Dimiter

This pretty well expresses my own reaction: "In 1973, in a dark, damp and desolate concrete room in the basement of an Albanian prison --- a place where 'grace and hope had never touched' and 'even the dust in the air was heard shrieking' --- a man is interrogated and brutally tortured. After days of enduring sadistic pain, including having his 'nails wrenched from their sockets,' the man called the Prisoner remains silent, refusing even to identify himself. As the horror and interrogation intensify, so does the mystery. Is the Prisoner an assassin? A spy? A murderer? A priest? How can he be forced to talk? "It is only after the Prisoner's bloody and daring escape that Colonel Vlora, the investigator in charge of the notorious Albanian prison, discovers the identity of the man as Dimiter, an American 'agent from hell.' But what is his mission? Why has he come to the godless state of Albania? "After Dimiter flees prison, the scene shifts to war-torn Jerusalem in 1974. At Hadassah Hospital, neurologist Moses Mayo awakens in the middle of the night with a sense of dread and tries to recall a troubling dream. Mayo is haunted by recent events at the hospital: a bloody and brutal murder in the psychiatric ward; the death of a stroke patient who, before his passing, talked to apparitions who bore 'witness'; reports of strange visitors by Samia, a brassy nurse; and inexplicable miraculous cures. Also in Jerusalem, Police Detective Peter Meral, an Arab Christian and Dr. Mayo's longtime friend, is busy at work. Meral, a grief-stricken man who has lost his wife and only child, 'seems to ache at the slightest parting.' He is immersed in the investigations of a fiery explosion, a troubling CIA cover-up, a criminal found with a broken neck and a body discovered at the Tomb of Christ. "As the death count rises, the investigation and the mystery persist. Are the deaths related? If so, how? More so, why? Who is behind the murders --- and the miracles? Who will be the next to die? "DIMITER --- the man and the book --- is enigmatic, compelling and beguiling. Part mystery and part spiritual thriller, William Peter Blatty's novel is rich in detail and written with wisdom and grace. Through compelling narration, vivid scenes, revealing dialogue, police transcripts, interrogations, newspaper articles and epistles, Blatty has created an amazing tale. At the moment of epiphany, when the pieces of the puzzle fall into place, it is stunning how the characters, events and details relate. "Yet one detail at the story's beginning confounded me. I could not understand how the two-year-old brindle-eyed boy remained the same age a year later. Regardless of that niggling bit, DIMITER is a haunting novel that should be read twice --- once for the captivating and faith-affirming story, and a second time to savor the author's elegant writing and masterful craft." --- Donna Volkenannt, [...].

Update 5/12/10: Hey, Sheila Clover! No butting in line! One need not read an interview with Blatty to recognize this novel as the product of years of a well articulated, self-examined life. If the cliché rings true, and good writers begin with writing what they know, then Bill Blatty can be said to have written about the things he knows perhaps better than anyone: the hopeful grief of the faithful, the Problem of Evil balanced by what he calls the "Mystery of Goodness," and the power of that goodness when channeled by those ready to let it work within them. The editorial and reviewer plot synopses cannot do justice to the tightly woven suspense of this novel, due to elemental spirituality that lies beyond the gripping plot and elevates the work to something more than a "thriller." As is typical of Blatty, his characters are eccentric, complicated, at times funny, and likeable. For the long-time Blatty fan, this novel will provide some rewarding moments of the off-beat humor within his previous work, but this book is noticeably different also. No one else writes quite like this author. This has been evident at least since The Exorcist, and in Dimiter, we see a unique and gifted author at his most refined. His sentences are at once long, rhythmic, and beautifully descriptive. We are allowed to experience not only the artful presentation of bad things that happen to good people and the ensuing, surmounting dread, but also a good long look at an inexplicable goodness that causes evil to scream its throat raw and in vain. And the beautiful thing is - the mystery retains its mystery.

Ah, it is so good to have such a wonderfully well written, suspenseful book from William Blatty again! His writing is such a joy to read and savor. The story is mysterious,and complex,with deeply mesmerizing detailed descriptions. This is a book than can be read over and over, each time finding new details and wonders of language. My only complaint (spoiler alert) is how Jean, his wife, got his last letter which he never intended to send. We know Merel sent it, but how did he know where to find Jean???? I may well be missing something here, and if someone can enlighten me, I would be delighted to find out. This is the only flaw, to me, in an otherwise superb book.

In 1973 in Albania, security chief Colonel Vlora the "Interrogator" works to break a prisoner suspected of being an American agent. He and his experts torture the Prisoner in ways the Spanish Inquisition would never of imagined, but the source of their assault never even screams once; instead he takes everything slammed at him in total silence. Even more shocking to his hosts, "the Prisoner" does the impossible; he escapes and completes his mission. At Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem, a series of unexplained deaths shake up the staff. Christian Arab police detective Peter Meral leads the investigation that seems to be going nowhere. Whereas Americans and Israelis struggle with the happenings, none yet know that the Albanian Prisoner, Paul Dimiter is in the Holy City doing what he does best causing hell. This is not an easy read as the exciting story line seems incoherent when suddenly like a magician William Peter Blatty brilliantly brings it together in a thrilling psychological suspense thriller. Dimiter is an eerie individual who has figuratively lost his soul (not in a horror novel - Exorcist sense) but seeks some form of redemption. Readers will relish the shocking truths as to who he is and why Albania (ask Ho Chi Minh about him) and then Jerusalem. Harriet Klausner