Buy this title

White Smoke

By Nick Brucker

A page-turning high-concept heist thriller set among a group of duplicitous conmen and thieves who are determined to steal the Vatican’s most remarkable treasures.

Details

Adult fiction
Published: 27/05/2027
ISBN number: 9781806176083
Price: £16.99
Imprint: Zaffre
Edition: Hardback
Genre: Thriller

White Smoke

By Nick Brucker

Buy this title

Pre-order the hardback

Details

Adult fiction
Published: 27/05/2027
ISBN number: 9781806176083
Price: £16.99
Imprint: Zaffre
Edition: Hardback
Genre: Thriller

A page-turning high-concept heist thriller set among a group of duplicitous conmen and thieves who are determined to steal the Vatican’s most remarkable treasures.

When ageing conman Nikola Camilleri is hired to rob the Vatican, he thinks it’s the perfect final score. Funded by the mysterious criminal mastermind Dante, Nikola assembles a team of old cons and new, and starts to lay the groundwork for the heist of a lifetime. The plan: break into both the Vatican Secret Archives and the Treasury of St Peter’s Basilica, and walk out with enough priceless items to keep them living in luxury forever. But as the pieces fall into place, Nikola suspects that the elusive Dante might have something more than theft on his mind.

Then the Pope dies – suddenly, unexpectedly-and the Catholic world is plunged into mourning. Hundreds of Cardinals, their associated security and staff, and millions of tourists descend on the city-state as the Vatican enters conclave.

Undeterred, the team push ahead, hoping to use the chaos to slip between the gaps. They impersonate clergy, steal ancient keys, and sneak through old smuggling tunnels that haven’t seen human tread since the Renaissance.

But Nikola doesn’t know that Dante has no intention of letting anyone escape.

That the heist is just the beginning.

That the real target isn’t treasure – it’s the very institution of the Papacy itself.

Read an exclusive extract

Journey to The Vatican

Authors

Nick Brucker

Nick Brucker is the crime-writing pseudonym of bestselling speculative fiction author Nicholas Binge. In 2023, his breakout novel Ascension was a New York Times Editor’s Choice Pick, finalist for the Goodreads’ Choice Awards and Ignotus Award, and named a ‘best book of the year’ by Vulture, Goodreads, The LA Times, and The Sunday Times. His sophomore novel, Dissolution, was hailed as one of the best thrillers of 2025 by The New York Times and other leading outlets, and was followed swiftly by the critically acclaimed novellas Extremity and Abyss. His crime debut, White Smoke, is set to release May 2027. His work has been, or is being, translated into over twenty-five languages and several of his novels are in active development for either film or TV. Notably, Dissolution is being adapted into a major motion picture by Sony Pictures, with Oscar-nominated screenwriter Eric Heisserer (Arrival, Birdbox) penning the script, and White Smoke is being adapted into a prestige TV series by A24, with Benedict Cumberbatch starring in the lead. Ascension and Extremity are also in active development for film and TV, respectively. Binge has lived across Asia and Europe – from Singapore to Switzerland to Hong Kong -before settling in the UK. Beyond fiction, he has written for The Guardian, Literary Hub, and other leading outlets, and is a regular speaker at book festivals across Scotland and the UK.