What do you think?
Rate this book
Papal Justice #1
The Nicene Cipher
A RELIGIOUS DOCUMENT HIDDEN FOR AGES...
COULD DESTROY CHRISTIANITY FOREVER.
Ridley Shane is sent on behalf of American President Brandon Zimmer to help the pope unravel a conspiracy that not only threatens the Catholic Church, but serves to plunge the entire Christian world into chaos. Will Shane and his lost faith make it in time, or will The Hand Of Marcion expose their own alternate history as a stake in spirituality's heart? The truth AND organized religion hang in the balance.
Snag a copy of the exciting follow-up to C. G. Cooper's popular novel, PAPAL JUSTICE, and take the deep dive with the pope's warrior monks of The Brotherhood Of St. Longinus.
If you like Dan Brown's Robert Langdon, Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan, Lee Child's Jack Reacher, Vince Flynn's Mitch Rapp, and Robert Ludlum's Jason Bourne, you will love Ridley Shane.
C. G. Cooper continues to produce high-octane thrillers for his loyal fans. His novels have earned thousands of five-star reviews and has been downloaded millions of times to Kindles across the globe.
If you enjoy page-turning thrillers loaded with twists, brotherhood above all else, a staunch moral code and non-stop action, Cooper's novels are for you!
Readers are saying...
"Cooper got me hooked in the first chapter."
"One of the absolute best fiction books dealing with military fiction I have read in a very long time."
"I can't say that I have enjoyed any series as much as this one."
"Boy is it hard to work when a book is this good. Hard to go to sleep in time."
220 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 30, 2018
900 people are currently reading
68 people want to read
About the author
C.G. Cooper
87 books397 followersC. G. Cooper is the USA TODAY and AMAZON BESTSELLING author of the CORPS JUSTICE novels, several spinoffs and a growing number of stand-alone novels.
One of his novels, CHAIN OF COMMAND, won the 2020 James Webb Award presented by the Marine Heritage Foundation for its portrayal of the United States Marine Corps in fiction. Cooper doesn't chase awards, but this one was special.
Cooper grew up on a steady diet of Dungeons & Dragons and the travels of a Navy family.
Upon graduating from the University of Virginia with a degree in Foreign Affairs, Cooper was commissioned in the United States Marine Corps and went on to serve six years as an infantry officer. C. G. Cooper's final Marine duty station was in Nashville, Tennessee, where he fell in love with the laid-back lifestyle of Music City.
His first published novel, BACK TO WAR, came out of a desire to link back to his time in the Marine Corps. That novel, written as a side project, spawned many follow-on novels, several exciting spinoffs, and catapulted Cooper's career.
Cooper lives just south of Nashville with his wife, three children, and their German shorthaired pointer, Liberty, who's become a popular character in the Corps Justice novels.
One of his novels, CHAIN OF COMMAND, won the 2020 James Webb Award presented by the Marine Heritage Foundation for its portrayal of the United States Marine Corps in fiction. Cooper doesn't chase awards, but this one was special.
Cooper grew up on a steady diet of Dungeons & Dragons and the travels of a Navy family.
Upon graduating from the University of Virginia with a degree in Foreign Affairs, Cooper was commissioned in the United States Marine Corps and went on to serve six years as an infantry officer. C. G. Cooper's final Marine duty station was in Nashville, Tennessee, where he fell in love with the laid-back lifestyle of Music City.
His first published novel, BACK TO WAR, came out of a desire to link back to his time in the Marine Corps. That novel, written as a side project, spawned many follow-on novels, several exciting spinoffs, and catapulted Cooper's career.
Cooper lives just south of Nashville with his wife, three children, and their German shorthaired pointer, Liberty, who's become a popular character in the Corps Justice novels.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 44 reviews
June 27, 2018
Preposterous
This is a preposterous story with a ridiculous plot, silly characters and just badly written. C.G. Cooper is better than this.
This is a preposterous story with a ridiculous plot, silly characters and just badly written. C.G. Cooper is better than this.
October 15, 2019
Very disappointed with this book.
I would not recommend this book. The plot was weak, the story was disjointed and I couldn't wait to finish it.
I would not recommend this book. The plot was weak, the story was disjointed and I couldn't wait to finish it.
June 7, 2018
A bit slow
A but slow at times but overall a good read. I would recommend this book to other people to enjoy
A but slow at times but overall a good read. I would recommend this book to other people to enjoy
September 12, 2018
I've been trying to find a good fiction book to read. There's a lot of trash out there. Jack Ryan wanna bes Almost like the smut paperbacks. Pushing them out about as fast as they can print them. This is not that.
