The Birth of a New Moon by
Laurie R. King
hbk out January 99
Published by HarperCollins
at £16.99
In the world of religious cults, the approaching millennium is much more than an excuse for a daft dome and a big party. Led by fanatics, many adherents believe the end of the world is nigh and are making plans to ensure they're on the fast track to salvation. That's the background to Laurie King's intelligent and disturbing new novel.
Years ago, Anna Waverley's husband and daughter died tragically in a mass suicide pact. Now a university lecturer in new religious movements, she assists the FBI in their investigations of cults in her own personal mission for atonement. Anna is called on to infiltrate a religious community obsessed with the ancient art of alchemy that is showing signs of dangerous instability.
Inevitably, she is drawn deep into their rituals but this time, her objectivity is under threat when she grows close to a child who reminds her irresistibly of her own dead daughter. Suddenly, it's personal. And in a world of religious fervour, personal can be very dangerous.
King brings a cool intelligence to her subject, avoiding hysterical knee-jerk reactions and creating a convincing picture of fanaticism in action. As thoughtful as it is tense, this is a thriller to bring a chill to the heart.
(
Val McDermid
- Gold Dagger winner & creator of Lindsay Gordon, Kate Brannigan & Tony Hill)
The Birth of a New Moon by
Laurie R. King