Братството на камъка

Mortalis #2

by David Morrell, Дейвид Морел, Татяна Виронова (Translator)

В неговия свят никой не е такъв, какъвто изглежда, а животът е смъртоносна игра с безпощадни правила.

Дру Маклейн е бивш професионален убиец. След драматично преживяване той решава, че трябва да спре да убива и се оттегля от света. Цели шест години живее като отшелник в манастир. Но един ден миналото му, от което той вярва, че е избягал завинаги, го връхлита с ужасяваща безпощадност. Някой е изпратил наемни убийци. Някой знае всичко за него и го преследва където и да отиде, сеейки смърт. Дру отново трябва да си възвърне старите умения, за да може да открие този, който така безцеремонно унищожава и последната му надежда да намери покой за душата си.

Genres: Thriller, Fiction, Mystery, Espionage, Action, Mystery Thriller, Adventure

380 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1985

About the author

David Morrell is a Canadian novelist from Kitchener, Ontario, who has been living in the United States for a number of years. He is best known for his debut 1972 novel First Blood, which would later become a successful film franchise starring Sylvester Stallone. More recently, he has been writing the Captain America comic books limited-series The Chosen.

Reviews

[J.C. · Rating 5 out of 5]

If All Books Were Held to this Standard, We Would Never Be Disappointed

Fraternity of the Stone, along with Brotherhood of the Rose, are two of the best books I have ever read. Throughout this book, I was never once disappointed and at all times captivated by the characters, the attention to detail, and the fast paced nature of the plot lines.

With all the spy and espionage books available, it is important to return to books that were, and still remain, a cut above. This is a spy book at the peak of the rest, only being surpassed in quality by Brotherhood of the Rose. The action is well written, the psychology of a spy well described, and history of the secret agencies well represented. There are times when I thought I had read it all; but then I fall back to some classics, like this book, and realize that this book is precisely what a spy book should be.

I was not disappointed, and I seriously doubt any reader will be either.

J.Stoner

[Jim · Rating 2 out of 5]

Review May 2016: This follows The Brotherhood of the Rose sort of. There are no characters in common, just a similarity in what the characters do & a crisis in faith. I'm dropping this to 2 stars because I never understood why the main character ever had the sort that he had & I have no use for that sort of idiocy. The action & world was good, but only the MC was fully drawn. The few other characters were shells, especially the girl. Unfortunately, too many of the actions hinged on motivations that I just didn't buy.

Why I didn't like Drew's motivations is a Drew didn't have a particularly religious upbringing nor inclinations in that regard as an adult. His crisis of conscience was understandable, but turning to the most stringent Catholic beliefs made no sense to me, especially the self-flagellation. Also, while the hooker noticed the scars, it was never brought up with his girl friend who should have been horrified. Just too many holes in the whole religious thing.

IIRC, the next book, The League of Night and Fog, is better & brings a couple of the characters together. I like Morrell's writing enough to give him the benefit of the doubt & will read it next.

---------------
Review March 2005: Good, twisty, & action packed, but full of angst & ridiculous religious fervor by the main character. 3 stars. This review was based on memory & slapped in about 2008 when I was first filling my bookshelves here on GR. It's approximate & possibly not accurate.

[Tom S · Rating 4 out of 5]

Morrell is great at the super secret agent genre.

[J.F. Penn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ex secret agent/assassin Drew withdraws to a secluded monastery to atone for the sins of his life. He intends to spend the rest of his long life there in silence and solitude. But then the entire monastery is poisoned and he finds himself pursued, as members of his former life are hunted and killed. He accepts help from the Fraternity of the stone in order to find the man behind the killings. I enjoyed the book, it's fast paced and full of the details Morrell is famous for. I liked Drew and the story is a good thriller because it doesn't seem that far-fetched to me. Killers for God isn't a new trope but its' still a compelling one.

