Book excerpt: The Iscariot is a novel about Judas Iscariot and his effort at regaining life. When he is successful and coming of age he faces the challenge of fi nding a priest of the Roman Catholic faith who must offer him absolution for his betrayal of Christ if he is to live past the age of 29. 29 is the age at which he supposedly took his own life. So begins the seduction of Beth Lyles and the released anger of Judas upon the woman Heather Cox. When a young girl she betrayed him by having an abortion and fl eeing an old ranch house. She and 4 other vagrant youths have been living in the abandoned home. She is currently a televangelist with a vast TV audience out of Dallas, Texas. The unsuspecting women must either bathe or drink from a water source Judas has died in and into which his blood has run. Through the centuries he has been able, on several occasions to gain a rebirth, but has not been able to fi nd a priest who will give him absolution for his betrayal of Christ. Will he be able to fi nd such a priest in Bodega Bay, California?