impending war. A key theme is what has happened in the past continues to happen throughout history. Mankind continues to repeat the same issues, the same themes. But to what end?
Zara endures many horrors, but becomes a woman who is true to her roots and a follower of her faith. What was the inspiration for Zara’s character?
As I crafted the story in early 2016, the lands south of Göbekli Tepe had been conquered by the Daesh, or ISIS as the West calls this group – a name which evokes religious stereotyping. In researching the lands around this temple, I read about the Kurdish women who fought the Daesh in all female units. So I decided to make the main female character a Kurdish woman who fought for her people’s freedom. As I researched the Kurds, their culture, their history, their centuries of oppression, Zara’s character became more complex and dark as a metaphoric reflection of what Kurdish women have endured. Hence I made Zara Khatum a woman who fought Saddam as a teen, then Assad as a young adult, and finally the Daesh only to be captured by the latter.
The horrors of her past life, the darkness she carries in the story, combines the biographies of Kurdish women, accounts by social workers treating Kurdish women refugees, the news stories of the Kurdish struggles, and documents from international governing bodies investigating human right violations in Iraq, Syria, and Turkey, including institutional violation of women en masse.
What has happened to Kurdish women is a continuance of the horrors women have suffered repeatedly in periods of genocide or cultural/racial oppression throughout time. The accounts in Bosnia are very similar to that of the Kurds. Similar accounts are told in WWII between the Germans and Russians, with the Japanese to the Koreans and Chinese. History repeats itself in the worse ways.
I made an active decision not to pull punches in describing this oppression staying true to the multitude of actual accounts. But I made the ancient race, the giant Reindeer warriors, the originating perpetrators as to not condemn anyone in the present as to avoid the equal horror of stereotyping a group of people based on the crimes of but a few. I understand for some readers, this reality is too much. I opted to stay true to historical accounts as we must learn from our past follies in order to prevent the same horrors from happening again. In a number of European countries, they teach the past in this way so people will be sensitized to not repeating the bad of what happened in the past.
My inspiration to bring Zara’s story to life in this manner came from the words of a 22-year-old beta reader from Germany: “I would actually like to extend my gratitude. I can’t explain how touching it has been to read about a character like Zara. I think it sends a really strong message home that people seem to really forget. We can all be subject to rape. The world isn’t pretty. And it doesn’t matter how strong you are. But through everything, Zara is so incredibly beautiful. I think that’s important. Whether she agrees or not, she’s a stronger person for everything she’s been through. Thank you for not writing her as some typical rape victim. Thank you for creating something so much more powerful.”
What the portrayal of Zara did for her as a person gave me the conviction to bring this story to others. To bring strength into people’s lives.
I enjoyed the intuitive technological advancements juxtaposed with a glimpse into 9500 BCE. What were some themes you wanted to capture with this story?
The first theme is that culture did not start with written history. The wisdom we believe came from the Greeks and Persians through their writing likely came from their predecessors from oral traditions passed down through the centuries before mankind learned to write. For all we know, themes in our lives today came from the end of the ice age through stories passed from one generation to another.
Another addresses the dangers and opportunities of the modern digital age. Is the advancement of science, of technology leading to dystopic world? The recent FB data privacy issue is only an example of the magnitude of such privacy incursions all over. But what if the collection of information worldwide could lead to the cure for the worst diseases, could lead us to a greater prosperity and peace? Is the body collecting that data for these ends so bad after all? I built that notion into the book’s villain who in end professes in his Machiavellian way he was only trying to save us all.
The last, the most subtle, and yet the most important is the human tendency to pass judgement early and form stereotypes and harmful impressions about other people who are different from them. Zara has been a victim of this trait by others to her, but she does the same until she hears “the voice”. I made her Muslim to show the metaphoric example of what religious discrimination does to negatively form a child’s life. Like other forms of hatred and discrimination, Islamaphobia shaped her belief of the world only to be changed by her meeting her other half from the other side of the world. The book is written in a way that if the reader passes judgement too early they will not glean as much as those who are patient. Peace in this world will us striving to understand each other.
