JUPITER'S BONES

LAPD lieutenant Peter Decker and his wife, Rina, make their 11th appearance in this gritty thriller about a murderous religious cult. Decker becomes suspicious about the secretive Order of the Rings of God while investigating the death of cult guru Father Jupiter, a.k.a. Dr. Emil Euler Ganz, an award-winning astrophysicist who had disappeared 25 years ago before resurfacing as the Order's charismatic leader. Decker combines detective work with family life, juggling kids and stepkids with earthy hearth goddess Rina, whose strict adherence to Orthodox Judaism contrasts nicely with the Order's mass psychosis. The result is a well-tangled web of intrigue and murder, with Rina's Stepford Wife-like devotion the only mystery left unsolved. B+