Edward Rutherfurd is known for his sweeping epics that tell the history and growth of great cities through the lives of their citizens. After an italicized prelude, his new book, "Paris," begins like this:
The little boy was only three. A fair-haired, blue-eyed child. Some things he knew already. Others were still kept from him. And then there were the secrets.
Father Xavier gazed at him. How like his mother the child looked. Father Xavier was a priest, but he was in love with a woman, the mother of this child. He admitted his passion to himself, but his self-discipline was complete. No one would have guessed his love. As for the little boy, God surely had a plan for him.
Perhaps that he should be sacrificed.
