The Colour of Blood

by Brian Moore

Somewhere in an unnamed Eastern bloc country, someone is out to silence Cardinal Bern. Is it the Secret Police, or is it - more shockingly - fanatical Catholic activists who believe that Bern, by keeping the peace between Church and State, has finally compromised himself too far?

Narrowly escaping an assassination attempt, Bern is abducted by sinister, anonymous men, and spirited away to a safe-house against his will. Evading his unknown captors, he is faced with a horrifying proposition: no longer sure of whom he can trust, Bern realises that he alone can avert the revolution which threatens to tear his country apart ...

Genres: Fiction, Thriller, Novels, Religion, Politics, Literary Fiction, Espionage

182 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1987

About the author

Brian Moore (1921–1999) was born into a large, devoutly Catholic family in Belfast, Northern Ireland. His father was a surgeon and lecturer, and his mother had been a nurse. Moore left Ireland during World War II and in 1948 moved to Canada, where he worked for the Montreal Gazette, married his first wife, and began to write potboilers under various pen names, as he would continue to do throughout the 1950s.

The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne (1955, now available as an NYRB Classic), said to have been rejected by a dozen publishers, was the first book Moore published under his own name, and it was followed by nineteen subsequent novels written in a broad range of modes and styles, from the realistic to the historical to the quasi-fantastical, including The Luck of Ginger Coffey, An Answer from Limbo, The Emperor of Ice Cream, I Am Mary Dunne, Catholics, Black Robe, and The Statement. Three novels—Lies of Silence, The Colour of Blood, and The Magician’s Wife—were short-listed for the Booker Prize, and The Great Victorian Collection won the James Tait Black Memorial Prize.

After adapting The Luck of Ginger Coffey for film in 1964, Moore moved to California to work on the script for Alfred Hitchcock’s Torn Curtain. He remained in Malibu for the rest of his life, remarrying there and teaching at UCLA for some fifteen years. Shortly before his death, Moore wrote, “There are those stateless wanderers who, finding the larger world into which they have stumbled vast, varied and exciting, become confused in their loyalties and lose their sense of home. I am one of those wanderers.”

Reviews

[Werner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Published in 1987, this novel was written in the shadow of the rise of the independent union Solidarity in Poland and the concomitant upsurge of democratic Polish nationalism, and on the cusp of the collapse of European Communism. (I read it as a library checkout a couple of years later, and don't have a copy before me now; but it made a vivid enough impression on me that it's not hard to review it retrospectively, even well over 30 years later.) Poland's culture and circumstances at that time clearly form the model for the unnamed Eastern European country that Moore uses as his fictional setting (and a couple of secondary characters have real-life analogues). Our protagonist is the country's Roman Catholic primate, Stephen Cardinal Bem.

This proved to be a difficult book to classify. For most of the time it's been on my Goodreads shelves, I shelved it as general fiction, perhaps partly because my reading in modern general fiction has been skimpy and could stand to be beefed up :-) , but also because it's mostly a sober-toned, realistic look at important ideas and values (spiritual and moral as much as political), without much violence. (What it has of the latter is important to the plot, however.) It's certainly not action-adventure. But in considering it preparatory to writing this review, I moved it to the "espionage" shelf. True, none of the characters are actually spies as such. But the premise of the book, and the events of the plot, revolve very much around covert plotting and intrigue, with very high political and even geopolitical stakes --and a very real danger of a large-scale bloodbath if things turn out wrongly.

At about 182 pages, and written with a crisp and straightforward style, this was a quick read that engrossed my attention throughout, and kept me turning pages. For much of the book, exactly what's really going on is murky for the cardinal (and for the readers, since he's our viewpoint character). But the element of mystery adds to the appeal (and the murk will be dispelled). By the time he wrote this book, Moore (1921-1999) was a veteran author with many novels under his belt, and his seasoned craftsmanship shows; his prose is well written and his characterizations sharp. (Stephen is the best drawn.) There's no sexual content, and relatively little bad language. (The f-word appears only once, spoken by a minor character; although it's of German derivation, that isn't necessarily incongruous for a Slavic speaker, since some Slavic languages have an equivalent.)

