As a thriller, as a love story, as a rich and dazzling novel of ideas, The Gospel of Judas succeeds and satisfies. It also surprises…

A Roman Catholic priest experiences a crisis of faith—at the same time that he finds himself attracted to a married woman. A scroll is discovered near Jerusalem that, if authentic, could open Christianity to a complete reinterpretation. A dangerous passion ignites and secretly smolders in Fascist-dominated Rome during World War II. These and other brilliant threads are woven into a magnificent literary entertainment—a novel that resonates with tales of love and betrayal as it deals profoundly with questions of faith, identity, individual responsibility, and what it means to believe.