Sixth Lamentation (Father Anselm 1) [Paperback]

William Brodrick (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 29, 2004 | Series: Father Anselm 1

What should you do if the world has turned against you? When Father Anselm is asked this question by an old man at Larkwood Priory, his response, to claim sanctuary, is to have greater resonance than he could ever have imagined. For that evening the old man returns, demanding the protection of the church. His name is Eduard Schwermann and he is wanted by the police as a suspected war criminal. With her life running out, Agnes Aubret feels it is time to unburden to her granddaughter Lucy the secrets she has been carrying for so long. Fifty years earlier, Agnes had been living in Occupied Paris, a member of a small group risking their lives to smuggle Jewish children to safety - until they were exposed by a young SS Officer: Eduard Schwermann. As Anselm attempts to uncover Schwermann's past, and as Lucy's search into her grandmother's history continues, their investigations dovetail to reveal a remarkable story.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Broderick's masterful first novel is characterized by the publisher as a "literary thriller," as though it needed that label to attract and galvanize buyers. But the book defies genre pigeonholing; it is simply storytelling at its finest. Amid the rush and tumble of a stirring plot, the author's eloquent prose brings power to the tangled and tragic history on which the story is based. After decades in hiding, Eduard Schwermann, a suspected Nazi war criminal, claims sanctuary at Larkwood Priory, a modern-day monastery in the English countryside. Ordered to investigate the 50-year-old mystery of Schwermann's crime, Father Anselm, an ex-lawyer turned monk, is soon immersed in the murky history of the Nazi occupation of Paris and the deportation of French Jews to the death camps. He researches the life of a heroic French resistance fighter and attempts to answer questions about treachery, both modern and historical. In a second narrative thread, the aging Agnes Embleton sees a wartime-era picture of Schwermann on television and is cast back to occupied Paris and her role in the Round Table, a group of students who attempted to rescue thousands of Jewish children. Agnes suffers from a degenerative ailment called motor neuron disease and depends on her 25-year-old granddaughter, Lucy, for physical assistance. Lucy has also become a repository of the aging woman's memories. Nothing is as it seems, and the truth is revealed layer by layer as the past gives up its secrets to the persistent Father Anselm and the devoted Lucy. Even in the smallest moments, Broderick's writing is beautiful: "They walked on, the light swiftly thinning, the mad swooping of distant birds suddenly ended, leaving the sky bare, unscored." The complex nature of the plot demands concentration, but the effort pays off handsomely as one is swept into this heartrending story.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

*Starred Review* This first-time novelist was an Augustinian friar before becoming a barrister; his chief protagonist, Father Anselm, was a barrister before becoming a monk. The two vocations offer fitting keys--logic and compassion--to unlock the doors of this labyrinthine tale. A suspected Nazi war criminal, Eduard Schwermann, asks for sanctuary at Anselm's home, Larkwood Priory. When the Vatican asks Anselm to investigate on its behalf, Anselm finds reason to suspect the church itself may have been complicit in Schwermann's long-ago escape to England. In nearby London, dying Holocaust survivor Agnes Aubret shares a secret with her granddaughter, Lucy: Agnes was part of a French Resistance ring broken by Schwermann. Schwermann's trial begins with both Anselm and Lucy still hurrying to make sense of the past. Sticky strands of deceit, loss, and betrayal bind together a large cast of characters, and untangling them is both difficult and painful. Though Brodrick builds tension slowly (he's better at foreshadowing than planting clues), he's mapped his plot masterfully, and his approach to the thorny issues of justice and punishment is thoughtful and complex. Keir Graff
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 448 pages
• Publisher: Little Brown P/B (April 29, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0751535818
• ISBN-13: 978-0751535815
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (38 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,150,782 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

60 of 71 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Close, but no cigar..., February 14, 2004

By 

Curtis Grindahl (San Anselmo, California USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The 6th Lamentation (Hardcover)

The suggestion by a reviewer appearing on the back cover that Mr. Brodrick might follow in the footsteps of his renowned countryman David Cornwall, known to lovers of spy fiction as John le Carre, prompted me to read this book. Immediately after finishing The 6th Lamentation, I began reading Absolute Friends, the latest book by Mr. le Carre. As an act of kindness I won't compare the efforts of these two authors.

