Wash of Bones: A Father Terhune Novel of Exorcism

Exorcist Case Terhune is back in Rome, still reeling from finding his murdered wife among the risen dead of Hearken, Oklahoma. The Devil couldn’t control Lily for long and Terhune’s assignment was a success, with the dead quieted and the Devil in retreat. Terhune has buried his wife twice but his love for her has never been stronger. The widower priest won’t have much time to rest though. The dead are stirring in Siberia and Terhune prepares to go there. But on the eve of Terhune’s new assignment, the Devil has a new cruelty in mind. An exorcism tape in Terhune’s possession suddenly includes an allegation that his wife was unfaithful to him. The tape and the accusing voice authenticated by experts and dated to the 1960s – almost two decades before Terhune or his wife were born. Now the priest is forced to consider that his marriage may have been flawed – that his beloved Lily had been unhappy with him. He becomes deeply driven to understand and know the truth. He hires his old friend, Detective Dan Scores, to find his dead wife’s lover – if he exists. The priest arrives in Siberia under cover of a sainthood investigation as polar night descends on an icebound city of polluted air and short lifespans. The Devil is there practicing his profane resurrections in a land where religious persecution and forced labor camps are still within living memory. Widower-priest Terhune is not in best form. He is troubled and physically tired, beset by visual hallucinations, nightmares and pinprick sensations which he attributes to the Devil. On top of that, his rapport with a Russian woman threatens his heartfelt vow of celibacy. Before the sun comes back, Terhune must battle his own demons as well as those afflicting the residents of a grim apartment house built by forced labor and haunted by a brutal past. Can Terhune’s love for Lily endure if there had been another man? Can he stay true to the vows made to wife and God, quiet the risen dead and drive the Devil back to Hell? "Wash of Bones" is the second novel featuring priest exorcist, Case Terhune. "Hearken Unto Me" is the first and "Devil's Chance" is the third.

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