Though the Irish-born Moore professed to have lost his religious faith as a young man, he was raised as a Catholic and his novels apparently very often grapple with questions of religious faith and its relation to life (though this is the only example of his work that I've read). Given the protagonist's calling, readers can guess going in that the viewpoint here will be religious. And indeed, the strength of this novel is very much the quality of its reflection on the question of how Christian believers, ruled by an authoritarian government that's hostile to their faith and leaves a lot to be desired in moral and public-policy terms, should conduct themselves, as both members of a national community and as subjects of the Prince of Peace. Seen through the eyes of a devout Christian who's thoughtful, humble, and self-critical, the answers aren't glib or facile. Despite Stephen's church affiliation, they also aren't particularly "Catholic" in a parochial denominational sense; Christians of any communion can relate to and identify with him, and profit from the message that Moore, in spite of his lapsed state, presents sympathetically here.

During his lifetime, Moore enjoyed a great deal of success and even critical recognition for his fiction (this novel was actually a serious contender for the UK's Booker Prize). But as he demonstrates here, he could also appeal to ordinary readers who appreciate solid, serious fiction crafted in the great tradition of genuinely good literature. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this book to any one of those readers (with the caveat that if you necessarily have to have a feel-good ending to your fiction, you're not guaranteed that here!).

[Dhanaraj Rajan · Rating 4 out of 5]

On the Surface:

It is a fast paced crime thriller. And can you believe that this thriller was listed for the Booker Prize and lost the race at the last moment? A crime thriller and a Booker prize - Do they go together?

A Cardinal of the Catholic Church in one of the 'satellite states' of the Soviet Regime is under threat. He is chased and hunted and the Cardinal is not sure who hunts him down - the State or the Catholics themselves. This is the premise and the narration is really racy involving in many slips from the captors, near death moments, running in disguises, etc. Everything reaches towards an explosive end.

The story looks simple and not out of the ordinary. Is it not? But then, it ended up almost winning the Booker prize. Why?

A Small Analysis:

The novel begins with an explanation for the title. It goes something like this: the Cardinal is to be always seen in the vestments of red colour. The reason is that it signifies the blood shed by Jesus for the salvation of people.

So the Cardinal of this book, in a way, represents Jesus Christ.

Whatever happened to Jesus would happen to him then. Jesus was rejected by his own and was killed. He died to save everyone. Here, the Cardinal is rejected by his own (the Catholics) and they try to get rid of him. The reason: Jesus was a traitor and a blasphemer according to the Jews. Here, Cardinal is seen as the traitor and the one who rendered unto Caesar what was due to God's. The Cardinal was accused of siding with the Communist regime and was not faithful to Catholics. Catholics wanted to organize a revolution and overthrow the regime. The Cardinal was also patriotic and wanted freedom. But his ways were the ways of Non-violence. He did not want the religion to serve achieving the political change. People should love God for the sake of God alone and not for the sake of showing their hatred for the Communists.

Here is an excerpt from his sermon:

"It is a reminder that there are times when resistance, violence, even death, are preferable to tyranny. Two hundred years have passed and we still live under tyranny: the tyranny of an age when religious beliefs have inextricably entwined with political hatreds, when, day after day, in countries all around us, innocent people die from bombings, from terrorist attacks, from political and religious reprisals and revenge. I am an inadequate leader. I have allowed my people to come to the brink of such violence, to a confusion between the wrongs that have been done to us and the wrongs that some among us now advocate that we do in return. I beg you to think of the deaths of others. Remember, the terrorist and the tyrant have that in common. They do not think of those deaths."

I think, it rings true for our own times too.

Finally:

An interesting book. The readers from the Eastern Blocs (Satellite states of Soviet Regime) might find this book all the more interesting.

[Liam Ostermann · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this novel not long after it came out and in memory I can not subtract it from the time of its writing and publication - it was the early years of Pope John Paul II and the rise of Solidarity, Jaruzelski of a whole different world - I definitely read it before the Berlin Wall came down but change, dramatic change was in the air and even for those like myself who had monumental disagreements with the Catholic Church, there was something awe inspiring about Polish Catholicism which appeared more real and vital then the theocratic bureaucracy I had known growing up in Ireland.

How I would read the novel today I don't know - the Catholic Church in Poland once free of communism has been as oppressive and restrictive as you can imagine though it appears it has exhausted the good will of its people just as thoroughly as the numerous corrupt catholic establishments throughout the rest of the world.

What I can say is that this was a brilliant, thoughtful and not in the least propagandistic novel. It was not an easy tale of heroic catholic prelates and evil communists. It was far more nuanced and interesting. Brian Moore is one of my favorite writers and he can not write a bad novel but for me it is trapped in a memory of a time in my youth. Much as I would like to give it five stars I can't without rereading it. But I will happily recommend it.