[Glen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I mixed feelings about this book. Definitely not as good as Brotherhood of the Rose. But this started out strong and engaging, but then got bogged down in the middle for a bit. While the detail was imported and moved the story forward, it did so at a pedestrian speed. Thankfully, Morrell got things moving again and it ended as wonderfully as it started.

[Miss Clara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Too many twist and turns. Too many questions. Secrets are bigger. I don't feel thrilled.

I picked up this book because the blurb was exciting. It was action-filled. An assassin who became a monk. A monk thrust in a world already unknown to him. A promise not for vengeance but for justice in the name of God.

Catchy plot. However, ┐(￣ー￣)┌

It's not so bad. But to me, it's not pretty good either. Maybe I am stereotyping assassins to have this poker face. Movies have warped my mind in believing that killers are emotionless and heartless creatures (unless you get amnesia like Mr. Bourne). That may possibly be the reason for my 3 ★★★.

Because the pacing was fast and the martial arts movements were quick, I had to speed read a bit, keeping up with the energetic words. When Drew's brain went overload, I found myself worked up along with him. I got to choose options I never thought of. He listed potential situations with one single movement. He was focusing with an array of angles. One slip could bring about his death. Every decision must be calculated, precalculated. The plan must follow through. Should I scare him? Should I stay put? Where do I go next? Where do I hide? How can I trap him?

But enough is enough. (⇀‸↼‶) I don't know if I'm being narrow-minded or just plain annoyed with Drew's personality. I understand that he needs to be extra cautious and I admired him for the first few chapters of the book. On and on, the cycle continued and I noticed that everything kept repeating and repeating.

Let me explain. Some spoilers must be included, so bear with me.

When his pet died, his emotion has gone down. Then suddenly--smostly due to his waning instinct--his alertness went straight up. His mind was running on a pile of questions and eventually the assassin in him woke up with great clarity.

Next, we find him on crossroads with the love of his life. He vowed a commitment of celibacy. He wanted to go back in a monastery after he has sought what he was looking for. But she is there, so warm and soft while he is pure muscle and roughness. She can hug him, and comfort him and care for him. He was not going to give in to the temptation. Eventually, he did.

Another point was when he has already captured the shooter and almost tortured him to death, saying that his actions were justified because it could answer questions for the protection of the Church. And as he was offered a place where he can do just that, he refused.

He promised himself not to kill anymore, to save his soul. But he had.

And he was supposed to be dead. But he was alive. His mentor--old and in his 60's--is still alive but he died. Drew's friend who was also rumored to be dead, was alive.


There were a lot of unnecessary contradictions and I wanted to shout, can you just make up your mind?


So you see my dear friends? Some of the surprises were not worthy enough to be noted. It could have been more dramatic if the other areas were left alone. And the Fraternity of the Stone? Well, what do you know? We'll read about them at the start of the book and at the end of the book. Fantastic (I'm being sarcastic by the way).

But don't mind me, chatting pessimistic things about the book. Hey, you could probably point out to me where I'm wrong and you're right.

In the end, my opinion is final and it will not waver.

[Roger Weston · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the kind of novel where I wanted to escape into the story whenever I had some free time to read. It's the kind of book that goes too fast. Mainly I review books that I like. This was high on the list because the characters were likable, the suspense was high, and the reading was a pleasure.

If you crave adventure stories, you might also try The Golden Catch, a thriller/adventure novel where the action unfolds in the stormy Aleutian Islands.

Roger Weston, author of The Golden Catch

[Mike (the Paladin) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Morrell is in some ways an amazing writer. He can at times take what on its face would be a terribly far fetched premis and make it beliveable. This is another action adventure that keeps the pages turning. Not great literature, but enjoyable.

