Temptation centers around a Jesuit priest tasked with evaluating clergy who must confront corruption in the Church, secrecy, and his unexpected romantic feelings. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?

My editor/wife, a non-Catholic, asked a question about celibacy in the priesthood. “Isn’t it a terrible struggle to not only be celibate but to remain so?” Many early priests and apostles were married; even St. Peter was married. Her second question: “Might celibacy be the cause of child molestation by Roman Catholic priests?” Recently, many revelations about child abuse have plagued the Church, and so I began to dig into some of the scandals. In Temptation, we deal with them in an informative and entertaining manner.

Alex is a priest, psychologist, and lawyer. Why did you choose to give him such a unique combination of roles?

Many Jesuits are lawyers and scholars. Their credo is: “Whoever desires to serve as a soldier of God…” To be this soldier, they are one of the most educated male orders of the Church with blind obedience to the Pope. Also, by giving my central figure – Alex – multiple roles, it moved the storyline more smoothly than if several priests were involved.

Why do you think stories about forbidden love continue to resonate with readers?

Because they are forbidden, hidden, and secret, these stories, if exposed, carry the stigmata of shame. Those in positions of respect are not invulnerable to temptation, especially if told that they are special sanctified individuals who should be above normal human frailties. Unfortunately, we are all human. Denying our humanity and cloistering ourselves into self-imposed exile from the human race provides a place where those with deviant behavior tend to concentrate. It is not to say that all priests are homosexuals, pedophiles, drugs addicts, or others of questionable character, but there is evidence that many such individuals seek the celibate life to fit into a behavioral category that isn’t the norm.

What is the next book you are working on, and when will it be available?

I’m working on A Cry For Help, a supernatural drama set in the psychiatric ward of a New York City hospital. It deals with a physician’s struggle to accept that there are behaviors outside the nice, neatly organized categories of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, where you take one from Column A and two from Column B to form a diagnosis. We hope to publish this book within the next few weeks. There are several other books which my editor is working on. I give her very little rest.

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