The Pope's Assassin

Not as obscure as a Dan Brown conspiracy, Luis Rocha’s The Pope’s Assassin deals with a conspiracy, which if it were true, would have more far reaching consequences than anything Dan Brown could dream of. Part spy / action adventure novel, part conspiracy thriller and part religious novel, The Pope’s Assassin will have a broad appeal to many readers.

Rocha writes credibly enough and clearly enough that you are drawn into accepting the underlying premise: What was discovered in the caves in Qumran, the Dead Sea Scrolls, is not exactly what the world has come to believe. Having bought into the premise, you have no trouble accepting the reality Rocha creates.

While the characters are not as full fleshed as I would have liked, there are show more enough details that you immediately have empathy for the main characters. I just wish I know more about their backgrounds. Rocha’s style excels with the action sequences: the tension described in the scenes is felt very strongly. I also appreciated the background into the workings of the Pope’s office and the history of the Jesuits.

The conclusion may be off putting for some as nothing is really resolved as far as the main premise is concerned. By this time, I was so enthralled with the characters, I was saddened by the ending and left wondering how the main protagonists will fare. To have that much feeling for the characters is one of my hallmarks of a good book.

Short of a full five star rating, I have no trouble giving this book four and a half stars; very well done all around. show less

Since I won “The Pope’s Assassin” through the Early Reviewer’s program, I really, really tried to give it as much as I could. But by the time I got 2/3 of the way through, I just couldn’t read it any more. I just didn’t care about the story.

Luis Rocha tries to write a “DaVinci Code” like book—another Catholic conspiracy tale—but just fails. Not so much because his idea wasn’t good—I think—but because he took so dang long to get there. I’ve read plenty of books whose chapters jump from subplot to subplot. But “The Pope’s Assassin” kept those subplots too far apart, and kept dropping hints that would take many, many pages to fulfill.

I kept thinking if Rocha and his editor had tightened the book up a bit, show more he’d have a much better story to tell. I hate quitting books, but there’s just too many out there to waste time on ones that don’t interest you. Even if you win them. show less

I enjoy a good religious thriller and Rocha keeps this novel moving. The conspiracy that underlies the story is not new although the author treats it in a quickly paced and fresh manner. I did have trouble keeping all the characters straight. Each chapter focused on a different character and that character wasn't identified until 2 or 3 pages into the chapter. I would have to go back to the beginning of the chapter to pick up the plot line and I found that annoying. As the story unfolds, the suspense builds as the reader tries to discover who is behind the conspiracy. When the Pope's assassin is finally identified, the author spends little time developing his character or story line. Perhaps the backstory of this character was developed show more in Rocha's first novel in this series. I would like to go back and read both books to put the entire story in perspective. Overall, a good read. show less

Though a slight copy-cat of Dan Brown's romps through the Catholic Church, fans of his Langdon series will find The Pope's Assassin a fun read. There is Vatican intrigue; nice atmosphere in Rome; and an impressive body count, to boot! The dynamics between Sarah and Father Rafael is a refreshing take on the usual duos of these capers, adding some interest to the narrative.

The first thing to note is that this book is a sequel. Which of course begs the question, should you read the others first. Honestly, I would have to say yes. I didn't, and while I enjoyed this, there were certain parts (ok the last half) where I felt I was really missing something.

But I did enjoy this, and would recommend it to fans of Dan Brown. It is a fast paced conspiracy, more believable than Da Vinci, and with much more ruthless priests. Again, though I come back to the need to read the earlier books. Let me give you an example, I spent the first 300 pages thinking the titular "Pope's assassin" was Rafael, a character who presumably starred in earlier books, but remained a few steps behind and really in the margins. I found show more myself thinking, "why is this book named for such a superfluous character (honestly removing his scenes entirely wouldn't damage the plot)." I was stunned to discover that JC, a character with even less page time (but apparently intregal in earlier books) was the assassin and puppetmaster.

I know all this sounds negative, but I did still find it enjoyable. show less

The story opened with such great suspense and a lot of action that my expectations were high for the entire novel. However, there were too many characters to keep track off and I became confused from going back and forth between all of them. The pace slowed significantly in the middle and by the time I got within the last 100 pages I wanted to give up. I kept reading because The Holy Bullet was a good book. I was hoping for a big ending. It wasn't all that exciting but I liked how it ended.

Also, I was a little bothered by the contents of the secret document and wish the author didn't go there. As for the reason for the title, you will have to read the book. I will say no more so as not to give away the plot.

As a fan of Dan Brown’s books, especially “Angles and Demons” I was eager to read this book. I did not find the writing as tight or the plot to be quit as believable and some of the other religious historical fiction, however, I did enjoy this book. One of the major plots of the book follows the investigation and speculation following Pope Benedict XVI being given a book that causes him great fear for the future of the church and the church’s followers and believers. Is it possible that a concern over the authenticity or truth of Dead Sea Scrolls holds a true secret that would rock the beliefs of believers worldwide?

In The Pope’s Assassin there is the usual struggle found in the religious thrillers where the struggle over show more power and control within the leadership of the church and among both religious and the political leaders are in question.There are numerous sub-plots which were a bit hard for me to follow but by the end most of the mysteries most were successfully concluded. I enjoyed the characters but would like to see them more fully developed. I have ordered Luís Miguel Rocha’s earlier books, The Holy Bullet and The Last Pope and will review them at a later time. I appreciate Rocha’s work and hope to enjoy his other two selections.

Thank you for to the publishers for this early reader copy of this book from Library Thing. I am grateful for the opportunity to share the writings of this fine author. show less