Father Romano receives a phone call from an anonymous source telling him to come to Grand Central Terminal the next day and receive original pages from the gospel of James that will prove Jesus had brothers and thus descendants.  Against his academic instincts, he goes to Grand Central the next day and is drawn into the shooting of a young woman who turns out to be a biblical scholar as well, working on a book verifying the descendants of Jesus.  Brittany Hamar received a similar call to Romano and finds herself with a bullet in her shoulder.  

Not certain whether they should trust each other, the two team up, compare notes and try to figure out what is going on and who is behind it.  Two priests whom Brittany had recently interviewed, one in Spain, one in Pennsylvania, who also happens to be Romano’s mentor and close friend of his father, are both found dead, in similar manners, possibly even murdered.

While police are tempted to look closely at Brit and Joseph, they don’t think the two committed the murders, but perhaps are the keys to unraveling them and might be able to explain why these murders are being committed, apparently in the name of the Catholic Church.  Through the streets of New York and Europe, through ancient documents and family secrets, Brit and Joseph chase a murderer, one who is going to be hard to catch, because he has taken it upon himself to protect thousand years of Christianity…or is he being directed by a higher power?

There are currently many religious thrillers to choose from and the Unholy Grail can keep up with the best.   Short chapters that alternate points of view keep the pace moving and plenty of research and theories givesreaders something to think about and puzzle over.  Joseph Romano is an interesting character, theologian, priest and academic, wrestling with his beliefs, what he knows and can prove to be true and making peace with one part of his past as yet another part of his past comes to present.  

In contrast, Brit is first and foremost an academic, without the spiritual convictions of Romano, but still curious about his unfailing beliefs.  Parts of the historical context that frame the story will be familiar to readers, but there are new aspects introduced that will give readers more to think about.  Unholy Grail is an intelligent faith based thriller that will appeal to a wide variety of readers and offers enough tension and action to keep them interested until the very end.

--Jennifer Monahan Winberry