By Matthew Galgani
A thought-provoking thriller inspired by the works of C.S. Lewis and the life of the stigmata St. Gemma.
Doubting Nikki
A Tale of Faith and Delusion
On Sale in May!
Believing or not believing doesn't change the truth.
When Cami’s grandmother entrusts him with a sacred secret, he is sure it is nothing more than the delusions of a dying woman. But when a skiing accident puts his wife Nikki in a coma, that secret becomes his only hope of saving her. Yet at what cost to his sanity — and hers?
Soon, a national tabloid, two controversial religious leaders, an unscrupulous Hollywood producer — and a string of inexplicable medical phenomena — unleash a media firestorm that engulfs everyone involved and gets Cami killed. Or so it would seem.
Only a deep dive into delusion or a questionable leap of faith offers any hope of salvation for Nikki, now in doubt of everything, even life and death.
Behind the Book
The idea for Doubting Nikki comes from family lore that says we are related to St. Gemma Galgani (1878-1903), a stigmata who displayed the wounds of Christ on the cross.
Replacing St. Gemma with the fictitious St. Caterina, the stigmata narrative plays an integral role in the novel.
Another inspiration was a chance encounter with Walter Hooper (1931-2020), writer, editor and personal secretary for C.S. Lewis.
While a student at the St. Ignatius Institute within the University of San Francisco, I got the chance to study abroad at Oxford. The very first night I went to visit The Eagle and Child pub, where Lewis and good friend J.R.R. Tolkien used to hang out with the Inklings literary club, I met Mr. Hooper.
In the days that followed, he very graciously introduced me to the Oxford C.S. Lewis Society and showed me around Magdalen College, Merton College and other old haunts of Lewis and Tolkien.
That was decades ago now, but it's a memory I will always treasure. Already a big fan of Lewis and Tolkien when I first met Walter Hooper (I did an independent study on the Christian themes inside The Lord of the Rings), the time spent with him cemented my love of the works of both men. Lewis's books like Mere Christianity, The Screwtape Letters, Surprised by Joy and Miracles helped inspire underlying themes within Doubting Nikki.