Malena is a sexy, hard criminal out to pull off the largest kidnapping heist in history to save her CEO sister who has invested and lost a huge amount of company funds. So she and her fellow thugs carefully plan and carry out the kidnapping of three monks and the tabernacle from a Western Pennsylvania monastery. But things go awry in a TV-drama-like scenario; two monks are killed and one of the thieves is injured. Blood is everywhere before the plot is carried out and the thieves and victims are safely hidden in a secret cave surrounded only by water.

Jessica Harding is sharp as a whip with detective skills that tolerate no foolishness. Add to that she's got an unusual feeling nature for what the victims of this nefarious crime must be experiencing as well as the horror of Catholics after they discover the theft of what to them is sacred. She initially has to set her fellow officer, sent from the FBI, in a proper working relationship without his aggressive, know-it-all attitude. Quickly achieving that goal, they wait for the kidnapper's demand or demands, wondering where this is all headed.

It wouldn't do well to tell the whole story, but suffice it to say that an ingenious plot that could have financially scored the thieves a treasure seems well on the way to a satisfactory conclusion. There are several scenes of ferocious acts that convey just how uncaring and brutal a criminal mind works. Two witnesses, though, will convey enough details to allow Jessica and Dexter to bring this horrific case to a successful end.

One of the captured monks, however, is a wise relic who has deep spiritual as well as practical military abilities. It is Brother Martin whose words and more seep into one of the criminal's psyche - or perhaps more accurately, his soul!

By the end of this ripping yarn that would make a great TV movie, the reader will be quite surprised at the outcome of both victims and victors, perhaps a miracle, perhaps not!?

The plot is superb, dialogue a bit unnatural in a few places, and the action non-stop thriller style. The way Brother Martin treats Stony is realistically spiritual, a style that increases the credibility of this story and its emotional impact. All in all, this is a great light read that will stretch your imagination quite realistically into a realm where justice travels a most surprising road with fascinating twists and turns. What is imprisoned is freed from more than a life of crime!

Reviewed by Viviane Crystal on April 11, 2006

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