Unholy Fire [Hardcover]

Whitley Strieber (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 1992

When a young woman Father John Rafferty has been counseling is murdered in his Greenwich Village church, the good Father is plagued by public scorn, private doubt, and by an ancient evil lurking in the church. By the author of Billy. 50,000 first printing.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The plot of this tale of satanic possession is an unholy mix of the moronic and the divine. Strieber ( Communion ; Wolfen ) endows his demon with a chilling omnipotence, the personality of the Joker from Batman and a fondness for the flammable. His humans pale by comparison. Old Father John Rafferty finds the gasoline-soaked body of parishioner Maria Julien in the sacristy of his Greenwich Village church. The police think that Father John and Maria were very close but John knows that his young curate, Frank Bayley, had succumbed more fully to Maria's sexual powers. Kitty Pearson, a lapsed Catholic NYPD lieutenant, suspects Father John of sex and cover-up violence until more bodies turn up toasted. She and the pastor barely escape immolation when they come too close to the truth. John is pressured to hand over his church to Father Frank but ends up confronting the menace in the nave by himself. Weak and whining priests, unsympathetic victims and often idiotic dialogue give the demon the best role by default and lead to a roaring but confusing and dissatisfying resolution. $100,000 ad/promo; Literary Guild selection; author tour.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews

Of all the predators that have stalked Strieber's bestselling horror (Billy, Communion, etc.), none match for sheer exuberant evil the dark star of this resonant novel--a rip-roaring, fire- snorting demon infesting the soul of a Greenwich Village priest. But which priest harbors the demon? Kindly old John Rafferty, beloved pastor of Mary and Joseph church? His young assistant, Frank Bayley? Or ancient Tom Zimmer, mute for five years? A routine question, that, to drive the fast-moving plot, but one fueled by issues of faith and corruption--beginning with the enthralling opening chapters, which find Father John's vow of celibacy teetering under the seductive push of lovely young parishioner Maria Julien. Succumbing to Maria's kisses, John goes to her apartment...and the story leaps hours ahead, with Maria crowing ``The cherry is pitted'' to--Fr. Frank. He too, it seems, is under Maria's spell--and that of her leathers and whips. But that night, a vile, capering, nonsense-spewing entity--seen here, as throughout, in artful half-light--strangles Maria in the church. And over the next days, several more die gruesome deaths--two burned alive--even as the media uncover John's affection for Maria, and as the Holy See, shuddering at the scandal, puts Frank in John's place as pastor. In the meantime, a winsome female cop investigates the killings--and is attacked by the demon in her apartment--while old Fr. Tom shambles about in the wee hours. One priest is roasted, a second is unmasked, and a third must pit his shaky faith against the gibbering demon in an extended showdown that jumps and gyrates with evil energy. Any novel of demonic possession must bear comparison to The Exorcist--and Strieber's holds its own, with brilliantly realized characters, fascinating Church intrigue, and plenty of prose- dazzle, if not quite the shock and slam that made the Blatty so unforgettable. -- Copyright ©1991, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 336 pages
• Publisher: Dutton Adult (March 1, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0525934154
• ISBN-13: 978-0525934158
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 2.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,391,563 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars SENSELESS EVIL, April 21, 2004

By 

Theresa Welsh "The Seeker" (Ferndale, Michigan, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Unholy Fire (Signet) (Paperback)

I've always admired Whitley Streiber's talent with words, and he succeeds in creating an atmosphere of evil in this novel, but the plot just doesn't hang together. I found the character Maria puzzling and wondered if we'd learn more about why she seduces priests, but unless I missed something, we never do. The action moves on to the three priests and the two detectives and we never find out what Maria did with that leather cape, or why she screwed the young priest but loved the old priest.

Then there's the matter of the horrible acts, the cruel burning of the victims. Are we to assume that the seduction had something to do with invoking the evil presence responsible for these acts, or was Maria, like Mary, pure and good?

I got to the end of the book and felt unsatisfied. I realized I had no idea why any of the evil deeds happened. The tidbits thrown in about the Inquisition and the obsession with fire were interesting, and we even get a priest who was abused (by a bishop!) as a child, but there seemed to be no concept behind the story. What is the lesson we are suposed to get from reading this? Or were we just supposed to enjoy the terror?

I've read all of Streiber's alien contact books which are compelling and beautifully-written, but after reading this novel I see why some people think he is simply a nut case.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not Free SF Reader, September 24, 2007

By 

Blue Tyson "- Research Finished" (Legion clubhouse) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Unholy Fire (Hardcover)

A couple of detectives have a very difficult and horrifying puzzle to

solve. They have to work out which of several bodies a demon is

inhabiting. First, you have to work out how to tell, and then how to

prove it. Not to mention what do you actually do it about it when you

find it.

Lots of corruption of priests abounds here, fairly amusing some of it.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not my favorite Strieber, but not THAT bad., July 24, 2002

By 

Chadwick H. Saxelid "Bookworm" (Concord, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Unholy Fire (Signet) (Paperback)

Considering its subject matter (sexual tempting of priests and hypocrisy in the Church) Whitley Strieber's Unholy Fire seems ripe for republication, and even riper for serious rereading. Those familiar with the genre will easily see who the possessed party is, but it's the necessity (and abuse) of faith rather than the standard horror elements that really drive the plot. Recommended.