It’s known as the Protective Management Unit. It’s a closed society within a closed society, housing Florida state inmates who wouldn’t survive in open population at Potter Correctional Institution. In it, John Jordan witnesses the most baffling crime of his career—a seemingly impossible murder he would swear could not have happened had he not seen it with his own eyes.

John has come to the PM unit because of a note he received announcing a murder would take place during the Catholic Mass. As he observes the priest offering up the body and the blood, an inmate enters the unit, walks over to his cell, and is locked inside alone. A little while later, John notices a pool of blood spreading out from beneath the cell door. The inmate is dead, his body and his blood separated from one another.

The inmate, a talented artist and quite possibly an innocent man, was sensitive and kind, just a few short days from parole. Who would want to kill him and why? Before John can answer these questions, he’s got to figure out how he was killed.
Suspects abound, including the Catholic Priest conducting the mass, the two PM officers, the victim’s sister, who visited him just prior to his death—something she hadn’t done in four years—and a handful of inmates, one of whom was the victim’s lover.

As the investigation proceeds, John uncovers crime after crime, and an openly racists family with plenty they aren’t open about. After taking a closer look at them, John’s best friend, Merrill Monroe, disappears.

Attempting to balance his fragile reconciliation with his ex-wife and the high-stakes investigation, John is soon overwhelmed and wonders if the life he’s hoped for is even possible. Just when he think’s he can’t take anymore, a second disappearance brings with it the demand for a dangerous prison break and a daring exchange. When John finally figures out how the crime was committed and who’s behind it, an exciting climax follows that reveals the shocking solution, sees someone close to John shot, and carries for John the ultimate personal price—one he’s not sure he can pay.

--Reviews--

"Michael Lister may be the author of the most unique series running in mystery fiction. The Body and the Blood proves that once again. It crackles with tension and authenticity." Michael Connelly

"Eerie and cinematic, The Body and The Blood is a classic whodunit with thoroughly modern sensibilities.  John Jordan manages to be deeply flawed yet utterly appealing.  Lister, with his gift for exploring the nuances of human relationships, creates a vivid and multi-faceted supporting cast, each character finely-wrought, each portrayal unflinching.  Suspenseful, complex and original, The Body and The Blood is a page-turner with a soul." Lisa Miscione, author of Smoke

"John Jordan is not Father Dowling. Open The Body and The Blood and enter a whole other world." James O. Born, author of Shockwave

"Michael Lister writes one of the most ambitious and unusual crime fiction series going. The Body and the Blood is a terrific locked-room mystery wrapped in clerical garb that is merely the sheep's clothing disguising the wolf---an exploration of what it means to be locked in an institutional pressure-cooker. In his unique voice, Lister examines human beings' responses to a fundamentally inhuman situation.  Not for the faint of heart, it's Heart of Darkness meets The Shawshank Redemption. Read this book and see what crime fiction is capable of." Julia Spencer-Fleming, award-winning author of To Darkness and to Death

"How much does a prison change a man? From its epigrammatic opening line to its shattering conclusion, The Body and The Blood takes us on a fascinating and fast-paced journey -- inside a prison world where everyone's innocent and everyone's set up -- and inside the conflicted heart of a man trying to walk the line between his faith and justice. Chaplain John Jordan is one of crime fiction's most original heroes, and his creator, Michael Lister is one of the genre's freshest new voices." PJ Parrish, Edgar and Shamus nominated author of the Louis Kincaid series

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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