[Emily · Rating 2 out of 5]

Μορρελλιάδας συνέχεια.
Το δεύτερο βιβλίο της σειράς, μετά την "Αδελφότητα του Ρόδου".
Καθόταν ο Μορρέλλ στην έπαυλη του και απολάμβανε τα κέρδη και τη φήμη του όταν χτύπησε το τηλέφωνο στο σαλόνι. Η γυναίκα του του φώναξε από την κουζίνα "Ντέιβιντ, ο εκδότης σου" κι εκείνος πήρε το ακουστικό και εισέπραξε το τελεσίγραφο. Έπρεπε να γράψει και μία συνέχεια.
"Χμ" μονολόγησε κοιτάζοντας αφηρημένα ένα κόκκο σκόνης στο τραπεζάκι.
"Και πώς να συνεχίσω τώρα;"
Αίφνης όμως, αντικρύζοντας το χρυσόψαρο στη γυάλα που ήταν στο ράφι του καλοριφέρ, του ήρθε μία φαεινή ιδέα!
"Θα γράψω την ιστορία του Κρις, του ενός από τα 2 ορφανά της Αδελφότητας του Ρόδου. Αλλά, δεν θα τον πω Κρις, για να αναρωτιέται το γιατί, ο μέσος αμερικανός αναγνώστης. Θα τον πω Ντριού, όπως έλεγαν τη συχωρεμένη τη σκυλίτσα μου".
Κι έτσι διαβάσαμε την ιστορία του Ντριού εκ του Άντριου. Του θρησκευάμενου Ντριού που δεν άφησε ρουθούνι αναίμακτο στο πέρασμα του. Από μοναχοκαλόγερος ξαναέγινε σε χρόνο ρεκόρ ο καθαριστής των χαλιών και των χάλιων, αν μπορούμε να κλίνουμε τη λέξη χωρίς να κατηγορηθούμε για νεολογισμούς.
Αίμα, κυνηγητά, δηλητήρια, μοναστήρια, παπάδες καλοί, δολοφόνοι κακοί, παπάδες πιστολάδες αλλά προς το καλό της εκκλησίας πάντα και του Θεού! Και βέβαια παίζει και ένας έρως, που κονταροχτυπιέται με το θρησκευτικό καθήκον αλλά σας αφήνω να μαντέψετε ποιος κερδίζει ...
Δε λέω, για καλοκαίρι καλό ήταν.
Μόνο που μου έπεσε ολίγον βαρύ το καλαμπόκι.
ΥΓ. Διάβασα και το αμίμητο. Οι 3 μάγοι, λέει, ήταν ένα είδος διπλών κατασκόπων της εποχής. Πληρώθηκαν για να καταδώσουν τον μικρό Χριστό αλλά στην πορεία τον προστάτευσαν. Είδατε τι μας μαθαίνουν οι αμερικανοί;

[Mateusz Śledzik · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pierwsza połowa książki bardzo mnie zmęczyła - paranoja głównego bohatera, jego wewnętrzne rozterki, dość nieśpieszne tempo, złożyły się na poczucie dłużyzny. Natomiast druga połowa swoim poziomem dorównała pierwszemu tomowi - historia dość logicznie złożyła się w całość, akcja toczyła się żwawym tempem, retrospekcje dość ciekawie rozwijały postać. Słowem - niezła pozycja, ale tylko tyle.

Ocena: 7/10

#twosentencereview

[Gary Hibbs · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Fraternity of the Stone. Mortalis book 2. By David Morrell. As always no spoilers.

This is a sequel to The Brotherhood of the Rose, and a very worthy sequel too.

Drew, a former member of a highly secretive American government sanctioned group of highly skilled assassins, trained to track down and kill known terrorists, has been living in a monastery, having had enough of the killing and faked his own death so his former masters wouldn't come looking for him. Now, six years have passed and somehow they have found him, and they want him dead.

Having survived a massacre at the monastery, Drew makes his way to Boston, to find an old friend, a man trained by the same people that trained Drew, and a former lover, sister to his friend, also trained by the same people. But his friend Jake has gone missing.

