Out of the Depths

by William L. Biersach

It's happening again! Los Angeles, the City of Angels, is once more besieged by the bizarre and the strange! A fresh but unidentified corpse, dressed as a priest, turns up in a niche in a mausoleum, while a trusted assistant of the Cardinal is kidnapped, and two precious objects disappear with him. The police are baffled, and obviously, only one man can bring order to chaos and solve the Fr. John Baptist. Together with his trusty gardener, Martin Feeney, their gallant, well-dressed, and often inebriate friends, the Knights Tumblar, and an eclectic supporting cast of cranks, street people, and, of course, the police, Fr. Baptist, having faced down witches, vampires, and grave-robbers, will take on mystery that truly emerges OUT OF THE DEPTHS! As in the cop-turned-priest-turned detective's previous outings, in this book good and evil are intertwined yet always at war, the preternatural may be no further than your living room, and you yourself may be casually living in the strangest of tales. A welcome return of one who is rapidly becoming one of modern America's best loved fictional sleuths.

Genres: Fiction

672 pages, Paperback

First published January 15, 2007

Reviews

[Elizabeth Tamburelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

As MF himself said "tedious"

But well worth the effort. Brava!
None the greater a miracle, simply a confirmation of what we have every day.

[Tannia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Out of Depth is author William L. Biersach's fourth book in the cop-turned-priest mystery series featuring Fr. Baptist and his side-kick, Mr. Feeney. This story, however, differs from the others, since the author cleverly uses two chroniclers to narrate the series of events leading to an unexpected and rewarding end. Also the author eloquently exposes and mixes elements of treasure hunting, religious fanaticism, justice, and sainthood for the enjoyment and awakening of his readers.

The book begins with the appearance of an unidentified corpse found inside the former tomb of Saint Valeria. The deceased is dressed as a priest and shows marks of long term incarceration and malnutrition.

Parallel to this discovery, Monsignor Aspic has disappeared, carrying with him two items belonging to Cardinal Fulbright – his Murkenstein's cup and a valuable antique artifact given to him by the Papal Nuncio. Fr. Baptist is summoned by the Cardinal and is ordered to find both objects and to keep his investigation strictly confidential.

Fr. Baptist starts backtracking Monsignor Aspic's errands up to the day of his disappearance. During his investigation Fr. Baptist finds a sketch of what appears to be an old map, and a drawing of the artifact, including the riddle about a hidden treasure written in Spanish in the back of this artifact. The solution to the riddle will take Fr. Baptist and Mr. Feeney to unimaginable places, will put their lives at risk, and will allow them to find allies even from Out of the Depth.

As the investigation continues, Mr. Feeney begins to experience bizarre contacts with souls in Purgatory warning him of impending danger and assisting with the decoding of the riddle.

Then after Mr. Feeney's mysterious disappearance at the haunted Hotel Adirondack, Pierre Bontemps, a distinguished member of the Knights Tumblar and journalist for the L.A. Artsy, begins to narrate the story trying to keep Mr. Feeney's same writing style. The author creates a unique and interesting mix of story telling by using these two chroniclers technique.

In this book the reader will be able to see a softer side of Millie, the cook. Once again, she proves her loyalty to Fr. Baptist and Mr. Feeney as she gets more involved in the investigation and starts developing some new unexpected friendships.

At the end of the story, it is shown that a believer's treasure is greater than the treasures of gold that others were also seeking.

I highly recommend this book to readers who enjoy a great mystery story weaved with Catholicism's beliefs, as well as getting a better understanding of a world unseen by us, but still very real.

[Mary Eckert]

Love this series!!!!