Saint Gabriel's Passion: A Stephen Saint Gabriel Mystery

by Jerry Harber

Note: This is the 2015 edition with a number of corrections made based on reader observations. The life of Dr. Stephen Saint Gabriel’s new love, Nicki Taylor, is in jeopardy. She’s kidnapped and her life threatened by the nefarious Dark Brothers, a rogue group of Catholic priests. Gabriel had discovered the writings of Mary Magdalene, describing her memories of Jesus as he carried out his ministry. But the manuscript had been stolen from Gabriel and secretly sold to the Catholic Church. All he had to share with the world were the photographic images his team had taken of the manuscript’s pages. Those very images are the ransom demanded by Nicki’s kidnappers.

The cat and mouse game between the kidnappers, the FBI, and Gabriel takes them from the US to Jerusalem, the ruins of Jericho, a monastery in Qumran and back to the States in pursuit of Nicki and the warped priest, Michael Donovan, who has her fate in his hands. Gabriel suffers as he turns over the most important religious discovery in history and he suffers still more as Nicki’s fate seems more and more dire. Complex and fast-paced this adventure thriller will keep you guessing all the way to the unexpected ending.

Genres: Historical Fiction

340 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 13, 2013

About the author

I'm a retired minister with an avid interest in mysteries and the unexplained, especially mysteries related to Christianity. I also love to watch crime shows and now I've turned these interests into writing. Saint Gabriel's Gospel, my first novel, was a long time in coming, but now I can't seem to stop writing. I've finished two others that are about Gabriel and Nicki, the main characters in that novel, that are waiting to be published.

I recently published Lips Sweeter Than Wine which introduces a new character, Patrick Orion. Paddy is a former Episcopal priest turned private investigator. He's hired to find a young college aged woman who seems to have been kidnapped. It's a routine case until Paddy discovers she may have been kidnapped by a serial killer obsessed with women's lips. It's a page turner, as Paddy races to find and save her. I'm currently working on the prequel titled The Priest's Dead Wife. It's a story of the seduction of power and money along with the terrible costs that often accompany both. The tale is wrapped in a mystery that Paddy has to solve to find peace and redemption.

Learn more about me and my writing at www.JerryHarberWriter.weebly.com.

Reviews

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

An improvement on the first book in the series, but it still requires suspension of disbelief to enjoy it. The extracts from “Mary’s Gospel” are well done and interesting. I think there is too much violence by the Catholic brothers and the Israeli policeman is a well drawn character. I could do without a further sequel (or even two of them) but I will probably read them for the entertainment value.

[Jo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very Good

This is a great adventure-mystery. I read the first book in the series and enjoyed it, and I wasn't disappointed with this second one. I plan to read the third, so I guess it goes without saying that I recommend them.

[Jo ROY · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great read

Tight plot, lots of action and well developed characters make this one of the best "religious" books since The DaVinci code. I highly recommend it to you.

[Kenny Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read

Awesome follow-up to the first book. Can't wait to read the next installment of this series. I really enjoyed the book.