Together, Drew, and his former lover Arlene team up with a mysterious priest from a sect that dates back to the third crusade (The Fraternity of the Stone) to find out what has happened to Jake and who it's trying desperately to kill Drew and why.

An excellent thriller and storyline. If you like thrillers, this one is a doozy, it was written in 1985 and is set in the 80's with some backstory in the 60's and 70's, so don't expect mobile phones or anything else modern to today as everything in the book was modern when it was written, but this does not in any way take anything away from how good it is. 5/5 stars from me.

[Walt Trachim · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this for the first time in 1996. It is the second book of what is known as the Mortalis trilogy. Since then I have read it multiple times. It is a great story. It's about violence, religion, penance, redemption, love, and protection of those we love. I won't give the story away, but it is suspenseful, well-written, and ultimately satisfying in an unsatisfying sort of way.

To understand the whole story, all three books need to be read. I will review the others soon.

Update 11/22/2021: I recently finished this as an audiobook. It’s probably my fifth or sixth time with it, and I didn’t expect how much I would pick up listening to it. While the performance perhaps was a bit wanting, the content of the story made up for it. From my own experience some of the plot objects were maybe a little wild, but Morrell did his historical research as well as changing the names and descriptions of certain places. As an example, there really -is- a Carthusian monastery in Vermont located not far from the summit of Mt. Equinox. But is difficult to get to and the area is regularly patrolled by law enforcement. The view is absolutely stunning, however…

[Melinda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book captivated me from start to finish. There was never a dull moment, it was pretty much action packed from the start.

Drew, a former assassin, has retreated to the monastery for 6 years only for it to coming crashing down one dark night. Who is after him?! Why is there a hit out for him after so many years? Who can be trusted? Lots of twists and turns and unexpected reveals. Although it is never entirely revealed as to who killed Drew's parents and why Drew finally grew a conscious when he made his last kill. Or how it didn't really talk much about Arlene's past with Scalpel, when it focused quite a bit on Jake and Drew's past.

The author has a captivating writing style and provides a lot of details but I don't know if I'm entirely sold on the role of the Fraternity or how they are forcing Drew's hand in some things.

[Andre · Rating 4 out of 5]

David Morrell will forever be remembered as the man who gave us Rambo who blasted his way onto our silverscreens in the eighties. But even though First Blood is an excellent story in its own right, Morrell has written quite a few other novels that stand out. Each in their own way.
Fraternity of the Stone is such a novel. Building up steam slowly with an ex-spy trying to find some semblance of redemption in locking himself away in solitude. Becoming a monk and living his remaining days as a monk. But his former life eventually finds him even there and a race for the truth starts.
Like any good spy novel, we won't really know who is who and which side they are on until the very last pages.
Well written, fast paced, good plot and an excellent novel.

[Maria Fledgling Author Park · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent Re-Read

David Morrell has always fascinated me. His writing seemed fresh, taught with excitement but also deep philosophically. His plots made me think about why people did things the way they did.

I'm happy to say, re-reading this book 20 or so years later, that it stands the test of time. Perhaps the technology is outdated but, because Morrell is a character writer, it doesn't detract from the punch of the plot.

I'm going through all three in the series and I'm really enjoying them. If, somehow, you've missed the three books in this series, read them now. You'll be glad you did.

[H.M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book. I thought the religious stuff was weird, really weird, and that’s why I gave it 4 stars. Justification after justification after justification... At some point, everything ends up being justified and that cheapens the story. I think I enjoyed Brotherhood of the Rose more. It’s been years since I’ve read it, so I’ll have to read it again soon. I enjoyed how this book was intricate and descriptive.

[Cathi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Priest assassins.... interesting idea.

[Lucasparry2002 · Rating 5 out of 5]

One word - Brilliant!!!

[Lorilynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

hit with a bang, couldn't put this thriller down

[Jilles · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the better thrillers by David Morrell. This was in the eighties what '24' was on TV 15 years ago, non-stop action, amazing set-pieces and interesting characters.

