Pope Gregory XVII has spent a lifetime quietly serving the Church he loves-until he announces a prophecy so alarming that it threatens to tear the Vatican apart. Terrified, the Vatican cardinals imprison him in a monastery. Is he mad, as they believe, or is it all an elaborate plot? An old friend of the pope sets out on a risky quest to find out. On the way, he discovers the power of love and faith, while terrorists and politicians use every deadly and unholy means to stop him. The Clowns of God spent twenty-two weeks on the New York Times bestseller list, and is the second novel in Morris West's Vatican trilogy. 'West is a skillful storyteller who knows how to build suspense into every twist of the plot.' The Christian Science Monitor 'Few writers of bestselling fiction have brought to the popular novel such acute intelligence and ethical perception.' Peter Pierce, The Australian