[Duncan Prior · Rating 4 out of 5]

Memorable book and I will definitely read more books by Brian Moore. A note on why the Booker Prize matters - I probably won't have picked up any of his books had I not noticed he was on several short lists in the 70s and 80s.
A Short, taut, well-paced thriller with political, personal and religious themes - not bad for 190 pages! Still relevant today given the compromises the Catholic Church has to consider with secular power; indeed relevant even for the current pope given what we read about his record in Argentina with the military junta.
The profiles of the characters he meets are well delivered - sharp, clearly defined descriptions of both powerful individuals aware of their own authority and individuals lower down the strata of society.
I wonder if he paced it to replicate Christ's last few days in Jerusalem. I would be grateful if anyone could provide any insight on that.

[George · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fast paced, thought provoking, concise, vivid read about a Cardinal, head of the Catholic Church in an Eastern Bloc country, who escapes being assassinated, but is then kidnapped. He manages to escape from the kidnappers but his troubles do not end there! Moore convincingly depicts Cardinal Bem as a man of conscience, who is powerful, but at the same time humble, devout and sincere.

The Cardinal faces a dilemma, someone in the Catholic Church is undermining his power, trying to create an uprising of the people against a repressive Government. The Cardinal is a very good diplomat and has been able to please the government, the union of workers and his catholic followers, until now.

Shortlisted for the 1987 Booker Prize.

[Daniel Polansky]

The Cardinal of an eastern bloc country tries to avert a catastrophic showdown with the communist government. I admire how many different genres Moore can work in, and this is a skillful if somewhat derivative Greene pastiche.

[Shahiron Sahari · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well written but ultimately a waste of time

[Chris · Rating 5 out of 5]

‘From now on, I must draw the danger towards me. As always, I am Your servant. Do with me what You will.’ — Chapter 19.
Suspicion. Betrayal. Paranoia. When matters spin away and out of your control who can you trust? Friends, colleagues, or total strangers? Yourself, when your own actions, facial expressions or unguarded words may reveal what you must hide? Or, if you are religious, God?

We are in an unnamed Eastern bloc country in the late 1980s during the Cold War, at a moment in time when the Catholic Church and State have reached an understanding: if religion doesn’t stray into politics, the political apparatus won’t interfere in religious matters. But, worryingly, that won’t do for certain people, who are prepared to take matters into their own hands.

In a few days pilgrims will be making their way to a church ceremony to commemorate a couple of hundred Catholics who’d been martyred there two centuries before; and only now are whispers emerging of agitators planning to hijack the service to issue a clarion call for a strike and civil disobedience. But the first that Cardinal Stephen Bem becomes aware of the dangerous crossroads the country has arrived at is when there’s an attempt on his life.

In fact the narrative is bookended by two assassination attempts and the first, against Bem, dramatically occurs within a few paragraphs after the novel’s start. This is alarming enough but then, back in his Cardinal’s palace recovering from the shock, Bem is taken into what some ‘raincoats’ – members of the Security Police – call protective custody and placed in a former agricultural college miles from the country’s capital. This is when he begins to have doubts about whom he can trust: are, for example, the ‘raincoats’ actually the SP they claim to be?

We see all that’s played out from Bem’s viewpoint, so it’s not difficult to buy into his suspicions that not only perfect strangers may be agents promoting instability, even revolution, but also clergy and even close confidants and those within his staff. Whom can he call on for help as he goes on the run – parish priests, union leaders, even former school friends now in government? As for what the colour of blood represents it can be the shade of red that Cardinals wear, the revolutionary shade on the Red Flag, or the colour of priestly vestments worn to commemorate martyrs – or indeed all three.

The author has, in Cardinal Bem, created an extremely sympathetic character, one whom we implicitly feel we could trust even if we don’t share his religious beliefs. He is a moderate in all senses of the word, and circumspect in his dealings, but you soon sense that in helping establish a working relationship with the communist authorities to allow freedom of worship he has not satisfied more radical elements in the Church. So, between Security Police, the army, a shadowy group called Christian Fighters and certain rogue elements Bem has to use all his wits to stand his ground while still negotiating dangerous paths.

In 1946 the author worked in Poland with the United Nations Relief and
Rehabilitation Administration, visiting Warsaw and Gdynia; decades later he clearly kept an interest in current events there, especially in terms of the friction between Catholicism and the government, and between the authorities and the unions, especially Solidarność (‘Solidarity’). It has been suggested that the protagonist here was inspired by the figure of Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński, a thorn in the flesh of the communist regime, but of course the story of Stephen Bem is not that of Stefan Wyszyński.

