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Duel of Beasts

by Jeff Ayers

What starts as a simple mission quickly turns deadly in the Morrisons’ latest chronicle of the life of excommunicated knight Gerard Fox and his wife, Willa. They want to deliver news to noblewoman Madelena about her brother’s death, but others want to keep her from learning the truth as long as they can. Madelena’s sister-in-law, Helvira, plans to seize power once her husband passes away. She’s having a secret affair with the Vizier Nayar, and a letter Gerard and Willa are planning to deliver reveals Nayar’s treachery with Helvira. If the truth of their affair were discovered, it would get them killed, so the two of them will do anything to stop Willa and Gerard from revealing the truth to Madelena. The Vizier has a collection of wild animals he uses to take out his enemies, and if Gerard and Willa are not careful, they will end up on the menu. Spain in the 1350s comes to glorious life in this non-stop action adventure, and the combination of history, culture, and romance will satisfy any reader who enjoys a great, suspenseful read. Though it’s the fourth in the series, it’s not necessary to have read the previous three to dig this one. But you’ll want to get them after finishing Duel of Beasts. Just stay away from the animal cages.—Jeff Ayers

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Review

The Lost Pope

by Brian Kenney

A wonderfully constructed thriller with several narratives, ranging from the 1st century to the present, that eventually come together in the most satisfying of ways. At the outset we have a newly elected pope who has created havoc within the Church with his appointment of a nun, Elisabetta Celestino, as his secretary of state. At the same time, a strip of ancient papyrus that comes from the long-lost Gospel of Mary Magdalene is discovered in a Cairo museum; just a snippet, it still manages to contain shocking information about the role of women in the early Church. It’s stolen and sold to a powerful, conservative U.S. billionaire—and collector of early Christian writings—who wants nothing more than to suppress the content. Alternating with the present-day narratives is the story of Mary Magdalene herself as we follow her from Jerusalem to Egypt to Ancient Rome. At the book’s center is Harvard Divinity School professor Cal Donovan, the protagonist of several of Cooper’s novels, the lynch pin who connects all the narratives. Often thrillers with historical backgrounds like this get weighed down with too much information and overly elaborate plots. But readers will move through this book like a hot knife through butter. For fans of Dan Brown and Steve Berry.

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Review

A Cry in the Dark

by Henrietta Thornton

Christian fiction readers and those who enjoy a chilling, tense thriller will relish the trip to Night Hollow, a desolate part of rural Kentucky that locals call “the holler.” Set deep in Appalachian hills, the holler is darker than its surroundings, in both meager daylight and social conditions. It’s particularly bad for women, but the holler keeps all its residents in its sad grip, while outsiders leave the poverty and crime to continue providing it stays contained. That ends when the FBI shows up to investigate the murder of several local women who’ve been found beaten and with their eyes removed and eyelids sewn shut (a process that happens “offstage,” thankfully). Two very different protagonists lead the story: FBI psychologist Violet Rainwater, who’s a product of her mother’s lengthy abduction and rape years ago and struggles to face the current crime’s echoes of that past, and John Orlando, a detective whose FBI-agent wife’s killing may have a link to the Blind Eye Killer, as the media has dubbed the area’s monster. Patch offers spiritual insights via believer John’s kind advice and support of atheist Violet, with the religious theme taking a back seat to the characters’ personalities and the layered mysteries that swirl in the holler. The scary ending, which also has a great twist, will leave readers ready for more from Patch.

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