Savior's Day

This engaging thriller from Winter (Someone Else's Son) centers on the Codex of Aleppo, a missing book of the Bible that contains every word spoken by God to man. The Codex, which has appeared and disappeared over the ages, is now in the custody of the Israeli government%E2%80%94but about a third of its pages are missing, and political intrigue is preventing the Mossad (Israel's national intelligence agency) from tracking them down. Meanwhile, New York City police detective LeShana T. Thompkins is working a murder case tied to the Codex that leads to an investigation of Cardinal Arnold Josiah Ford, and, ultimately, catastrophe and religious epiphany. Despite the book's lively characters and many suspenseful twists and turns, readers will find that some plot points strain credulity. The story's conclusion%E2%80%94which is overly foreshadowed%E2%80%94and its aftermath contrast the futility of hate with the rewards of devotion and self-sacrifice. Winter's implication that a divine hand has been at work through the centuries provides a note of hope that gives the title resonance.