It's actually interesting because the way it's written keeps you guessing. G.C. Cooper keeps you guessing from page one and doesn't stop until the end of the book. The crazy thing is that I was never lost but I found myself rooting for every character. Cooper makes it a point to create a world in which the characters live and get into their lives. I'd equate it to a movie. Escaping into another world for a few hours. A word of caution. C.G. Cooper is a former Marine and writes like one. He's an excellent writes but the world he creates is not for the faint of heart. This is not a book I'd read to your kids. It gets pretty brutal at times. That said, I'm still looking forward to reading the rest of his stuff.
It's actually interesting because the way it's written keeps you guessing. G.C. Cooper keeps you guessing from page one and doesn't stop until the end of the book. The crazy thing is that I was never lost but I found myself rooting for every character. Cooper makes it a point to create a world in which the characters live and get into their lives. I'd equate it to a movie. Escaping into another world for a few hours. A word of caution. C.G. Cooper is a former Marine and writes like one. He's an excellent writes but the world he creates is not for the faint of heart. This is not a book I'd read to your kids. It gets pretty brutal at times. That said, I'm still looking forward to reading the rest of his stuff.
May 3, 2018
The Nicene Cipher is the first book in the Papal Justice series. If you have read the author's Papal Justice book (part of the Corps Justice series), you will have met The Brotherhood who are prominent characters in this book. While it is part of a series, the book can be read as a standalone though it is clear by the ending that there is more adventure to happen. There is violence.
The book blurb adequately describes the storyline so I'm not going to repeat that all of that info here. The author did a great job of describing the political scene, both in the Vatican and in various countries, as well as the lengths some will go to in their quest for power. As usual in a C.G. Cooper book, The Nicene Cipher contains many clues, surprises, twists, and turns. It definitely kept me riveted and I could not put it down.
I can't wait to read the next book in the new series!
The book blurb adequately describes the storyline so I'm not going to repeat that all of that info here. The author did a great job of describing the political scene, both in the Vatican and in various countries, as well as the lengths some will go to in their quest for power. As usual in a C.G. Cooper book, The Nicene Cipher contains many clues, surprises, twists, and turns. It definitely kept me riveted and I could not put it down.
I can't wait to read the next book in the new series!
June 9, 2018
A Call to service
Ridley thought as a youth that he was called to the priesthood--and then he met her. They were married and had a baby. Then she and their son were killed by a drunk driver. He fell into the bottle. One night he left a bar and ended up lying in a doorway crying. A visiting priest found him and took him home with him. That priest later became the Pope. Ridley joined th e CIA and in line with his career, the president sent him to the Vatican to assist the Pope. A group is trying to kill the Pope and put their own man in his place and destroy the church as it is known. Lots of twists and turns. This I s a really good thriller.
Ridley thought as a youth that he was called to the priesthood--and then he met her. They were married and had a baby. Then she and their son were killed by a drunk driver. He fell into the bottle. One night he left a bar and ended up lying in a doorway crying. A visiting priest found him and took him home with him. That priest later became the Pope. Ridley joined th e CIA and in line with his career, the president sent him to the Vatican to assist the Pope. A group is trying to kill the Pope and put their own man in his place and destroy the church as it is known. Lots of twists and turns. This I s a really good thriller.
June 19, 2018
The Nicene Cipher. C. G. Cooper
A document, an historical relic that completely undermines the Catholic church. Is it fact or fiction? A group of cardinals lead by a former priest will stop at nothing to undermine the church. Murder, nothing will stand in their way. Ridley shane has been sent by POTUS to help undermine and stop this threat.He is assisted by the Popes personal bodyguards, protectors extremely well trained like Ridley. This is an excellent read!! Extremely fast paced. Enjoyed immensely!
A document, an historical relic that completely undermines the Catholic church. Is it fact or fiction? A group of cardinals lead by a former priest will stop at nothing to undermine the church. Murder, nothing will stand in their way. Ridley shane has been sent by POTUS to help undermine and stop this threat.He is assisted by the Popes personal bodyguards, protectors extremely well trained like Ridley. This is an excellent read!! Extremely fast paced. Enjoyed immensely!
June 25, 2018
I picked this up and started reading just to see if I would want to keep going or maybe wait until I had completed the other books I had already started. 64 pages later, I paused. The storyline is very intriguing, and even though this claims to be #1 in a series, there is much backstory, and I believe this is a continuation of characters from another of the author's series (which I have not read, so cannot comment on). The story is told with sharp writing, and keeps the reader interested, that is for sure.
I finished this story in quick time. It was that engrossing.
My only compliants: The story was too short, I would have preferred to have more of the history told, especially regarding the titular subject matter. The Marcian aspect could have been explored/explained further. And the ending seemed rushed, a very tense moment ended very quickly...but that played out naturally as well.
