Father Sweet

By J.J. Martin

A shocking tale of secrets, guilt, and clerical child abuse.

“God has made you special, but I will show you how to have an extraordinary life. Show you true love, as God intended for our kind.”

It’s 1978. Blackburn Hamlet is a typical suburban village in eastern Ontario. In this vibrant Catholic community, life revolves around family and church. Then the safe comfort of both is destroyed by the arrival of a predator priest.

When charismatic Father Sweet invites his new favourite altar boy on a camping trip, the boy’s parents insist he go. Trapped in the woods, the boy struggles to evade the priest’s sexual advances. But Father Sweet forces him to make an impossible choice.

Twenty-five years later, he is lost, broken, and angry. His father’s death reveals secrets that spur the man to relive his own past. Desiring justice, in need of healing, he discovers, in a daring rescue mission, a way to achieve both.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Dundurn
• Release date: Jul 6, 2019
• ISBN: 9781459743977

J.J. Martin

J.J. Martin grew up Catholic in Ontario and pursued graduate studies in Anthropology of Religion at the University of Ottawa. His articles have appeared in multiple news outlets, including the Globe and Mail. He lives in Toronto.

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