New York

WHEN Karen Hall published her debut novel Dark Debts 20 years ago, it seemed like the start of a blockbuster literary career. Hall, a veteran TV writer who had worked on hits like M*A*S*H and Hill Street Blues, had the commercial storytelling chops. She spent five years working on the novel, a pulpy theological thriller about a Roman Catholic priest who becomes mixed up with demonic forces.

Dark Debts was an instant success when Random House published it in 1996, with a 150,000-copy print run. Paramount optioned the film rights. Fans hounded her for a sequel, and Hall's publisher and agent urged her to write another novel to capitalise on the momentum. "I can only hope that Ms Hall will read these reviews, and will provide her readers with another work of fiction," a reader pleaded in a 2001 Amazon review.