The Canary List

Prolific novelist Brouwer (Broken Angel) sweeps up readers in this fast-paced thriller of demon possession, genetic mutations, and Vatican intrigue. Twelve-year-old Jamie Piper has been bounced around foster homes, tracked by a mysterious but tangible "evil" that has left her shaking with hate. When Jamie arrives on the doorstep of her teacher Crockett Grey, she draws him into a web of lies that lands him in jail for possession of child pornography. But is Jamie a dangerous preteen psychopath or a pawn in an international power play? Why has her psychiatrist sent her DNA sample to be reviewed for abnormalities? And why is a powerful Roman cardinal tracing the genealogy of women who were burned as witches in the Middle Ages? Setting the story in both Southern California and the hills of Rome, Brouwer's demon fighters battle their ancient foe within modern urban landscapes. Rather than the Christian moral struggle central to some other Brouwer novels, he exploits a less than fresh anti-Vatican theme to the hilt. Nonetheless, his fans will love this breakneck drama, eager to learn exactly who is on "the canary list" and why. (June)