I have great patience when reading but I have to admit feeling put off by the disjointed structure of this book. Movements of the main character, Father Anselm, at many points made no sense whatsoever. What appeared to be compelling leads for him to pursue were mysteriously set aside as we find the Father, once again, meandering through the grounds of his monastery conversing with various and sundry characters. The convolutions of the structure and the torpid pace of the inquiry by Father Anselm made it difficult for me to stay engaged with the story, which, in my opinion, is unnecessarily complex. It is also told in such a fragmentary way that it was difficult to hold the pieces together sufficiently to engage one's curiosity. I felt as though plot devices were set up intentionally to jerk me around, whether the fact of a primary character who is unable to talk or a significant finder of fact who stumbles at his table in a cafe and dies from the fall, or the abundance of people telling lies for reasons that escape me.

As a fan of historical fiction with a strong element of intrigue I really wanted to love this book but simply couldn't. Reading the autobiographical notes on the author I can appreciate how the various threads of this book came into being. His experience as a monk, attorney and son of a woman with a rare disease all managed to find expression in this piece of fiction. Perhaps next time, having exhausted the store of experiences of his lifetime up to this point, he will be able to sharpen his focus and bring us a story of greater subtlety that will engage and entertain us.

And now back to Absolute Friends...

(As a footnote I'll observe that people tend to rate most highly those reviews that are laudatory. I'm not certain whether this phenomenon is the product of folks who love the book in question and are offended that someone would think otherwise, or a belief that if you can't say something nice you should say nothing at all. I would like to believe that a well thought through assessment of a product, whether positive or less than positive, is of value to a prospective buyer of that product. But that's just one man's opinion...)

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Reward Your Patience, July 2, 2004

By 

Roderick Graciano "Walking Rodrigo" (TACOMA, WA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The 6th Lamentation (Hardcover)

Part historical fiction, part detective story, part courtroom drama, this Dickensian tale about the lives connected to a Nazi war criminal will reward your patience. The introductory chapters move slowly at first, but nothing is as it first appears. The intrigue builds to an amazing conclusion. This is a great story about relationships and the human condition. As bonuses, the story never becomes formulaic nor descends into vulgarity. I highly recommend it.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A NOTEWORTHY DEBUT AND READING, October 21, 2003

By 

Gail Cooke (TX, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Sixth Lamentation (Audio Cassette)

A former Augustinian friar, William Brodrick well knows the focus of his compelling and ultra literate first novel. Voice performer Graeme Malcolm, a veteran of the Broadway stage, also knows his oeuvre well, and delivers a moving, highly listenable reading.

When an elderly man comes to Father Anselm's door seeking sanctuary, the prelate welcomes him to Lakewood Priory. Little does he know or would he have cause to imagine that his visitor, Eduard Schwermann, is a suspected Nazi war criminal.

Elsewhere, Agnes Embleton has little of mortal life remaining. Thus, she shares a half century old secret with her granddaughter, Lucy. Some fifty years ago Agnes had lived in occupied Paris where she worked with an underground group dedicated to saving Jewish children. But, it was not long before her group was discovered by SS officer Eduard Schwermann.

Thus begins an intertwining mystery that will hold listeners in thrall. Father Anselm learns that the Church has sheltered Schwermann in the past. Further, it assisted him in escaping to Britain and safety in 1944. Why? How could this be?

In addition, Lucy finds herself exploring her grandmother's once hidden past, little knowing the stunning facts she will unearth.

"The 6th Lamentation" is a mystery and a morality tale - a noteworthy debut.

- Gail Cooke