Skip to main content
PBS logo
 
 

Book Review of Conclave: A novel

Conclave: A novel
eadieburke avatar reviewed on + 1638 more book reviews


Book Description
The best-selling author of Enigma and Fatherland turns to today's Vatican in a ripped-from-the-headlines novel, and gives us his most ambitious, page-turning thriller yet--where the power of God is nearly equaled by the ambition of men.

The pope is dead. Behind the locked doors of the Sistine Chapel, one hundred and eighteen cardinals from all over the globe will cast their votes in the world's most secretive election. They are holy men. But they have ambition. And they have rivals. Over the next seventy-two hours one of them will become the most powerful spiritual figure on Earth.

My Review
I enjoyed this book very much but I would not consider it to be a thrilling story. I would say more of a power-control type of novel. I enjoyed Harris' writing and the characters were well-developed. His research was amazing and gave much insight on the workings of a conclave behind the scenes. I learned a lot that I didn't know before and found the cardinals' struggle to become the next pope very intriguing. I now need to go back and read some more of Harris' novels and I would highly recommend this book to those who enjoy historical religious novels.