[Greg · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great story with engaging characters. Morrell is the master at writing action sequences.

[Alexander Engel-Hodgkinson · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.4/5

Morrell's second installment in his Mortalis Trilogy is an interesting follow-up to Brotherhood of the Rose, though it's not without its dull moments. Honestly sometimes with Morrell I find that if I didn't devour paperbacks like a woodchipper every week or two I would be putting a lot more books down. There's a segment in this where the characters spout off all sorts of things about their pasts and filling in a good number of blanks with exposition dialogue and flashbacks without actually leaving a hotel room in almost a whole hundred pages. At least Morrell didn't have them describe their life events, instead mercifully showing us what happened through the aforementioned flashbacks.

Fraternity of the Stone is pure Morrell. Like many of his works before and after Fraternity, Morrell dedicates a good chunk of the book on select elements of history, and then weaves a conspiracy and a shadow organization from the ashes of those historical tidbits he's just spent maybe thirty pages filling us in on. This is an aspect of Morrell's writing I'll probably forever be mixed on, as often it can be a detriment instead of a strength, consuming the entire storyline with its repetitive fact-hurling from the characters' mouths, as was the case with Covenant of the Flame and to a more gravely detrimental extent, Fifth Profession. Fraternity of the Stone (and in fact its predecessor) sit somewhat comfortably on the precarious tightrope that keeps Morrell's work from plummeting into 500-page exercises in tedious historical regurgitation. He may follow the same formula here as he does with those lesser works, but at least he focuses a bit more on the characters than the history that eludes them and the conspiracy that drives them.

That being said, Drew is a bit of an obnoxious protagonist, though he tries. My own personal bias, I don't even like the concept of religion in general, and I can't help but roll my eyes when someone in real life or in a fictional work talks about how great God is or something. Drew, being extremely religious, and dedicating his life to the fullest extreme, annoyed me fully, exacerbated by his over-the-top paranoia and second- and third-guessing on EVERYTHING. Although I certainly enjoyed his character arc and Morrell's clever use of parallels in the life-long debate on who's right and who's wrong in their personal vendettas and reasons for pursuing such goals. It was well done, even if I don't agree with Drew's conclusions in the end.

Morrell's writing is still crisp and well-crafted. The only time I don't enjoy his otherwise skillfully written combat scenes is when he interrupts said combat scenes with long flashbacks. It kills the flow and urgency of the present scene entirely for me. His suspenseful sequences are well executed. His conversations may always grate on a nerve or two with me forever, but they're not terribly written--I just don't enjoy long spiels on a series of historical events that were the catalysts for the novel's main conflict, which were already covered at the beginning of the novel. I feel like if Morrell just left out the first thirty pages from most of his conspiracy thriller chase novels and just had the characters slowly reveal these same things to the readers through organic progression of the story, it would gel a lot better with me.

But that's just my two cents. On to League of Night and Fog.

[Socrate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Deşi soarele începuse să asfinţească, nisipul deşertului încă nu-şi pierduse căldura. Înconjurat de gărzi, voluminosul cort – confecţionat din pânză de corabie, groasă – se umfla uşor într-o briză pârjolitoare. Caii epuizaţi, lucind de sudoare, stârneau nori de praf, în timp ce cavalerii ce-i călăreau se apropiau dinspre taberele opuse. Purtători de stindarde mergeau înaintea fiecărei coloane, drapelele lor înfăţişând trei lei aurii unul peste altul pe fond roşu – englezii – şi o fleur-de-lis aurie pe fond albastru – francezii. Deşi uniţi printr-o cauză sfântă, se aflau totuşi în profund dezacord privind politica dintre ţările lor, căci francezii contestau pământurile deţinute de englezi pe teritoriul Franţei. Datorită acestor relaţii încordate, nici o coloană nu era dispusă să suporte sosirea cea dintâi, astfel fiind nevoită să sufere umilinţa de a o aştepta pe cealaltă. Cercetaşii postaţi pe dunele din apropiere semnalaseră înaintarea fiecărui grup, asigurând ambele delegaţii că vor ajunge simultan la cort.