All in all, a great story to read, and what looks like an excellent beginning to a new series, which I will eagerly await the second.
Well done, Mr Cooper.
I finished this story in quick time. It was that engrossing.
My only compliants: The story was too short, I would have preferred to have more of the history told, especially regarding the titular subject matter. The Marcian aspect could have been explored/explained further. And the ending seemed rushed, a very tense moment ended very quickly...but that played out naturally as well.
All in all, a great story to read, and what looks like an excellent beginning to a new series, which I will eagerly await the second.
Well done, Mr Cooper.
Read
September 27, 2019Good and Evil
Betrayal, raw emotion, the struggle of faith vs. religion... this book touches on all of it. The underbelly of human hubris is ever present. Although, Mr Cooper hooked me once again, this story was not as obsessive a read as usual for me. Ridley did not seem as lost or self loathing as Daniel Briggs was which is fine. Different characters. Ridley seems more distrusting but a little more vulnerable. I am looking forward to the next book in this series to see how Ridley's character evolves.
Betrayal, raw emotion, the struggle of faith vs. religion... this book touches on all of it. The underbelly of human hubris is ever present. Although, Mr Cooper hooked me once again, this story was not as obsessive a read as usual for me. Ridley did not seem as lost or self loathing as Daniel Briggs was which is fine. Different characters. Ridley seems more distrusting but a little more vulnerable. I am looking forward to the next book in this series to see how Ridley's character evolves.
May 13, 2018
'The Nicene Cipher' is a great start to a new series. I've loved Mr. Cooper's writing style from the first book I read of his, 'Back to War'. He did not disappoint with this story line. Ridley is a complex man. He's driven, has an interesting moral code and isn't afraid to fight. He fights for what he believes and I think that will make for an intriguing series. A great add to your tbr list. I look forward to reading more.
September 22, 2018
Non-stop Intrigue
Many times spinoffs do not work. That being said, C.G. Cooper has proven this not to be the case in his works of excellence.
The Niceness Cipher ( Papal Justice Book 1) conclusion leaves this reader anxiously awaiting the next in the series. This novel has heart and depth of characters and plot.
Read it and become an observant participant of the tale as it unfolds.
Many times spinoffs do not work. That being said, C.G. Cooper has proven this not to be the case in his works of excellence.
The Niceness Cipher ( Papal Justice Book 1) conclusion leaves this reader anxiously awaiting the next in the series. This novel has heart and depth of characters and plot.
Read it and become an observant participant of the tale as it unfolds.
May 7, 2018
Another brilliant book from C.G Cooper!
An interesting take on an ancient artifact story, with a very different kind of hero at the centre of it all. As always with C.G.'s books, a fast paced story, good plot, relateable new characters as well as a couple familiar faces popping in and out. Highly recommend - and all of C.G.'s other thriller books.
An interesting take on an ancient artifact story, with a very different kind of hero at the centre of it all. As always with C.G.'s books, a fast paced story, good plot, relateable new characters as well as a couple familiar faces popping in and out. Highly recommend - and all of C.G.'s other thriller books.
May 28, 2018
Clean writing, war on The Church
I really enjoyed this religion based thriller. Ridley, main character, and the Monks are amazing multitalented men of faith. That’s refreshing. There’s some humor too. Enjoyable start to finish. New author for me, will definitely read more of his works.
I really enjoyed this religion based thriller. Ridley, main character, and the Monks are amazing multitalented men of faith. That’s refreshing. There’s some humor too. Enjoyable start to finish. New author for me, will definitely read more of his works.
June 3, 2018
The Nicene Cipher
Another good novel byC.G.Cooper. I’ve read so many and have enjoyed each and every one of them. This one was totally different from the others and well done. I began this morning and just finished with a two hour break to watch the finish of The “Golden Bear’s” golf tournament. Thanks Coop !!!
Another good novel byC.G.Cooper. I’ve read so many and have enjoyed each and every one of them. This one was totally different from the others and well done. I began this morning and just finished with a two hour break to watch the finish of The “Golden Bear’s” golf tournament. Thanks Coop !!!
May 15, 2018
Pope on fleek!
Shane Ridley, Cia, troubled offshoot of the Jefferson group, lapsed Catholic. In Italy with a hot girl as a helper/ nemesis. Throw in a psycho evangelical meat packing evil messiah, the Pope and the Brothers of Laugantis. What a fun story.
Shane Ridley, Cia, troubled offshoot of the Jefferson group, lapsed Catholic. In Italy with a hot girl as a helper/ nemesis. Throw in a psycho evangelical meat packing evil messiah, the Pope and the Brothers of Laugantis. What a fun story.
