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 copy of the book for this review. God's Spy was originally published as a hardcover in April 2007.
Review Copyright © 2008 — Hidden Staircase Mystery Books — All Rights Reserved.
Mysteries in this series ...
God's Spy
Dutton (Hardcover), April 2007
ISBN-10: 0-525-94994-1 (0525949941)
ISBN-13: 978-0-525-94994-7 (9780525949947)
Omnimystery keywords for God's Spy ...
Location(s) referenced: Rome.