Coloanele se întâlniră: câte patru emisari în fiecare, împreună cu suita. Cătară spre un munte golaş din zare, unde roiau oştiri printre ruinele fumegânde ale unui castel cu minarete. Asediul fusese brutal, cu mari pierderi de vieţi, durând aproape trei luni, dar, în sfârşit, musulmanii de la Acre fuseseră înfrânţi. Un moment, divergenţele politice dintre francezi şi englezi fură date uitării. Obosiţi, dar hotărâţi, îşi lăudară unii altora valoarea, felicitându-se pentru victorie. Mai întâi descălecară păzitorii, apoi valeţii care-şi ajutau stăpânii. Spre deosebire de mândria care-i determinase pe fiecare să nu-i aştepte pe ceilalţi, acum manierele curtenitoare le cereau să ofere rivalilor privilegiul de a fi cei dintâi care intrau în cort. Spiritul practic rezolvă dilema. Domnul care se afla mai aproape acceptă să-şi lase servitorii în urmă şi să intre.

Înăuntru, odată prins bine faldul intrării, cavalerii se despuiară de arme, coifuri şi zale. Aerul era înăbuşitor. După văpaia soarelui din deşert, ochii li se deprinseră încet cu penumbra. Umbrele gărzilor de-afară se aşterneau întunecate pe pereţii cortului.

Cavalerii se măsurau din priviri. Acum, în cruciada a treia pentru Pământul Sfânt, lecţiile cruciaţilor anteriori îi învăţaseră să poarte cămăşi lungi pentru a-şi păstra umezeala corpului şi să împiedice soarele ucigător să le ardă pielea. Cămăşile erau deschise la culoare, atrăgând mai puţină căldură decât tonurile vii pe care le preferau în patrie. Singura concesie făcută culorii era reprezentarea mare şi roşie a unei cruci care împodobea pieptarul cămăşii – dimpreună cu petele arămii ale sângelui păgân uscat.

Oamenii purtau bărbi. Chiar şi aşa, obrajii lor arătau traşi şi deshidrataţi. Ridicându-şi glugile pentru a-şi acoperi părul încâlcit, băură vin din cupele ce le fuseseră pregătite. Dat fiind scopul acelei întâlniri, ar fi fost de preferat apa. Erau trebuitoare, la urma urmei, capetele limpezi. Dar prelungirea cruciadei, imensul teritoriu implicat, duseseră la o aprovizionare nesigură, iar vinul – pe care-l păstraseră pentru o sărbătorire – era singurul lichid la îndemână. Deşi însetaţi, îl beau pe îndelete. Deocamdată. Cel mai înalt şi mai musculos, un lord englez cunoscut pentru priceperea sa în lupta cu securea, vorbi cel dintâi, folosind limba diplomaţiei acceptată, franceza. Se numea Roger de Sussex.

[Ryan Kirk · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one really sits between a 3 and a 4 for me.

I discovered this sitting on my bookshelf, a remnant of a series of books that I used to read much more frequently when I was younger. Being as I've been working on some books that have some more thriller-ish elements to them, I figured it was worth a reread, and to see if I still wanted to hang on to it.

Overall, I really liked the book. Incredibly fast-paced, but not so that it feels like action is being crammed into every page. The language and the plotting are all superb, and I'm impressed by Morrell's skill.

My biggest gripe about this book was the ending. I don't want to spoil anything, and the conclusion was certainly logical, but I felt like the tone flipped, and I wasn't prepared for it.

A great read for thriller/action fans!

[Felipe P. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Solo había leído dos libros de Morrell. Primera Sangre y La Hermandad de la rosa. Ambos me encantaron, por lo que pensé que este libro iba a ser genial. No sé lo que pasó.

