Cradle and All
by James Patterson
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McGraw-Hill (New York): 1980. Hardcover: xii, 252 pages. ISBN-10: 0-446-60940-4 Tags: birth; Catholic church; devils; Mainstream; Mary; miracles; nuns; popes; priests; virgins Tactical strength: [5/10] |
The Pope has kept a secret: a prophetic document that predicts that in the late 20th century two virgins will give birth, one to an evil child and the other to a messianic figure. Realizing that many of the signs in the prophecy have already taken place, the Pope dispatches Father Rossetti, the chief investigator for the Congregation of Rites. Rossetti must find the virgins, determine which one carries the demon spawn, and take the appropriate action.
With this kind of premise, you might expect a thriller on the order of the Exorcist or the Omen. Instead you get some of the most amateur writing I have read in a long time coming from a major publisher. If the book hadn't been so short, I would have given up and thrown it across the room in frustration within the first 30 pages.
On the positive side, Patterson builds some good tension toward the end of the book, as you wonder how his characters will react to the virgin births and which child will be the evil one. But Patterson doesn't really give himself much to work with. He has a cast of protagonists, none of whom ever really take the spotlight and become a "main character." And he also never clearly identifies an antagonist other than the Devil, who never makes a personal appearance and only sends a few bats to harass Father Rossetti.
I looked around the Internet and found that Patterson has some very popular and successful books. Rather than trying to find this one (which I bought for five cents at a local library sale), go read one of his bestsellers.
This book originally released and reviewed as Virgin, ISBN 0-07-048820-7.
