Frank Molloy, an expatriate and a former priest, returns to Ireland to the village of Davinkill. It is the town where he grew up, the town that decades earlier sent him out into the world as a newly ordained priest, the town that was scandalized when he left the priesthood–and the Church–and the town where his own brother has long since disowned him.

Eddie Keegan, Frank's childhood friend, remained in Davinkill–and in the priesthood. But Father Keegan looks down on his congregation, experiencing feelings of revulsion as he serves them communion. And in his haunted memory, a ghastly crime has festered for years.

In Davinkill, social sanctity hides a lie. But now, past and present must meet and confront one another.

ISCARIOT takes place in Ireland in the early 1990s, at a time when the Irish church held far greater power than it would hold two decades later. It was a time before the Celtic Tiger, a time before the clerical abuse scandals came to light, a time when most Catholics went to Sunday mass, a time before divorce was permitted in Ireland, a time before birth control was available for over-the-counter purchase. The Irish monetary system was the punt, or pound; the euro had not yet been adopted.


From the Reviews
"This is a novel about religion, families, sex, guilt and joy–with a "whodunnit" narrative that keeps you reading to the last page…Iscariot promises suspense, darkness and redemption–it delivers."
–Cork Examiner

"Tom Phelan's second novel leaves us in no doubt about his talent as a keen…observer of humanity…Tom Phelan’s world is tempered with a warm, forgiving humanity."
–Sunday Tribune

"Tom Phelan’s impressive second novel is sometimes moving…always gripping." –An Phoblacht

"An outstanding novel reflecting the human realities of priestly celibacy today." –Leinster Express

About the Author
Tom Phelan was born and reared on a small farm in Mountmellick, County Laois, in the Irish midlands. He attended St. Patrick’s in Carlow, was ordained a priest, and worked for several years in the south of England. Later he moved to the United States, earned a master’s degree from Seattle University, and left the priesthood. He now lives in New York.
Tom had just turned fifty when his first novel, In the Season of the Daisies, was accepted for publication by Lilliput Press in Dublin. Books Ireland’s reviewer wrote, “The most obvious question posed by a novelistic debut with as much resounding vigour as this is: Where has Mr. Phelan BEEN?”
In the Season of the Daisies, which centers on the 1921 IRA murder of a young boy and the effects on the survivors, was chosen for the Discover Great New Writers series sponsored by Barnes & Noble. It was also a finalist for the Discover Great New Writers Award.
Since then, Tom has penned five other novels: Nailer, The Canal Bridge, Iscariot, Derrycloney, and the forthcoming Lies, and he has seen his works published in four countries and three languages. He has also written for Newsday, the Irish Echo, Independent.ie, Connect, and the Recorder, the journal of the American Irish Historical Society. He was named a 2008-2009 Fellow of the Christopher Isherwood Foundation based on his novel The Canal Bridge.
Tom has given readings and talks at the West Cork Literary Festival, King’s Lynn Fiction Festival, Hofstra University Summer Writers Conference, Irish Writers Centre, American Irish Historical Society, New York University Ireland House, the Irish Cultural Society, the Irish Family History Society, Villanova University, Molloy College, and scores of other venues.
He has been awarded writer’s residencies at the Tyrone Guthrie Centre in Co. Monaghan, the Heinrich Böll Cottage in Co. Mayo, and Cill Rialaig in Co. Kerry. He was the Fall 2012 Ireland Fund of Monaco writer-in-residence at the Princess Grace Irish Library in Monaco.
For more information, see www.tomphelan.net and facebook.com/tomphelannovels.

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