Tom, 2 years and 5 months agoSteve Berry: The Third Secret
Steve Berry has written several books in the same general vein as The Da Vinci Code, thrillers with references to real world art, architecture and history woven around the shadowy semihistory of conspiracy theories. The Third Secret is a bit different. Rather than the more common conspiracies involving Masons, Templars or the Illuminati, Berry posits a conspiracy in the Roman Catholic Church to cover up a part of the Third Secret of Fatima. Fans of the DaVinci Code may appreciate the suspense and style of writing, but don't hold your breath for any well researched insights into historical/religious events. The doctrinal plot premise is created out of whole cloth. (Read after the cut if you need to know more, but be aware it's a plot spoiler.)
The real history is this:
The three secrets were the prophecies of three shepherd children who had a series of visions of Mary at Fatima in Portugal in 1917. The first two prophecies were widely regarded as having come true by many believers and the third was ordered sealed by Pope John XXIII in 1959 or 1960. Subsequent popes kept it sealed until John Paul II revealed it after surviving the assassination attempt of 1981, which he believed was the event foretold in the third prophecy. The actual text of third secret (reproduced after the cut with the spoilers) certainly seems a lot darker than a lone gunmen in a failed assassination attempt, so many aren't satisfied that the third prophecy has been revealed.
But that's not enough for good fiction. Our hero Colin Michener is a papal secretary hoping for a Cardinal's cap, secretary to a fictitious future Pope Clement XV who has been very disturbed by something he found in the Vatican Secret Archives regarding the Third Secret. Apparently Clement believes there was more to the prophecy than John Paul the Great released. The plot is set against a backdrop of the Church grappling with priestly celibacy and several of the priestly characters coming to grips with it on a more personal level.
The plot is very good through the first 90% of the book. The climax is something of a letdown. The great revelation of exactly what Clement found is contrived to suit a liberal agenda and, frankly, doesn't carry anywhere near the awe inspiring horror that is implied throughout the book. The premise of the ending is that every Marian apparition for hundreds of years has carried the same message, covered up by a Church opposed to the message - support for homosexuality, marriage of priests, female priests and abortion. Read the book for the interesting references, for the personal story of Colin Michener and his mentor Clement XV. But be prepared when the doctrinal issues create a lousy ending that just doesn't fit the opening.
| 3.2 |
Barrapunto
BlogMemes
CoRank Español
Delicious
Digg
Enchílame
Fresqui Ocio
Furl
Google Bookmarks
Live Favorites
Magnolia
Menéame
Netscape
Newsvine
Reddit
Rojo
Spurl
Stumbleupon
Technorati Favorites
Yahoo MyWeb
Write a comment
No trackbacks
No comments
Be the first to write a comment on this post.
Write a comment
If you want to add your comment on this post, simply fill out the next form:
* Required fields
You can use these XHTML tags: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>.
No trackbacks
To notify a mention on this post in your blog, enable automated notification (Options > Discussion in WordPress) or specify this trackback url: http://library.tom-hanna.org/2006/steve-berry-the-third-secret/trackback/