The spin in the publicity sheet accompanying the advanced reader’s copy of The Icon touted this work as being “in the tradition of the DaVinci Code.” After reading it I can’t help but think that perhaps it’s not always wise to invoke the name of a great work unless you’re prepared to be compared to it.

In 1944 Greece, as Nazis, Greeks and Communists converge in Epiros, an iconic painting of the Virgin Mary, one rumored to possess mystical healing powers, vanishes. Captain Elias and a fellow Greek guerilla called the Snake enter into a scheme to trade the icon to the Germans for arms and ammunition, but the night of the trade all goes awry and the Icon disappears. When it reappears in New York in the year 2000 many lives become entangled in a tale of murder, theft and intrigue.

Characters from the past, Captain Elias, the elderly ex-guerilla and ex-spy now known as Andreas Spyridis, and Fotis Dragoumis, formerly know as the Snake, Andreas’ life long friend whose desperation seeps from him like a slow sweat, join with those of the present, Matthew Spear, the young, naive grandson of Andreas, and Ana Kessler, granddaughter of a Nazi war criminal and heir to the Icon itself.

With Matthew’s help Ana sells the painting to the Greek Church but it never reaches its buyer and once again the search is on for the religious relic. This time however the cast of seekers includes South Americans and Russians as well as ghosts from the past. Vast myriads of characters suddenly appear, chasing crumbs from another time and another place as well as the present and the story oscillates between 1944 Greece and current day.

Matthew and Ana are caught up in the conniving goings-on, both finding themselves well over their heads in intrigue and devastated by the reality of the people around them who have hidden their true selves for their entire lives. These two young people are drawn together by their mutual attraction and trauma but the machinations surrounding the icon may be too much for the relationship to survive. Even the icon, an entity in and of itself, holds great secrets, some not revealed until well into the story. The intricately woven turns and twists thread themselves through to the entire end, right to the very last pages.

As a first work for literary agent Neil Olsen, The Icon is quite a fair showing; his characters, though perhaps a few too many, are real and compelling, his dialogue natural and appropriate and his imagery is artfully and skillfully done. The blend of art, religion and history gently introduces the layman to the subject. I would have actually preferred more of this, giving the reader a greater education and investment in the story.

The Icon is a suspenseful thriller, though many times the suspense emanates more from the author withholding information than the action itself. He teases us with little tidbits, enticing us to devour more, but eventually we are left with a rather bland, unmemorable taste in our mouths. We just don’t seem to care that much who finds the painting, the good guys or the bad guys or for that matter who is who. Perhaps if we new the secret it held earlier on in the story or if we were held breathless by miraculous works by the icon but unfortunately we are only told about its powers, never really shown. The book is a good piece of fun while stimulating mild interest in the world of iconoclasm but it doesn’t possess the page-turning suspense or belief altering depth of The DaVinci Code.

Reviewed by Donna Russo Morin
© May 2005