Bristol House

The 1995 assassination of Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, Judaica possibly from Second Temple times, and a claimant to the papacy known as the Speckled Egg all figure in this predictable suspense novel from Swerling (City of Dreams). The Shalom Foundation has hired historian Annie Kendall, who has come to London from New York City, to run down reports that around 1535, “a man known as the Jew of Holborn uncovered a remarkable trove of ancient Judaica” in Jerusalem—and to try to locate this treasure. Soon after moving into lodgings at Bristol House near the British Museum, Annie begins seeing the ghost of a monk; to her amazement, she later discovers that the ghost is the spitting image of Geoff Harris, an investigative journalist she meets. Some readers may find it odd that Annie calls Geoff an Inspector Javert for still caring whether a sinister conspiracy arranged the killing of Rabin. Others may find aspects of the plot unintentionally funny. Agent: Michael Radulescu, Marly Rusoff Literary Agency. (Apr.)