Comenzó muy bien. Escenas históricas, un preámbulo que incluía monasterios y los monjes más estrictos del catolicismo. Un hombre misterioso, desesperado por unirse a la orden para huir de su pasado. Intrigante y emocionante.
Pero todo cayó en picada desde allí. Sentí que todo lo que ocurría era lo obvio. Nada era realmente sorpresivo. Y no había respuestas reales. Cosas pasaban y no se sabe por qué. Llegué hasta el 50% y me rendí después de eso. Simplemente ya no estaba disfrutando el libro. No estaba conectado con el personaje principal, ni en la hermosa y perfecta chica de su pasado con la que se acababa de reencontrar.

[Roger]

The Fraternity of the Stone Mortalis, Book 2, my first read from author David Morrell, an author I'd wanted to read for years, in fact, I've gotten a half-dozen of his books on my TBR list..All I'd anticipated and more. Think Robert Ludlum, Steve Berry & James Rollins. Outstandingsuspense. 10-hours 24-minute/482-pages. I'm voluntarily reading & reviewing it because every book needs reviews. The narration cast of performers: George Ralph (narrator), Jean Reed Bahle, Christy L. Beatty, Paul Dreher, II, Dale Hull, Jonathon Hull, Brian K. Johnson, Len Kopka, Gladys Long, Michael Page, and Lowell George Seibel's outstanding narration adds to the book's enjoyment. I look forward to reading more from this author. (RIP Marley January 20, 2014 - July 24, 2018).

[Harry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best in class spy novel. I would expect no less from David Morrell, the author of "First Blood" and the initiator of the Rambo series. It is about a former American agent, Drew MacLane, who turns his back on the world and enters a severe monastic order only to be found by a rogue group of assassins. Drew is forced out of retirement to seek revenge on those who killed his Brothers and threaten to kill him. Along the way, he gets help from the Fraternity of the Stone, and order of priests-assassins.
Lots of intrigue and action with a heavy dose of Catholicism and morality and, to a lesser degree, pacifism. Morrell skillfully brings the story full circle to elucidate the back story of the Fraternity of the Stone.

[Lois Rasmussen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Don’t start if you’re too busy to keep reading

Cruising in the Mediterranean and reading David Morrell are not compatible. The last 2 days are a blur-I could not put it down. I think I missed Palma de Mallorca…..
I accidentally read this out of sequence although I have the first book in my library. I’ll be reading it next. I’m new to this author and had no expectations when I opened this book. I’ve subsequently downloaded 3 more. If you start reading be prepared for a long read.

[R V · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a story about an ex-agent assassin who became a monk and lived the life of a hermit in a monastery for six years to repent. He was going to spend the rest of his life in solitude until the monastery was attacked and all the monks inside were killed. He was forced to flee, but was determined to avenge the deaths of the innocent monks. Along the way, he receives help from the Fraternity of the Stone, a very mysterious organisation of the priest-assassins. A little lengthy thriller worth reading.
My rating is 3.9 out of 5

[Chuckles · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this right after discovering and reading The Brotherhood of the Rose. Though they are not connected specifically, things come together between characters in the two books in another book, The League of Night and Fog, which followed this book.

The story begins with a US governmental operative (in the eighties you could be vague about what agency an "operative" worked for, it could be any number of agencies, cover agencies, completely made up agencies, etc... whereas nowadays you better detail the org chart and not get a singe detail wrong), Drew MacLane, has had enough. He convinces one of the strictest Trappists orders to allow him entry so as to hopefully help him save his soul, and he does this by making his confession to them. They agree. Unfortunately, despite all the effort he put in to hide his trail, someone figures out where he is and comes after him. He escapes but must then discover who is after him and why.

This book is such a blast, fun especially if you are a Catholic and willing to suspend disbelief over some aspects of the Church. And this has one of the best endings, so perfect to the story and to the character of Drew MacLane. More of a 4.5/5 so far as books in this genre.