The Assassini
| The Assassini | |
|---|---|
 First edition cover |
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| Author(s) | Thomas Gifford |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Thriller |
| Publisher | Bantam Books |
| Publication date | August 1990 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback and paperback) |
| Pages | 600 (First edition, hardback) |
| ISBN | ISBN 0553057286 (First edition, hardback) |
| OCLC Number | 20993214 |
| Dewey Decimal | 813/.54 20 |
| LC Classification | PS3557.I284 A87 1990 |
The Assassini is a 1990 thriller novel by American author Thomas Gifford, published by Bantam Books.[1]
Contents |
[edit] Plot summary
Set in 1982, while the Roman Catholic Church's papal conclave is preparing to elect a new pope as the old one is dying, the book describes the attempts of lawyer Ben Driskill to solve the murder of his sibling, Sister Valentine, a nun who was an outspoken activist and a thorn in the Church's side. Driskill's world-spanning investigation leads him to the discovery of a document from a forgotten monastery in Ireland, which proves the existence of the Assassini, an age-old brotherhood of killers, once hired by princes of the Church to protect it in dangerous times; and the person who now controls them in his Machiavellian bid for power.[1]
[edit] Inspiration and influences
The novel was inspired by, and weaved together in its dramatic structure, numerous historical controversies about the Roman Catholic Church:
- The Pope John Paul I conspiracy theories.
- The Banco Ambrosiano scandal of the Vatican Bank.
- The involvement of Vatican officials and Catholic priests in ODESSA "ratlines", systems of escape routes for Nazis and other fascists fleeing Europe at the end of World War II.
- The art theft and other items stolen as a result of the organized spoliation of European countries by agents of Nazi Germany.
- The emergence of Catholic clerical fascism in Europe.
- Pope Pius XI and his negotiation of the Lateran Treaty with Fascist Italy and the Reichskonkordat with Nazi Germany.
- The legacy of the House of Borgia and their corrupt rule of the papacy during the Renaissance.
[edit] Similarities
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The Assassini (Italian for "assassins"), as an archetype for a lone priest or a secret society of priests involved in the sanctioned killing of (non-supernatural) political opponents of the Roman Catholic Church or a faction within the Church, can be found in several works of fiction.
- The Judas Testament, a 1994 novel by Daniel Easterman.[2]
- The 2003 novel The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown depicts a fictional member of the Catholic organisation Opus Dei as an assassini-like figure who targets people associated with the Priory of Sion. The book's 1998 prequel, Angels & Demons, mentions the historical Assassins by name.
[edit] References
- ^ a b Gifford, Thomas (1991). The Assassini. Bantam Books. ISBN 05532874003.
- ^ Easterman, Daniel (2004). The Judas Testament. Harpercollins. ISBN 0060177683.
