Review – Sinner: A Novel

Father Renault spent a brief moment in prayer before he opened the confessional door to sit in the cramped space. He thanked the man for waiting and asked for his confession. The stranger described an evil dream from the night before, a dream that told him to brutalize a priest to near death today. He wasn’t confessing the act-the act was his mission. He needed forgiveness because he looked forward to it.

The legendary Sinner has returned, and Rogers’ fast-paced narrative of redemption that combines two stories in one, begins.

The author uses the legend of a Civil War vigilante who is haunted by a sin he considers unforgiveable-a sin that drives him to punish sinners that appear in his dreams and become their redeemer. The vigilante, often brutalized himself after completing the mission assigned by his dream, sleeps inside a locked room in a mysterious cottage to supernaturally heal. When an evil dream again wakes him to begin another mission-to find and punish the sinner and rescue his victim. Each mission is recorded in antique journals, which Beverly Scott Thomas began more than one hundred and fifty years ago. The story is set in modern times, but ancient entries from the antique journals complete each chapter until the stories come together.

Add CK Ivors, crime writer and private investigator, and her crack team of detectives, and computer nerds who have a reputation for “getting their man.” At least until their forensic investigative skills meet their match in the legendary Sinner. It isn’t until the Sinner is seen fleeing the most recent crime scene that Ivors realizes the Sinner is more than imaginary-he’s actually a flesh and blood man.

This detective story is fast-paced and occasionally violent, but not gratuitously violent. Because it is sometimes graphic, it’s not for the squeamish. Multiple characters, story lines and themes include a sympathetic anti-hero, events of the Stigmata, retribution and forgiveness that affirms God’s power to redeem even the worst of sinners. Subtle spiritual values are foundational and interlaced throughout the story. They lead to a surprising conclusion.

The story’s large cast of colorful characters with quirky names and acronyms, such as CK, Junebug Collins, and Chance Elko, is both distracting and appealing. However, their fascinating character idiosyncrasies and names make them easy to identify.

Rogers’ narrative and creative voice is reminiscent of Dean Koontz and equally intriguing. I’ve becomes a Rogers’ fan and look forward to the sequel, which the epilogue implies. She is definitely a writer to watch.