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Fatima, Portugal, 1917. The Virgin Mary appears to three peasant children, sharing with them three secrets, two of which are soon revealed to the world. The third secret is sealed away in the Vatican, read only by popes, and not disclosed until the year 2000. When revealed, its quizzical tone and anticlimactic nature leave many faithful wondering if the Church has truly unveiled all of the Virgin Mary's words or if a message far more important has been left in the shadows. Vatican City, present day, Papal secretary Father Colin Michener is concerned for the Pope. Night after restless night, Pope Clement XV enters the Vatican's Riserva, the special archive open only to popes, where the Church's most clandestine and controversial documents are stored. Though unsure of the details, Michener knows that the Pope's distress stems from the revelations of Fatima. Equally concerned, but not out of any sense of compassion, is Alberto Cardinal Valendrea, the Vatican's Secretary of State. Valendrea desperately covets the papacy, having narrowly lost out to Clement at the last conclave. Now the Pope's interest in Fatima threatens to uncover a shocking ancient truth that Valendrea has kept to himself for many years. When Pope Clement sends Michener to the Romanian highlands, then to a Bosnian holy site, in search of a priest, possibly one of the last people on Earth who knows Mary's true message, a perilous set of events unfolds. Michener finds himself embroiled in murder, suspicion, suicide, deceit, and his forbidden passion for a beloved woman. In a desperate search for answers, he travels to Pope Clement's birthplace in Germany, where he learns that the third secret of Fatima may dictate the very fate of the Church, a fate now lying in Michener's own hands.… (more)
User reviews
Having said this, let me try a brief synopsis:
The "Third Secret" is the last of the secrets entrusted by the Virgin Mary to three children back in 1917 in Fatima, Portugal. Personally, I'm fascinated by the whole phenomenon of Virgin Mary sightings...in tortillas, in a grilled cheese sandwich, on windows, in blotches on the street. But then again, I have always been interested in goddess literature and studies relating the Virgin Mary to vestiges of goddess worship. Moving right along, there were 3 messages in total given to these children. Berry examines the notion that the third of these, made public by John Paul II in 2000, was not the actual message...that there was a plot to cover up its real contents because it would shake the faith of the modern Catholic world. The girl, Lucia, who received that message, was in her 90s at the time this secret was made public and according to Berry's novel, her hearing was failing, her eyesight bad, and she had been sworn to secrecy, yet she confirmed that the message made public by the pope was the one given to her by the Virgin Mary.
In Berry's novel, he notes that these documents were contained under lock and key in the Riserva, the private archives so secret that only the Pope could go in there and have access to the documents stored there. In the story, a number of popes knew the true secret, and in the case of John XXIII, he wept while reading it. As the novel opens, we are in the reign of Pope Clement XV, a German pope who knows the secret and is troubled by it. He has been on the papal throne for 34 months and he is torn because he knows he should let the world know, but also knows that he would be tearing the Catholic world apart once he reveals the secret. He sends a friend Colin Michener, a priest at the Vatican, to Romania to contact a Father Tibor, currently working in an orphanage there. Father Tibor, it seems, was the translator of the Third Secret, and Clement wants advice as to what he should do. Clement does not entrust the secret to Michener, but sends him on the mission. Now this wouldn't be so complicated, except for the fact that at the same time, the cardinal who did not become the pope in the conclave where Clement was elected, Valendrea, can't wait to become pope and is already exercising his power over those who would support him in the event of the death of Clement. He is one of the nastiest villains I've seen in a long time and I really enjoyed his character. Anyway, he knows something about the third secret and sends his goons and a reporter that Michener was once in love with after Michener to keep track of what he learns in Romania. As Michener learns more, things begin to heat up at the Vatican and the suspense sets in up until the last minute of the book.
If you like books about religious conspiracies, startling revelations & really evil people, you'll like this one. I thought the book was okay; made for an interesting two days and one night of reading. The pace is good, and the book is suspenseful, but to me, I just wasn't wowed by the revelations at the end. I had the most fun with Valendrea's character...what an evil genius!
Berry has created an interesting story with a good plot that keeps the reader involved. However, Berry does not do a good job of drawing a character, although he does better in The Third Secret than he has in previous books. I also found myself disappointed when the third secret is finally revealed close to the end of the book; it's a bit too "21st century" for my taste (and I'm not even Catholic). Overall, though, this is an entertaining read.
I actually enjoyed this mix of truth (?) and fiction. Having been raised Catholic, it's fun to read a humanistic account of intense church teachings and
Good light reading with a great ending. I imagine there are Catholics out there shuddering that I would treat this so lightly. But then I have long ago rejected the church teachings that are so obviously man-made and which serve the greed and vanity of the powerful. Several current themes with which the church is struggling are tackled in this book.
It's plain that a lot of research went into this book, because it is rich with details of Rome, the Vatican, and Church traditions. The depth of detail makes the book quite enjoyable. And let's face it, the more authentic detail included, the more credible the rest of the bullcrap conspiracy theories seem.
The book is a thriller through and through. It's got good pacing, easily identifiable stock characters, and a tight plot. It throws out some interesting questions about religion and the nature of dogma, but in content it's nothing all that new--just another conspiracy thriller riding the Da Vinci Code's coat tails. But it's still a good read. I'd recommend it to anyone looking for some fast-paced, light reading with a Catholic bent.
I really only have two complaints about the book. One is that the third secret is teased in front of the reader so often it gets a little old. Sure, its revelation is pretty much the point of the book, but we frequently get so close to hearing its content before Berry snatches it away, its starts to get frustrating. In contrast, I’m reminded of how relatively early on in “The DaVinci Code” we hear of the big secret. The other complaint is some of the content of the third secret, once we finally do hear it. I’m not Catholic, nor of course will I reveal the secret here. But, I do take issue with one of the revelations. If you’ve read it and want to discuss it with me, feel free.
I will return to Berry soon as I enjoy his work a great deal.