This is a satisfying novel in that it works on so many levels: it’s a suspenseful tale of cat and mouse but also a political thriller; it contrasts realpolitik with terrorism as a cynical denial of humanity; and it’s a portrait of an honest, upright churchman with a pastoral calling who finds himself forced at times to dissemble, a man who comes to realise how vulnerable each person is in the face of uncertainty, especially when he’s regarded as a kind of scapegoat.

One might think that its being shortlisted for the Booker Prize was merely because it reflected political events in the 1980s; in truth it’s just as relevant now when selfish individuals are engineering chaos to garner more resources and power for themselves.

[Chaitra · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wasn't expecting too much out of this book, given the Goodreads rating. But it was strangely interesting and well paced. I can't say I completely agreed with Cardinal Bem's position, but yes, I also understand where he was coming from. And I obviously didn't agree with the other side also, even though I understood where they too were coming from - at least, the not overtly violent ones. So in that, this book was successful. What I didn't like was the ending, because, what was the point? And I'd have liked to know the repurcussions, because I somehow can't believe the regime would stand silently by for such an act - and that would be a negation of everything this book made Cardinal Bem achieve. So yeah, not happy about the ending.

[Niall Balmer · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was underwhelmed with this book. A decent enough read, but in my view not his best. The opening few pages and the closing few were the highlights, the rest was a long slog, probably accurately depicting the grimness of a Cold War Iron Curtain country. Unfortunately that grimness was slow paced and stereotyped and I’m glad I’ve finished it and can move on to something else.

[Patrick Barry · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Color of Blood is pne of the author's best novels. The protagonist Cardinal Stephen Bem struggles to keep his church and faith alive in a Soviet era Communist country. Some of his own bishops believe that he is too loyal to the oppressive government and plot to kidnap him, hoping to ferment a revolt against the state. Cardinal Bem walks a fine line between belief and safety from the scrutiny and interference of the government.

This is a fantastic story with an ending that Graham Greene might like.

[Arafat Rahman Aumi · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars.
An intense read from very first page.

[Ilya]

Brian Moore is really, really good at this kind of thing: action-dense, subtext-heavy, inherently political thriller-ing. Even though a flight arrives from Poland, the made-up country at the center of this story is definitely, and could only *be* Poland. The only place in the eastern bloc where religion and totalitarianism were in such direct tension. A quick and satisfying read.

[Martin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good novel about the confusing policy of the Church in the 1980s while they fought communism many collaborated with Communist governments while condemning Liberation Theology in Latin America. Overall good but it was more impactful when it was published in the late 1980s.

[Jack Heath]

Synopsis: someone is out to silence Cardinal Bern. The Secret Police? Are they fanatical activists who believe he has compromised too much?

[Ashley Lamont · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this book up at Kelburn Village Pub, they have a bookshelf tucked in one of the corners, with nice natural light coming through two large windows. You can sit & read while sipping on a long black or a melbec.

I had not heard of this book or author and I didn't read any reviews about it either, just read it.

It's a good read. I'll return it to the pub for the next lucky reader.

[Geoff · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was such a surprise. I assumed this would be some kind of drama novel with elements of a thriller thrown in, but actually it was a gripping story from the first page. It follows character of Cardinal Bem, primate of a nameless eastern bloc country, who survives an assassination attempt and subsequent arrest by the secret police. Bem of course has no knowledge of field-agent crafts, nor is he one of those men who are 'able to handle himself' like the typical ex-soldier forced out of retirement in those why-can't-you-just-leave-me-alone-to-chop-wood scenarios much favoured by Hollywood. Bem is just a clergyman who finds he knows nothing of the country and people for whom he is supposed to be spiritual leader. His own personal beliefs are also tested as he comes face-to-face with the duplicitious regime of his own country. In fact, the composite, faceless, pre-cold war state that Moore creates is itself almost a star character and is brilliantly brought to life. I really felt I could have been reading about Czechoslovakia or Poland or Russia. The book throws up lots of questions about how much religious freedom we really have and about how much power the church has to involve itself in political matters. No wonder it was shortlisted for the Booker Prize, this was a really enjoyable read and I'll be looking for more novels by Brian Moore.

[Mary Alice · Rating 4 out of 5]

Here's another face-paced Catholic suspense novel by Brian Moore. I feel I've discovered this author -- I don't know anyone else who has ever heard of him. He's writes a better (and shorter) suspense novel than Ludlum and others of his generation. Because of Moore's Catholicism and because his books cover many genres, he is reminiscent of Graham Greene, one of Moore's admirers.

The protagonist in The Color of Blood is Cardinal Stephen Bem, a very good man and a very religious one. He's also smart and politically savvy: How else do you get to be head of the Church in an Eastern bloc country? How else have you arrived at an agreement with the Communist government to let your people worship as they choose? So naturally, Cardinal Bem has a few enemies. Someone is trying to kill him, and someone else is trying to keep him alive. The fragile peace with the government is threatened.

Very enjoyable.

[Vivienne · Rating 5 out of 5]

The best book I've ever read. It's a thriller, but light years above a beach read. A tour-de-force of spare writing that poses fascinating ethical questions about the relationship between church and state in a communist society. The writing is elegant and spare, menacing and atmospheric. The character of Stephen Bem is fleshed-out and non-cliched. He's a flawed man faced by meaningful personal dilemmas. Moreover, it's a novel of violence with rare gunplay or physical brutality. Instead there's a brooding sense of 'polite menace'. When shots are fired, they mean something. The world has changed - emotionally and politically forever... A wonderful, brilliant book that truly values human life and decision-making.

[George Matysek · Rating 4 out of 5]

Who is behind the plot to kill Cardinal Bem?

The Secret Police? Or maybe even forces within the Church discontent with the way the respected spiritual leader refuses to foment rebellion among the oppressed masses of his nation, an unnamed satellite of the Soviet Union?

In "The Color of Blood," Brian Moore gives readers a thrilling ride as he unravels the mystery while also exploring deeper questions of inner strength, faith and courage.

Although the middle portion of this novel is a bit slow, the final third is filled with suspense, building to a shocking conclusion. It's a fun read.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting diversion but I'm surprised it was shortlisted for the Booker Prize. It must have been the timeliness of the topic in 1987 with communism collapsing. Anyway, it was well written, the plot was solid, and the end gave it a boost, but it isn't a book I'd push on anyone. Still, I would consider reading something else by this author.

[David Gagen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting thriller. Must have been a weak year for the Booker though if this was in the running. Plot becomes confused as his Eminence escapes from one incident to the next every few pages. Kinda reads like a Jack Reacher novel if it had been written by Solzhenitsyn.

[Simon Harrison · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting story, easy to read

[Mimi · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an excellent read! It was exactly what I wanted when I picked it up - a quick paced short book :D. I'm definitely going to read more of this authors work.

[Stephen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brian Moore did the opposite of authors such as Kazuo Ishiguro or Paul Bailey. While the latter essentially re-wrote the same book multiple times to hone them, Brian Moore revelled in eclecticism. 'The Colour of Blood' is an east European Catholic spy thriller that presages the 'Da Vinci Code'; it follows a book about the Algonquin natives of early seventeenth-century Canada, and before that books about a lonely singleton in her forties, and another about the televised saga that follows the sudden materialisation of a Victorian hoard of priceless antiques. Each pick up radically different human standpoints, dilemmas, and contexts. There seems little to fear that I will find Moore repetitive.

The parallels to Ishiguro and Bailey may seem odd, given their subjects and styles are so different. However, I think the comparison worth making because it reflects a divergence of objectives, which as readers can help us decide what authors we want. Do we want the security of knowing your author will deliver similar to last time (early Ishiguro, mid-career Bailey)? Or do we want something new and unexpected (Moore)?

The contrast with Ishiguro and Bailey takes up the endnotes in my edition of Moore, which propose that Moore has been relatively overlooked for major recognition, precisely because he was so hard to pigeonhole. I think Ishiguro and Bailey offer a contemporary counterpoint as authors who willingly built their own nook, with their own devoted readerships. Ishiguro's first three novels culminated in 'The Remains of the Day', as the apex of a series on older figures belatedly lamenting their misplaced complicity in unsavoury regimes. Meanwhile, Bailey's London-based mother's boy reappears most notably in 'Peter Smart's Confessions' (1977), 'Gabriel's Lament' (1986) and 'Sugar Cane' (1993). Compare that to Moore's diversity of output; it's like they are practicing different crafts.

