The Third Hour

While the central story line of this ambitious thriller focuses on priest Dominic Renzi, Devin also tosses in the 1908 Tunguska, Siberia, explosion; the 1947 Roswell incident; and the Bermuda Triangle. The number of allegedly paranormal incidents makes it difficult to tie everything together neatly, and readers may feel that Devin has bitten off more than he can chew. In the spring of 2006, Renzi is fleeing a murderer in Rome. The killer has claimed the life of an old man who speaks his dying words in Latin, Greek, and Hebrew. A shift in perspective sheds some light on the dark forces at work, as Brother Salvatore regretfully informs “The Superior” that the “Key” has been lost. Once the Vatican enters the mix, comparisons with The Da Vinci Code are inevitable and don’t work in the book’s favor. The kitchen sink approach to conspiracies isn’t redeemed by either memorable prose or well-developed characters. [em](BookLife) [/em]