3.0 out of 5 stars
Dark Secrets, May 31 2008
This review is from: God's Spy (Hardcover)
The story is set in Vatican City during the conclave in the aftermath of Pope Paul 11's death in 2005. A cardinal planning to participate in the conclave is found brutally murdered in a chapel in Rome, his eyes gouged and his hands cut off. When police inspector Paola Dicanti is summoned to investigate and learns that another cardinal was recently found dead also mutilated and tortured beyond recognition. Eager to find the killer before other victims die, the Vatican teams Father Anthony Fowler with Paola. Father Fowler is an American priest with an Army intelligence background examining sexual abuse in the Church. He previously worked in a facility for deviant priests and suspects missing former patient Father Victor Karosky....The hunt is on to find the serial killer before he strikes again....
A major subplot in this novel touches the abuse scandal of the Catholic Church and their policy of simply reassigning priest to other parishes. It also explores the conflict within the church regarding sexual abuse, its treatment and their penalties. Some of the details described mirrored the events reported in the news over the past few years. Some readers may be annoyed with the depiction of the Catholic Church and also the language used.
As for the characters, they are numerous and easy to follow, everyone has their own deep dark secrets and we are given bits and pieces through flashbacks. Paola the main character is portrayed as a smart and heroic woman. It would be nice to see her reappear in subsequent novels with Father Fowler. In whole, the story is fast-paced with a few twists and turns, a lot of graphic description of the murders and enough suspense to make it a good first novel.
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