The Vatican Deal

 This is the first review in the blog for Michael Balter who has written a dynamite book. The Vatican Deal is subtitled A Marty and Bo Thriller. The main characters are Marty Schott and Bo Bishop are business partners. They’ve been buying businesses, but despite a solid plan, they were languishing until they took in a new partner, Natalya Danilenko, a Russian who is being back with seemingly unlimited funds from a Russian oligarch. They have a business opportunity with the Vatican who are willing to allow access to the secret Vatican achives, to sell various artifacts, and to make duplicates of countless Vatican treasures. It turns out that there are liars everywhere. The oligarch wants access to the Vatican bank for the purpose of money laundering, and the Naples Mafia also want in. Clearly Cardinal Bertolini who is making the deal for the Pope, is not telling all that he knows about this proposed deal.

 The book opens in one of my favorite places in Rome, Piazza Navona. Bo had been badly beaten up, although it is not clear who was behind the act. However, he is warned to stay away from the deal for the Italian foundry, Chiurazzi. On the other hand, the Vatican is claiming they want Marty and  Bo to make the deal. Finances at the church are very tight and they are badly in need of the money this deal would bring to them. Meanwhile Natalya is kidnapped and Marty and Bo are presented with a package that contains the fingernail from her little finger and a picture of her suffering from it’s removal. So the story moves forward in a rapid pace. I could not put it down.

 

I’m ready to give very high praise to Balter. His use of  simile is excellent and entertaining. Considering the content, it is reasonable to compare the writing of travel and mayhem to the works of Daniel Silva, Dan Brown, and Don Winslow – high praise indeed. The main characters are very different from one another, are believable, and they enliven the plot. I want more of these characters, so I hope Balter will be bringing more novels to the table.