The Third Secret

 

We are experiencing a very interesting period of history. This is partly due to the recent great changes in politics that I have been faithfully documenting, for example see: https://hpanwo-voice.blogspot.com/2025/01/fall-back-to-keep.html; but now we also see something similar in matters of religion. The death of Pope Francis and the selection of a new pontiff, should there be one, has fascinated me, see: https://hpanwo-radio.blogspot.com/2025/04/third-rail-radio-programme-206.html and: https://hpanwo-tv.blogspot.com/2025/04/pope-death-livestream.html. We are within literally a couple of weeks of seeing whether or not the Prophesy of St Malachy is true or false. It was my browsing of this matter that led me to the novel The Third Secret by Steve Berry. It is a well-researched deep-dive into an ecclesiastical conspiracy that may be a bit too slow-paced for Dan Brown fans, except at the end; but it will be perfect for those who have enjoyed Umberto Eco. The good guys and villains are complex and rounded, and they pursue their goals in various ways; with quiet voices in Vatican hallways, up stormy mountains in Bosnia and within their own hearts. The title refers to one of the mysteries of the church, the Third Secret of Fatima. In 1917 there was one of the most famous Marian apparitions; in Portugal where a number of children supposedly saw the Virgin Mary. Unlike many other manifestations of the mother of Jesus, this one had a multitude of independent witnesses. The Virgin gave the children three secrets to release to the world when the "time was right". The third and final secret was allegedly revealed by Pope John Paul II in 2000, but there was always a suspicion that all or part of the final secret had been concealed. The story in the novel skilfully weaves this enigma together with the Prophesy of the Popes. Much of the atmosphere is similar to Conclave, see: https://hpanwo-tv.blogspot.com/2024/12/conclave-film-review.html. Its themes connect closely to the concept of the apocalypse, something I have also been studying, see: https://hpanwo-tv.blogspot.com/2023/01/ben-emlyn-jones-live-at-truth-seekers.html and: https://hpanwo-tv.blogspot.com/2020/08/apocalypse-soon.html. The intrigue in this novel is intense and delivered perfectly. The ending is unexpected. It is simple without being anticlimactic. I think most HPANWO readers will enjoy it. Source: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/127249.The_Third_Secret.