Den of Thieves

Den of Thieves / Katharine Stall
NY: Simon & Schuster, c1987.
286 p.

This was a random discovery at a used bookshop; I loved the cover and then when I read the premise I knew I had to buy it. That premise? That some divinity students get involved in a conspiracy when they discover that a charismatic televangelist is using a fake 'ministry' to brainwash the country through media (in this case tv) so that his version of a Christian Nation can take over. Sound timely? It was. 

Not only did I find the concept intriguing, her narrative tone is both sharp and easy to read. It's an intellectual adventure story -- theology, kidnappings, spies, murders, brainwashing, remote compounds and more. I found it entertaining as a caper, but also with some elements that might make you think a little deeper.  

P.K. Mather is a preacher's kid, trying to live down her father's conviction years earlier for attempting to blow up a train of weapons headed to Vietnam. But in her moment of crisis she discovers that she's more like her father than she'd realized - she needs to stand up for what she believes, and track down the fundamentalist network kidnapping non-evangelical preachers as the first step in their great brainwashing plan. 

Cross-country hijinks ensue, complete with connections to P.K.'s father's old sixties underground compatriots and some of P.K.'s own fellow students. This story reflects a lot of the elements of American culture that are at the forefront today, and is scathingly satirical about much of it. I never knew that a story about divinity students could be so thrilling, engaging and just plain fun!

I couldn't find much information on the author, and haven't found anything else she's written since. It's too bad because this one was clever, with some sharp social commentary and an interesting main character. Not a setting or theme I've seen much of in fiction but really well done here. A serendipitous find!