I read Hitler's Pope, and found it rather inconclusive relative to the hype. The Odessa book I cited gives a fair amount of detail, set in a real world context. If you are interested in that history, I'd recommend it to you.
BTW, I have no preconceptions in this field whatsoever. War is hell.
Your link is an article that basically rehashes Hitler's Pope. What book and author are you talking about?
You are absolutely right, war is hell.