God's Spy
A Paola
Dicanti Mystery
Juan
Gomez-Jurado
Plume (Trade Paperback)
ISBN-10: 0-452-28912-2 (0452289122)
ISBN-13: 978-0-452-28912-3 (9780452289123)
Publication Date: February 2008
List Price: $14.00
Synopsis (from the publisher): In the days following the death of Pope John Paul II, the horribly disfigured body of a cardinal is discovered in a chapel in Rome. With a serial killer now on the loose in the Vatican, Police Inspector Paola Dicanti is assigned to the grisly case. Desperate to find the killer before another victim dies, she enlists the help of Father Anthony Fowler, a charismatic American priest who knows more about the killer than Paola could have imagined. As Paola and Father Anthony struggle through the web of tantalizing clues, the evidence leads them to powerful figures within the Church hierarchy. But their pursuit of the truth may make them the next pawns to be sacrificed in this terrifying and deadly game.
Review: Juan
Gomez-Juardo's debut novel, God's Spy,
introduces Rome police inspector Paola Dicanti investigating a series
of brutal murders in the Vatican.
It is April 2005 and Pope John Paul II has died. One hundred and
fifteen cardinals from around the globe are called in to a conclave to
elect a new pope. Before this could be accomplished, three cardinals
destined to sit on the conclave, one from Argentina, another from
Brazil, and one from Italy, are found horribly mutilated and dead at
the foot of various altars in the church. A group of three specialized
police officers, headed by Inspector Paola Dicanti, begin their
investigation. They know who they are looking for, but he has ethereal
disguises. He is able to fool and kill one of the officers hunting him.
His goal is to kill them all, especially Paola. But it is Paola’s
promise to her fellow officers that she will find and kill him first.
God's Spy has a
significant and detailed backstory to the murders that brings in the
character of Dr. Anthony Fowler, an American Catholic priest but also a
retired US Air Force intelligence officer and a psychologist trained in
sexual behavioral problems. Father Anthony knows the killer and even
counseled him at one time. The partnership of Father Anthony and
Inspector Dicanti is a compelling one, and brings together two very
different characters that work well together in the context of the
story.
There are several questions posed in God's
Spy that contribute to its suspense. Were the three murdered
cardinals chosen at random or was there something that linked them
together? Were the murders the work of a serial killer with more
killings to come, or someone whose task (as it were) was now complete?
What secrets are being kept by the Vatican hierarchy? Or even by
Italian officials?
God's Spy is a
remarkable, sinister, at times breathtaking, novel that incorporates an
event already shrouded in secrecy (the election of a new pope) into an
impressive murder mystery. It is highly recommended.
Special thanks to guest reviewer Betty of The Betz Review for contributing her review of God's Spy and to Penguin Group for providing a trade paperback edition of the book for this review.
Review Copyright © 2008 — Hidden Staircase Mystery Books — All Rights Reserved
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Mysteries in this series …
God's Spy
Plume (Trade Paperback), February 2008
ISBN-10: 0-452-28912-2 (0452289122)
ISBN-13: 978-0-452-28912-3 (9780452289123)
Omnimystery keywords for God's Spy ...
Location(s) referenced: Rome, Italy.
