Unholy Order

Paul Devlin #7

by William Heffernan

Inspector Jack Devlin investigates the Catholic Church in this thrilling new entry in the Edgar Award winning series. When the mutilated body of a young nun is found stuffed in the trunk of a car, even the toughest cops in New York City are struck by the sheer horror of the crime. The young victim is a member of Opus Cristo, a highly controversial group within the Catholic Church, whose membership is rumoured to include some of the nation's most influential religious, business and political leaders. Inspector Jack Devlin of the NYPD, experienced in working sensitive cases, is immediately assigned to investigate. But as Devlin and his team delve further, they realise this is no simple death. It is the first sign of a conspiracy of epic proportions. A secret organisation is responsible for a web of crime that extends to the highest reaches of the Catholic Church and every level of society. And when the cooperation of the NYPD is mysteriously withdrawn, Devlin discovers that not even the law remains uncorrupted by this conspiracy. Alone, Devlin and his team must face down two powerful and ruthless adversaries...

Genres: Mystery

272 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 2002

About the author

William Heffernan, a three-time Pulitzer Prize nominee, is the author of eighteen novels, including such bestsellers as The Corsincan, The Dinosaur Club (a New York Times bestseller), The Dead Detective, and Tarnished Blue (winner of an Edgar Award). Heffernan lives outside of St. Petersburg, Florida.

Reviews

[Eric_W · Rating 3 out of 5]

Paul Devlin is a New York police inspector, a rank recently reinstated by the mayor for Paul who answers only to Hizzoner and who is assigned the most politically sensitive investigations. He has a small unit, including Sergeant Sharon Levy, a drop-dead gorgeous lesbian (stop snickering, at least we don't have to worry about a relationship between the two.) A nun has been found in the long-term parking lot of JFK with her belly slit open to retrieve several condoms filled with heroin she had swallowed, her throat cut. A gay priest with AIDS with his throat cut is soon also discovered and now Devlin has a PR nightmare on his hands. (The scene where Devlin and Levy face off with Matthew (his colleague is John.......wait, here come the inevitable...) is a priceless display of power.

I downgraded the book a little because it occasionally splits into two different books: one, a good police procedural and the other, ruminations on ill-considered Catholic policies toward gay priests, celibacy, etc. I think the Catholic Church is just a beached whale that doesn't realize it's out of the water, so I have no problem with the little asides, but they didn't integrate well with the rest of the story. They weren't necessary. Another example: Opus Christi in the book which is clearly intended to be Opus Dei. Again, I rather enjoy exposing both Opi for their silliness and corruption, but the characterization is a bit extreme.

Nevertheless, it was a fun story with some skimmable parts.

[Jerry Jares · Rating 4 out of 5]

William Heffernan has an older series about an NYPD police inspector who answers only to the mayor. Because I enjoyed THE DEAD DETECTIVE and THE SCIENTOLOGY MURDERS so much, I decided to try this series with Paul Devlin. It's just as good as the other books. However, there may be some folks angered by the subject of this novel. It is about the Opus Dei organization within the Catholic Church. Although raised a Catholic, I was not aware of this group. The book prompted me to google the subject and learn more. And isn't that the purpose of reading; to learn new things?

This is a controversial group. Because it is still contentious, the author was able to use the group as the backdrop for his entertaining novel. Unlike some other reviewers, I wasn't offended by the subject matter. Because the author has used the indoctrination of new members in both this book and THE SCIENTOLOGY MURDERS, I felt he was showing the worrisome aspects of any closed group that seeks to control its members.

The author made a point of telling the reader that children who join cults generally grew up in families where a church was not a focus in their family life. Most of them grow up in homes where the parents valued money and acquiring things. These middle-class children are seeking something to put into their lives to give it more meaning. I think the paragraphs on page 64 are profoundly correct about the pull of cults and closed societies.

This is a complex story with great plotting and dialogue. I plan to look for more in this series.

Paul Devlin Series
1. Blood Rose (1988)
2. Ritual (1989)
3. Scarred (1993)
4. Tarnished Blue (1993)
5. Winter's Gold (1997)
6. Red Angel (2000)
** 7. Unholy Order (2002)

[Kea4 · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed it. Short, snappy and to the point. I liked the main characters.

[Carolyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was more about the process to catch who was doing it than figuring out who was doing it.