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The Empty Confessional
Everything is going Gabe Russell's way. He's successful in his new job, he's a martial arts expert, his novel's about to be published, and he's got a crush on a woman at work that appears to be reciprocated. There's just one Gabe is a priest. And he's coming undone. The Empty Confessional is a story of righteous vengeance-and its costs. Torn between his attraction to his former teacher and his calling, Gabe finds release for his religious and sexual frustration through violent penance-retribution against the abusers and rapists he discovers through the confessional and the pedophilic priests within his own ranks. Investigating these assaults is Carla Jessup, a cynical detective with her own issues with the law. The result is a complicated relationship, in which priest and detective are alternately sources, partners and foes. The Empty Confessional is a complicated tangle of relationships, reckoning, and the struggle between what's legal and what's right.
296 pages, Paperback
Published May 31, 2022
5 people are currently reading
4 people want to read
About the author
Tom Hogan
23 books55 followersFrom archaeological digs in Israel to life in both Protestant and Catholic seminaries to launching tech startups in Silicon Valley, Tom Hogan has led a fascinating life. And he brings that richness of experience to his writing, both fiction and non-fiction.
Archaeology: Undergraduate and graduate work in Biblical History and Archaeology led Tom to become a ceramic specialist on digs in Israel, dating strata (levels of civilization) by the type and quality of ceramic shards discovered there. That led to work at the Harvard Semitic Museum, where he worked with the team deciphering the Dead Sea Scrolls.
The Holocaust: Funded by a grant from the National Conference for Community and Justice, Tom developed one of the first programs for introducing the Holocaust into high school and university curricula. He then became a lecturer in Holocaust Studies at Santa Clara University. In 2000 he took a five-year sabbatical from his work in tech marketing (below) to become an associate professor of Holocaust and Genocide Studies at UC Santa Cruz.
Technology Marketing: Tom joined Oracle in its early days as the company’s first Creative Director, developing the marketing programs (including ORACLE Magazine and Oracle Open World) that distinguished the company in its early days. He eventually migrated to the VC (Venture Capital) world as the founder of Crowded Ocean, a small agency that specialized in launching startups. Crowded Ocean has launched 51 startups, with 17 of them going public or being acquired, a remarkable 33% success rate in an industry where 10% is considered great.
Writing: While doing his graduate work in Biblical Archaeology at Harvard, his novel (which later became What the Hell) was selected by the Nieman Foundation for sponsorship, which included being coached by Ann Beattie. Over the years he wrote for a number of political and travel journals, including an article for Newsweek about pedophilia in the Catholic Church. In 2018 he retired from Silicon Valley and moved to Austin to write full-time.
Archaeology: Undergraduate and graduate work in Biblical History and Archaeology led Tom to become a ceramic specialist on digs in Israel, dating strata (levels of civilization) by the type and quality of ceramic shards discovered there. That led to work at the Harvard Semitic Museum, where he worked with the team deciphering the Dead Sea Scrolls.
The Holocaust: Funded by a grant from the National Conference for Community and Justice, Tom developed one of the first programs for introducing the Holocaust into high school and university curricula. He then became a lecturer in Holocaust Studies at Santa Clara University. In 2000 he took a five-year sabbatical from his work in tech marketing (below) to become an associate professor of Holocaust and Genocide Studies at UC Santa Cruz.
Technology Marketing: Tom joined Oracle in its early days as the company’s first Creative Director, developing the marketing programs (including ORACLE Magazine and Oracle Open World) that distinguished the company in its early days. He eventually migrated to the VC (Venture Capital) world as the founder of Crowded Ocean, a small agency that specialized in launching startups. Crowded Ocean has launched 51 startups, with 17 of them going public or being acquired, a remarkable 33% success rate in an industry where 10% is considered great.
Writing: While doing his graduate work in Biblical Archaeology at Harvard, his novel (which later became What the Hell) was selected by the Nieman Foundation for sponsorship, which included being coached by Ann Beattie. Over the years he wrote for a number of political and travel journals, including an article for Newsweek about pedophilia in the Catholic Church. In 2018 he retired from Silicon Valley and moved to Austin to write full-time.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
August 4, 2022
I thoroughly enjoyed my time with a read through my second Tom Hogan novel - 'The Empty Confessional'. I particularly relished the steady build of the individual characters, their history, beliefs, attitudes, and relationships. Reminds me of why I so enjoyed my first read of Tom Hogan, his last book set in the time of Auschwitz and WW2. The author's interweaving of fictional characters with the modern and even present day child abuse scandal permeating the Catholic Church's rank and file, is perfect for attaining a deeper understanding of the magnitude of this unthinkable human tragedy and it's deplorable and unforgivable massive cover up.
Ed Klotz San Francisco Bay Area
Ed Klotz San Francisco Bay Area
December 31, 2023
Great Story
The story is set in Pittsburgh before the Roman Catholic Church admitted that pedophiles were not punished, but rather moved around. Their victims were talked into believing that they were partially at fault for what happened to them. A group of priests and a nun meet because they hear of the cover up. The story keeps you reading
The story is set in Pittsburgh before the Roman Catholic Church admitted that pedophiles were not punished, but rather moved around. Their victims were talked into believing that they were partially at fault for what happened to them. A group of priests and a nun meet because they hear of the cover up. The story keeps you reading
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews