The Amalfi Secret
Longstanding conspiracies are exposed following a murder in the thrilling mystery novel The Amalfi Secret.
About world powers, family secrets, and faith, Dean and Catherine Reineking’s thrilling novel The Amalfi Secret is set along the lush western coast of Italy.
In the early aughts, an American mountain climber, Gabe, is invited to join his grandparents, Fran and John, in Italy for a vacation overlooking the Tyrrhenian Sea. He looks forward to climbing the Amalfi cliffs and exploring his family’s Italian heritage. Hours after Gabe’s arrival, though, his NSA-connected grandfather is found dead. While it was made to look like a death from natural causes, Gabe finds suspicious clues at the scene, including an encoded message on the bathroom mirror and a research journal with missing pages.
The novel is moved along by ongoing suspense, as with that created when the secret code that Gabe’s grandfather left behind is almost revealed. Gabe, who inherited his grandfather’s investigative skills, exposes more conspiracies than he can handle by himself, but his friends and his grandparents’ associates are all too tied to powerful organizations to be considered trustworthy. Indeed, the secondary cast includes Lorenzo, who owns the hotel and knows all the locals; Marco, a shipyard owner with ties to the Freemasons; Paolo, who has on-call sources at the Vatican; and Cardinal Bauer, who knew John. Anna, Paolo’s niece, adds further complications; her confidence and beauty fascinate Gabe, and the romantic developments between the pair are involving.
As Gabe discovers more about his family’s work for and against world powers, he also comes to terms with his lack of faith. Religious themes also come through his grandmother Fran’s churchgoing, Anna’s natural faith, information about John’s late resurgence of faith, conversations about Revelation, and ongoing battles between the Freemasons and the Vatican: “The seven-headed creatures described in Revelation are not grotesque organisms but rather ungodly organizations—organizations bent on tearing down truth and bringing humanity to spiritual ruin.”
At times, the murder mystery and people’s religious inquiries receive similar space, leading to distractions. Pejorative tones regarding Protestantism, yoga, and New Age tenets are suggested in people’s conversations, diluting the excitement generated by descriptions of gun fights and visits to historic churches and coastal caves. Nonetheless, the story moves toward a memorable conclusion in which clear answers are provided and through which Gabe’s faith in humanity is restored.
The Amalfi Secret is an absorbing mystery novel in which conspiracy theories come to life in an atmospheric setting.
Reviewed by
Clarissa Adkins
Disclosure: This article is not an endorsement, but a review. The publisher of this book provided free copies of the book and paid a small fee to have their book reviewed by a professional reviewer. Foreword Reviews and Clarion Reviews make no guarantee that the publisher will receive a positive review. Foreword Magazine, Inc. is disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
