The Vatican Series by Morris L. West

The pope has died, and the corridors of the Vatican hum with intrigue as cardinals from all over the world gather to choose his successor. Suddenly, the election is concluded - with a surprise result. The new pope is the youngest cardinal of all - and a Russian... moreThe pope has died, and the corridors of the Vatican hum with intrigue as cardinals from all over the world gather to choose his successor. Suddenly, the election is concluded - with a surprise result. The new pope is the youngest cardinal of all - and a Russian. Shoes of the Fisherman slowly unravels the heartwarming and profound story of Kiril Lakota, a cardinal who reluctantly steps out from behind the Iron Curtain to lead the Catholic Church and to grapple with the many issues facing the contemporary world. less

Pope Gregory XVII claims to have received a private revelation of the end of the world--an apocalypse coming not in some distant future but at any moment. Is he a madman--as his cardinals suspect--a mystic, or a fanatic grasping for an unholy power?