What is the next book that you are working on and when will it be available?
The Matriarch Messiah is the working title. What is “the voice”? Is it good or bad? From the divine or anther planet? What secrets lay buried in the Crimea? The protagonists travel through the pyramid lands of China, through Jerusalem, and finally back to where the originating family came from in the Crimea.
The first half of the book is with four alpha readers. Four of the most intelligent, insightful, powerful, and well-read women I know. Release maybe by the end of this calendar year.
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![The Matriarch Matrix by [Trencavel, Maxime]](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51FukYVnE3L.jpg)
Kidnapped again. But this time by the oligarch who saved her from kidnapping by the Daesh. And he wants her to do what? With whom?
Meet Zara – a woman of great depth, courage, faith, and human frailty who only wanted to follow the path of love and peace. But a dark, violent past haunts her from which she cannot escape. Destiny calls her to shake up her life and partner with her exact opposite from the other side of the world. Together they must discover the answer to an ancient legend from the world’s oldest temple locked in their DNA. Only through finding a certain love as told by an ancient matriarch will they unlock this mystery and stop the next world war.
The fate of Earth is now in their hands in an all-encompassing narrative of conflict, salvation, and the struggles of womankind across the ages in this dark, intriguing science-fiction fantasy epic.
The Matriarch Matrix
Buried deep within families from all walks of life around the world lies a secret. This secret is beyond the comprehension of most humans and would more than likely be rejected by the rest. Zara and Peter, two strangers with more in common than either is willing to admit, are united under the unique and all-powerful leadership of Alexander Murometz. When Zara and Peter are forced together in an effort to save mankind, the two learn much more about each other’s culture, their own weaknesses, and the value of their strengths than they would ever have believed possible. The Matriarch Matrix, by Maxime Trencavel, is the intricately woven story of our history and, to some degree, our doomed future.
The Matriarch Matrix is a unique blend of genres. Within its covers, Trencavel has managed to pull together a rich blend of historical accuracies and centuries of speculation regarding ancient alien invasions of the Earth. Furthermore, the author details each and every aspect of the characters’ religious and cultural restrictions and requirements. What makes Trencavel’s interpretation of events so different is an added layer of incredibly intuitive technological advancements juxtaposed with a glimpse into 9500 BCE. Alternating the settings and weaving the two eras together throughout the storyline, Trencavel manages to gradually explain the impact of a centuries-old affliction.
Of the various connected settings and storylines, I have to say that Zara’s kept me the most intrigued. The horrors she has endured to become a woman who is again true to her roots and a follower of her faith have left her hardened but at the same time caring and receptive to the feelings of those around her. She has built a wall around her that not many can penetrate and, when they are able, she becomes their biggest ally. Zara is a memorable character and one who is easily visualized.
The Matriarch Matrix is written in the present tense, and this choice by the author creates an especially engaging reading experience. I am a fan of the use of present tense, and Trencavel has chosen wisely here. The depth to which the characters are related and the constant shifts in time and place could lead readers down some confusing roads. The use of present tense throughout the story ties characters and eras together almost flawlessly.
As well-written as Trencavel’s work is and as intricately woven and engaging as the plot itself is, I did struggle with one particular facet of the story line. Those afflicted with sleeplessness and the burden of message-bearing dreams/nightmares must be comforted into a frame of mind which makes it easier for them to share their recollections. In order to communicate these messages, the afflicted must rely on heavy stimulation of the senses and sexual contact. The fact that this sexual stimulation was made such a vital role in recalling repressed memories temporarily changed the direction of the book from one chapter to the next. I saw the rapes and scenes of sexual slavery as a bit overdone. Much of the plot centers around this domination by oversexed beings, and the sexual overtones permeate the book.
Readers with open minds seeking mysteries steeped in culture and yearning for a complicated but readable plot will be drawn to Trencavel’s Zara and Peter and the intensity surrounding the immense task that lies before them.
Pages: 530 | ASIN: B075R2DD4Y
LITERARY TITAN 