This statue of the devil bearing the holy water stoup stands just inside the door of the church of St Mary Magdalene in the little village of Rennes-le-Chateau in Southern France. It is the only known statue of the devil inside any Roman Catholic church in the Christian world. Why is it there?

It was placed there by the priest of this little village of less than 200 inhabitants after he became fabulously wealthy in the1880´s. No-one knows how he came by his riches, but it happened when he was trying to restore the little church, which had become semi-derelict. What did he find and why did he celebrate it in this way?

Michael Hillier´s researches into the many fascinating mysteries of the Languedoc region has resulted in his writing a trilogy of major novels about the area. If you want to know more, you should start by getting the first novel in the Languedoc Trilogy –

The Secret of the Cathars

This takes you to the heart of this fantastic landscape, scattered with castles, where Dan Brown and Kate Mosse only scratched at the edges.

As a special offer, I am reducing the price of the e-book in the period up to Christmas.