The Vatican 1978: a little-known Cardinal from Venice is elected to succeed Pope Paul VI, who quickly shows himself to be the liberal the reactionaries within the Catholic Church most feared. Just thirty-three days later, he is dead. No official investigation is conducted, no autopsy is performed, and the Vatican's press release about the cause of death is later found to be, in large part, false. And just the evening before his death, John Paul had warned three of his most influential but hostile Cardinals that they would be replaced.

An incisive new thriller, The Last Confession tracks the dramatic tensions, crises of faith and political maneuverings inside the Vatican surrounding the death of the man known as 'the Smiling Pope'. Only Cardinal Benelli (David Suchet) has the power to challenge the dead Pope's enemies.