Despite the intriguing name, the Grim Reaper himself doesn’t feature in the book. It is the story based on the real biography of the Archbishop John-Baptiste Lamy and sheds light at his mid-to-later age and his legacy. The protagonist of the story, John Latour repeats the steps of his real-life counterpart, though maybe in a little bit more heroic way. John Latour leaves France to travel to America, which is already quite crazy for a middle-aged and respected man from the Church. But he also becomes a hero there, fighting the local corrupt church authorities, establishing the values of Catholicism and finally starting the construction of a marvelous cathedral. So, when Death does come for the Archbishop, he has a lot to report before moving on.

The bright and vivid depiction of the Archbishop travelling to - and across all the America riding a mule, meeting the local people and trying to understand their customs and culture which seem unusual and weird for him wins our heart from the first chapters. Latour himself is no less fascinated with the marvelous sceneries of his new country and dedicates the rest of his life to making it better. His later years look like a Christian western - he befriends a powerful Navajo chief, nearly gets himself killed by the bandits and does a lot of awesome stuff that earns him lots of respect from the locals. No wonder that such an Archbishop, as the representative of Catholic Church is much easier to trust to than the arrogant and self-righteous authorities who normally rule churches in America.

The story skillfully combines humorous and serious things, shifting from the philosophical and religious work to the full-fledged adventure novel and then back. The author managed to create a book that shows us what religion can be when it comes from one’s heart and inner desire to make the life of others better, without “holier than thou” approach. We sincerely hope that Death came for the Archbishop just to greet him with the retirement, praise his awesome work and escort him straight to Heaven.

Author: Ralph Boyd