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Epiphany Kindle Edition

by Nickolae Gerstner (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

4.4 8 ratings

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Philip Rockcastle discovers that an unimaginable crime paved the way for him to become a priest. Now pastor of a neighborhood church, is he doing what he was meant to do or is his life a mistake?

He feels responsible when his counseling efforts drive a mentally troubled parishioner to seek validation for fantasies by making a bogus confession to a murder. Troubled, he visits Tara, a divorced mother of two young boys. The visit is innocent. He is not in love with her. He tells himself that frequently.

When a mysterious young girl finally tells him her name, Philip is too shocked to believe, too hopeful to discredit.

The young girl and Philip's niece scheme to catch the actual murderer, but he catches them. For once in his life, Philip has no time to reflect. He must act.

Epiphany delivers an intriguing plot with snappy dialogue and unforgettable characters whose efforts combine to solve a murder. More important, Philip solves the dilemma of his life.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Nickolae Gerstner (Nicki Baker) served as staff writer for the Los Angeles County Office of Education and began her freelance career writing magazine and newspaper pieces.

Her first book was an historical novel, No Bed In Deseret. After listening to Mary Higgins Clark give the keynote address at a writers' conference, she became intrigued with the mystery genre and launched a mystery writing career. Her mystery novels have been translated into many languages and Finders Keepers, coauthored with Barbara Pronin, was included in a Reader's Digest Anthology. Two of her books, Finders Keepers and Dark Veil, have been optioned for film.

A native Chicagoan, she is a graduate of the University of Illinois, Urbana campus. She and her husband, John, divide their time between homes in California and New York. Their traveling companion is a Siamese cat named Pippin.

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B01923FJLA
Publication date ‏ : ‎ December 6, 2015
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 2775 KB
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
Print length ‏ : ‎ 323 pages

Customer Reviews:
4.4 8 ratings

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Kindle Customer

A good read!

Reviewed in the United States on February 28, 2016

Verified Purchase

An enjoyable book, with surprising twists. Fr. Rockcastle is no Fr. Dowling, so be prepared!

Helpful

Upstate New York Reader

Steady, Intense, and Suspenseful

Reviewed in the United States on February 23, 2016

The Father Rockcastle is asked to stand up for two teens, one delusional, the other innocent, who have been arrested for murder. His brother is a lawyer. An unknown daughter arrives at his door. And a parishioner with two young sons catches the pastor’s eye. And what could have become a mishmash of disconnected stories arrives as a thoughtful, engaging novel that keeps the reader interested from beginning to end.

The book revolves around the involvement of the various characters’ attempts to connect with each other and to find the murderer of an unidentified man. Each has a piece of the puzzle. And with the help of a future Supreme Court Justice, it was the daughter and her cousin that complete the puzzle. The question becomes, can they finish the puzzle without losing their lives in the process.

The combination of politics, law, faith, relationships, and justice, will draw many into this book. I hope that the presence of a Catholic Priest will not dissuade the Protestant or non-religious reader from picking up this exciting and readable thriller. Though the book is not religious; it does have a distinct taste of grace - regardless of how hurt one may be. Thus, the book may draw readers from many directions to its pages. The book is worth the five stars I have awarded it.
______________
This review is based on a free electronic copy provided by the publisher for the purpose of creating this review. The opinions expressed are my own.

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

Heidi G.(readinggrrl)

Pretty good mystery

Reviewed in the United States on February 7, 2016

The mystery is pretty good and the identity of the perpetrator is hidden until slightly before the end. At first Philip is invested in trying to free the people he feels are being wrongly prosecuted for a murder but when he discovers his long lost daughter his priorities start shifting. While his interest in the case starts to wane his nieces doesn't and the budding wanna be detective starts digging into the case. Typical of any teenager she makes blunders along the way leaving her and her cousin in danger.

This book is a quick read and while I don't think I loved it as much as many reviewers on amazon, I did find it entertaining. I am no a fan of the cover.

Helpful

Christyk

A murder mystery, love story, and drama all rolled into one. It's a roller-coaster ride with lots of moving parts, so buckle in!

Reviewed in the United States on December 30, 2015

Epiphany by Nickolae Gerstner.

