Military Chaplain-turned-Detective Frank Calhoun works in the city of Chicago and is called to the scene of a double-homicide of a rookie cop and a real-estate agent. While the entire Chicago police force is eager to catch the murderer, the rookie’s brother is well-known on the streets, making public image a bit trickier than usual. Blue Religion by Alverne Ball follows Frank as he attempts to solve murders and navigate the politics of law enforcement in Chicago’s neighborhoods, while battling his own PTSD from past traumatic events.

Blue Religion is technically a sequel to Only the Holy Remain, but readers will be fine if they choose to skip the first one. Basically it is our first introduction to Frank Calhoun and we learn that the aforementioned traumatic events involve the murder of his former partner, Blue, at the hands of his father, also a former cop and now incarcerated for the crime. Since he was the one who discovered the scene, and his personal attachment to both of those involved, Frank is on suspension and required to go to therapy to work through his trauma. We also meet those important to Frank and those he would rather not be involved with at all.

Blue Religion takes place a year after the events of the first book. Frank is in a relationship with a single mom of two kids, still has an estranged relationship with his incarcerated father, but is back on duty with Chicago law enforcement and has a new partner, Detective Fred Lions. Frank’s past continues to influence his actions while on the case to find the person (or persons) responsible for killing a cop and his companion. While two witnesses seemingly name the culprit, something doesn’t seem right to Frank, so he continues to step on toes and piss people off in order to get to the truth. 

When I read Only the Holy Remain, I wasn’t crazy about the book. Frank Calhoun is definitely an interesting character, but the storytelling was off – it seemed like something better suited for a series of short stories, rather than a novel. During my conversation with the author, he revealed that it actually started as a short story that he was encouraged to develop into something bigger – however, he didn’t have all the resources he hoped for when publishing his first novel (i.e. it was published without going through any rounds of copyedits, no PR, etc.). Knowing this now, it’s easy to see why Blue Religion was such an improvement – and I’m glad it was, because I’m a sucker for a good crime thriller.

In Blue Religion, Frank seems to have gotten his anger issues and PTSD under control, and Ball keeps the story a bit tighter (when compared to OTHR). Plus, the who-dun-it wasn’t as obvious in this one either (although mystery-savvy readers may have easily figured it out again). Overall, I look forward to future Frank Calhoun stories, as I see Ball’s talent for storytelling and his potential with the right resources. Plus, he’s published several graphic novels, so it’s safe to assume he’ll continue to improve as he continues to release more work.

Alverne Ball joins our growing list of guests on our Cantina Conversation episodes of The Nerd Cantina Show podcast. We talk about his experiences with publishing both Frank Calhoun stories, what inspired him to create a character who was in the military in a religious capacity and became a detective, and other projects on his to-do list. Keep an ear out for the interview and pre-order Blue Religion, available October 12.