All three featured on Booker Prize shortlists around the same time, including Moore (1976, 1987, 1990), Bailey (1977, 1986) and Ishiguro (1986, 1989). Ishiguro went on to win the Nobel; Bailey's books were more subversive (transvestism, rent boys, actorly shapeshifting) and were unlikely to be destined for the same plaudits, at least in the late twentieth-century. Moore perhaps garnered similar recognition to Bailey, but is harder to typify. If Moore has indeed been forgotten (and it would be unjustly) it possibly is - as the endnotes suggest - due to his sheer diversity: with Moore it seems like a new author with every book.

I've said it before and it remains true: if you want something fresh to read, give Moore a try.

[Tububa · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars, rounding down. This is hard to recommend. What Moore is trying to do here is similar to some of his other work--a kind of Graham Greene with Catholic sauce. But the main drama is not compelling to me. It's hard to sympathize with a cardinal, especially one who lives in a fake country.

A few words on this fake country. I am so sick of Brits and Americans making up these Eastern European countries, with a mishmash of inane place names and geographic confusion. Here, we have a country that's Catholic, but somehow finds itself next to Moldova--which borders no Catholic countries. Moldova is smack in the middle of the former Byzantium sphere of influence, that is, firmly Orthodox in persuasion. The onomastic mishmash that Moore serves up here is incredibly disorienting if you know anything about that part of the world. There's a mix of names not used outside of Poland, some Czech-sounding ones, a bunch of random Russians, and so on. Every time a place name dropped, it took me completely out of the story.

I am sure that people from the Middle East and Central Asia are equally annoyed by faux countries they encounter in American and British films and books, and guys, I feel for you. When Team America did the derka-derka language, it was spot on, and summed up the issue. "Our reader/viewership neither knows nor cares which exact country this is, because they're all interchangeable Slavs/Arabs/Kurds/etc."

I mean, imagine if I wrote a book about a generic Celtic nation with separationist aspirations that never quite completed the Reformation, and filled it with characters like Llywd MikFergallahan? Because this is how this feels.

The story itself is a contrived drama that did not interest me that much, because not for a second did I believe that anyone in the Eastern Bloc cares this much about religion.

[Nick Bomba · Rating 3 out of 5]

Basically – Communist Country / Catholic Church / Secret Police scenario.
Worth noting - BM wrote this story before the Iron Curtain actually came down – and something tells me this was widely read in the Vatican.
.
Gee, Ive read just over 10 Brian Moore books – and I really don’t know what to make of this one.
Sure – its written in BM’s eloquent way – it has absolutely no flat spots but Mmmmm, Im not sure how to rate it – I’ll settle for an enjoyable 3 star read.
.
I Guess – the lack of a main female character ( which is vey un-like BM ) sorta made the story one dimensional – and really you never seem to warm to any of the characters – even Cardinal Bem.
The gypsy couple in the van was probs the only light-hearted, touch of humour section in the whole story.
.
But really, coz of the subject matter - I reckon BM deliberately kept the story and characters somewhat cold / unemotional – and on reflection- its not by coincidence ( imo ) that Cardinal Bem is not the most endearing of characters.
.
SPOILER
I agree with one of the reviews I read – It did have a kinda similar Jack Reacher vibe at one stage ( Bem always escaping )– except for the girls and the ending of course.

[Susan Chow-Dukhan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Cardinal Stephen Bem, the head of the church of an unnamed Eastern European country has represented the middle ground between a secular repressive regime with Security Police forces and fanatical church leaders who want the masses to stand behind the Church against the government, a situation that may lead to arrests, torture and deaths due to the confrontation between tyrants and terrorists.
After an attempt on his life, Cardinal Bem is taken away by the Security Police to a safe house for his protection. Escaping from the safe house, the Cardinal hides among the masses as he tries to figure out what is happening, and questioning his ability as a representative of God. His impressions of the life of the common masses compared to life of the upper classes are well presented, but his questioning of God's will and God's plan, makes the reader wonder how he became a Cardinal, in the first place. The novel ends abruptly, without having the reader understanding why some decisions were made at the last minute.

[Julie Gardner · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first read this book about 30 years ago and I always knew I'd eventually read it again. It's a political thriller that hasn't lost any of its relevance. I remembered it being good but it was better than I'd expected on a second reading. I had a lot of Brian Moore books but lent them to friends and never got them back. I hope they're still on their shelves!

[Luís · Rating 4 out of 5]

Primeiro livro de Brian Moore que tenho oportunidade de ler.
Passado na Polónia comunista, fala-nos da difícil relação entre a Igreja Católica e o poder político.
Percebemos melhor o livro se tivermos em conta que Brian Moore é irlandês.
Mais uma vez, a capa da edição do Círculo de Leitores não existe no Goodreads.