Father Rockcastle, a priest in Chicago, worries that his efforts to force reality on a delusional parishioner may have driven him to murder. But, is he really a murderer, or is this a twisted cry for attention? He attempts to elicit help from his brother, a lawyer, but inadvertently peaks the curiosity of his reckless niece. The priest is stunned when a mysterious girl, who claims to be his daughter, shows up in his prayer group. He asks his brother to allow her to stay at his home, which leads to a hare-brained scheme by the girls to investigate the murder. These issues overlap with the conflicted feelings he has developed for a divorced woman that he councils. Several sub-plots soon emerge: Is Dominique his long-lost daughter, or is she an imposter? Did the group loudmouth see the real murderer or is he just trying to disrupt the investigation? Will Father Rockcastle act on his feelings for Tara?

I don’t usually read mysteries, but Epiphany was graciously provided as an advance reader copy by NetGalley, so I decided to give it a whirl. I’m glad I did. Overall, I found Epiphany a great story and the writing clearly showed that Ms. Gerstner has a talent for mystery. I loved the sense of humor Ms. Gerstner infused into her characters.

The main characters, Father Rockcastle, Dominique, and Charlene were well developed; they were likable and reacted to situations in a way you would expect (for the most part).

I liked the character of Father Rockcastle the most because I felt he was just the right mix of flawed and pious. His interest in Tara seems authentic, but creates a genuine dilemma for him. He had left the church years earlier to marry, but his wife died tragically and he is legitimately afraid to make that choice again. When Dominique shows up and claims to be the daughter he thought had died with his wife, he wants to believe, but he also questions what this would mean for his priesthood.

I was a little conflicted about Dominique. While she was forced to care for her disabled mother and never went to school, she has the nerve to pick up and run away to a big city immediately after her death with no resources and nowhere to go. Ok, kids are often fearless, but then she turns into this super-timid sidekick when Charlene starts getting too bold. This creates a little bit of disconnect, and there was really no effort to explain the sea change in her personality.

Charlene, the niece, is part spoiled rich kid and part amateur-detective-in-training. She frequently proves more adept than the police and the private investigator hired by her father, but she made her share of dim-witted moves. I didn’t dislike her, but felt that her antics often overtook the story.

There were many, many supporting characters, but none that I felt invested in. They aren’t deep enough, in my mind, to be memorable, but then I suppose their only real function is to enable the main characters to interact with the story.

I thought this was a great story and had a strong set of main characters. Each chapter had so many twists and turns that it was hard to put down. I confess to a little bit of difficulty staying invested in the supporting characters, mostly because there were just so many. They served their purpose, said their lines, and then exited stage right. Maybe that’s what supporting characters do. They seemed to clutter the story from time to time, but it may be that the mystery genre requires so many walk-ons to fill in gaps. My only real grumble about the book was that once Charlene and Dominique team up, their exploits seem to become the focal point to the story. I was left with a nagging suspicion that this was a test run for some Nancy Drew style series, with the intrepid Charlene haranguing her reluctant sidekick into investigating one mystery after the next. I admit to a strong dislike of the serial book business formula. When I read a story, I want the story to end. I have no real objection to a character showing up in a new book, but it has to feel organic and not contrived. I understand the fiscal logic involved in guaranteeing an audience that will outlive you, but it borders on exploitive to me. I truly hope this isn’t the direction Ms. Gerstner is going in.

One final thing to note: the editing in this book is excellent. I saw very few grammatical or spelling errors, even though it was a self-published book. The continuity was a little hard to judge because it is such an intricate story. On the whole, I saw no glaring discrepancies.

In summary, this a great book with an exciting plot. While I thought the character of Charlene occasionally hijacked the story, Ms. Gerstner provided enough twists and turns to keep you plastered to your seat. If you like murder mysteries, Epiphany is well worth your time.

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

E. Marshall

Get this book!

Reviewed in the United States on January 23, 2016

Wonderful. I was right there every minute!

Helpful

Ruth

A page-turner with a fresh twist

Reviewed in the United States on February 6, 2016

This book has a lot going for it, and a lot going on. There's mystery, suspense, romance, and a compelling story that will keep you reading past your bedtime. Others have outlined the basic plot, so I will simply say that if you like a good story, well-written and edited, with interesting characters, a little romance but no graphic sex scenes, and enjoy being surprised by plot twists, this is an excellent choice. Religion plays a role, as the main character is a Catholic priest, but this is not a reilgious book and certainly not preachy--it's what so many of us are looking for: an entertaining and satisfying read.

Helpful

Rhonda Lomazow

Started to read the book and couldn't put it down ...

Reviewed in the United States on January 23, 2016

Started to read the book and couldn't put it down.A mystery with twists&turns add to that a sense of humor and for me a real page turner.