The first chapter of Marsello’s book is set in Iraq at the beginning of 2005. A small squad of United States Army soldiers, led by Captain Greer, has been dispatched to recover a metal box from the estate of a family named al-Kallis. The mission is successful, but not without considerable cost. Two members of the group, including their native guide, are killed and Greer sustains a debilitating injury to his left leg which will require extensive therapy.

The time and place shift to present day Los Angeles where Beth Cox is a curator of the Getty Museum. Her husband, Carter, is a paleontologist working in the La Brea Tar Pits. Beth is excited to learn that Mr. al-Kalli, the owner of an ancient book entitled The Beasts of Eden is considering employing the museum to translate the volume which is in Latin. The text has been hand written by a scribe which, in itself. is intriguing to Beth because the handwriting is unique and difficult to decipher. Mr. al-Kalli is willing to pay top dollar, but only if the translation can be completed in a short period of time. Beth is eager to get the job not only because it is such a rare and unusual volume, but it will undoubtedly be beneficial to her career to be involved in such a high profile operation.

Mr. al-Kalli arranges an extravagant dinner to which both Beth and Carter are invited. Both husband and wife assume that they have been invited because of Beth’s expertise in rare manuscripts, but at the dinner, al-Kalli shows a decided interest in getting Carter alone for a private conversation. He discloses to Carter that he would like to employ him as a consultant, but will give him no more specific information than that. He asks that Carter join him for a meeting at his exclusive Bel Air estate and that he tell no one, even his wife about the meeting. Carter reluctantly agrees. He had always confided in Beth, but al-Kalli is adamant about absolute secrecy, and had told Carter just enough to make the offer irresistible to him.

Bestiary is an ambitious novel. Mr. Marsello has introduced elements which should appeal to diverse audiences. The concept of the illuminated text from ancient times should appeal to bibliophiles and art aficionados. The fantasy element present in the concept of a bestiary should appeal to those readers of speculative fiction, and the presence of characters such as Captain Greer should appeal to those readers of thrillers and adventure novels. Unfortunately, the scope of the novel is so wide that adequate treatment to each aspect has not been given. Although the novel is approximately 450 pages long, none of the topics are explored in any depth. The focus of each chapter is on one of these topics, but there is no unifying theme except through al-Kalli who is an enigmatic character whose personality is not clearly defined.

There are several unresolved or confusing issues which come up during the course of the novel. Carter and Beth have an infant son Joey. There is something quite strange about this baby. The author pointedly refers to the boy’s manner which is imperturbable. Great chaos can be occurring around Joey, yet he kicks his feet and smiles. This is not normal behavior for most babies, so we expect some explanation, but none is ever given. The Coxes also have a Golden Retriever. The dog is a pet, without any special training, yet he plays a significant role in finding a lost object. It’s hard to believe this behavior from a pet dog. Carter is a trained paleontologist, a college professor who has no specific penchant for remembering people. Yet he can recognize and place a man whom he has only casually encountered once.

To be fair to Mr. Marsello, there are elements of a several good novels within the pages of this book. There are just so many of them that none are developed adequately, leaving the reader dissatisfied.

--Andy Plonka