Book Review: A Catholic tale for catholic minds

I just finished Conclave, by Robert Harris.  He is well known for earlier novels such as Pompeii, Enigma and also the recent Cicero trilogy.  Conclave is set in the Vatican.  I set myself 15 days, or the second half of October to read and savor the novel.  It was so engrossing, that I finished in 3 days and had to go to the next book on my list!

Robert Harris' writing style is welcoming, with prime focus given to characters, story telling and for my taste, sharing some new learning with the reader.  And he does exactly that again in Conclave.

Conclave is set in the near future and is about the election of a new Pope.  The current one (who has a distinct resemblance to Pope Francis), has passed away.  118 Cardinals from around the world assemble in the Sistine Chapel to elect the new Pope through as many as 20 balloting rounds if necessary.

Harris expertly weaves all the current social, technological, cultural, political, inter-generational issues into a tight narrative, in suffocatingly close quarters, with a ticking clock and an election to manage.  And throws in a mystery of sorts as well.

One learns quite a bit (I imagine!), about the voting procedures in the Vatican and also all the considerations that go into electing one.  We were recently in Italy on vacation and visited the Vatican.  So the setting and story had real immediacy for me.

The narrator of the story is the Dean of the College of Cardinals - Cardinal Lomeli.  As readers, we immediately empathize with the immensity of his task and go along for the ride through his eyes. 

The pacing of the novel is made easy with each voting session and the drama increasing steadily by the ballot.

Who gets finally elected is a surprise, but not in the way one would assume.  The ending is absolutely explosive.  It sent me scurrying to look up all kinds of obscure terms.

BiP / AiP - Before iPad / After iPad

As I have mentioned before, these days I consume these narratives through audio and eBooks as well so that it is easy to continue to follow the story regardless of whether I am walking, commuting or at home.  The narrator of the novel in the audio version, Roy MacMillan is also very good.  His ability to assume the voices and accents of Cardinals from North America, Latin America, Africa, Europe and Asia is quite impressive!

I don't rank this book alongside Harris' Cicero trilogy, which is probably the author's piece de resistance.

But Conclave is a worthy successor, and delivers entertainment and education in a fine balance.