May 30, 2018
Amazing
I have read everything out by C. G. Cooper and every book is amazing. Always well written with characters that you are drawn to. Ridley is an amazing addition to the cast of characters. I look forward to reading more.
I have read everything out by C. G. Cooper and every book is amazing. Always well written with characters that you are drawn to. Ridley is an amazing addition to the cast of characters. I look forward to reading more.
May 31, 2018
I think I have read this story before...?
I have forgotten this character while reading most of his other Corps Justice stories. I found this one to be a great introduction back to Daniel Briggs! Keep reading!!!
I have forgotten this character while reading most of his other Corps Justice stories. I found this one to be a great introduction back to Daniel Briggs! Keep reading!!!
June 3, 2018
All books GOOD by Author
Enjoy!!! You get connected by reading this Authors work. Books flow seamlessly. Truly enjoyable. Fun and exciting. I know I will be sad when I have read all of his series!!!
Enjoy!!! You get connected by reading this Authors work. Books flow seamlessly. Truly enjoyable. Fun and exciting. I know I will be sad when I have read all of his series!!!
September 6, 2018
Interesting characters and plot
Not an entirely new premise, yet the characters are interesting and the dry humour seems plausible. I am curious to see if the young lady recovers and becomes part of the team
Not an entirely new premise, yet the characters are interesting and the dry humour seems plausible. I am curious to see if the young lady recovers and becomes part of the team
May 28, 2019
Wonderful story about justice
Wonderful story about Papal justice system for sinners who try to destroy what is good in this world. With the help of President and CIA and the monk Pope is able to foil the plan for evil. Read on for more details.
Wonderful story about Papal justice system for sinners who try to destroy what is good in this world. With the help of President and CIA and the monk Pope is able to foil the plan for evil. Read on for more details.
October 26, 2019
Nice Read
This is a surprising departure from Cooper's previous novels with nice tie ins to the other charts in the other books. The Davinci overtones were much appreciated though this is much better than the Fan Brian novels.
This is a surprising departure from Cooper's previous novels with nice tie ins to the other charts in the other books. The Davinci overtones were much appreciated though this is much better than the Fan Brian novels.
January 8, 2020
Fantastic
Your God is who or what you believe it is, within your heart...
This work of fiction is an excellent example of truth as seen through another's eyes.
I highly recommend this exciting story...Looking forward to reading the next book of this series....
Your God is who or what you believe it is, within your heart...
This work of fiction is an excellent example of truth as seen through another's eyes.
I highly recommend this exciting story...Looking forward to reading the next book of this series....
January 8, 2020
Not my cup of tea
This may have been a better read for a Catholic. Since I am a Christian who is anti religion I wasn't impressed. My view is Jesus plus Nothing. No rituals no mandatory sacraments. Just Jesus and Him resurrected.
This may have been a better read for a Catholic. Since I am a Christian who is anti religion I wasn't impressed. My view is Jesus plus Nothing. No rituals no mandatory sacraments. Just Jesus and Him resurrected.
February 1, 2020
I find it very confusing and slow to engage at the start. Then I read some of the more critical reviews and decided why?, why bother, I read to enjoy not slough through. With a little over 20%read I’ll give it a 2
July 6, 2020
Fascinating in its spiritualism
I have always enjoyed C G Cooper's style and background research in his stories. This one bright out some strong spiritual references that help me see things I wouldn't have seen...
Whether or not we ask, He is there.
I have always enjoyed C G Cooper's style and background research in his stories. This one bright out some strong spiritual references that help me see things I wouldn't have seen...
Whether or not we ask, He is there.
December 25, 2020
A new beginning
This book was a great read for me. It is a little different than corps justice but Stoll provided a relationship through mentioning several characters I.e. cal, Daniel, and the president. I hope there's more to come.
This book was a great read for me. It is a little different than corps justice but Stoll provided a relationship through mentioning several characters I.e. cal, Daniel, and the president. I hope there's more to come.
May 10, 2018
Good Story!
Good Story, if you like a good religious/action story you will certainly enjoy this one. And of coarse this Author always writes a good story.
Good Story, if you like a good religious/action story you will certainly enjoy this one. And of coarse this Author always writes a good story.
May 12, 2018
Excellent combination of action, philosophy, and depth of character. Could have developed theVatican soldiers a bit more but excellent development of Quinn. Over all a great read.
May 13, 2018
The Nicene Cipher
An exciting well written story. No way to be disappointed with Shane, the Pope or the President. Look forward to other books about this young man.
An exciting well written story. No way to be disappointed with Shane, the Pope or the President. Look forward to other books about this young man.
May 17, 2018
Good book. Mr. Cooper takes you on an adventurous journey intertwined with the Vatican and Gnostic villains.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 44 reviews