Death of an Angel: A Sister Mary Helen Mystery [Hardcover]

Sister Carol Anne O'Marie (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 15, 1996

When Sister Mary Helen heeds an inner calling, it leads her straight to a killer.

It is a rainy Feast of All Souls and feisty Sister Mary Helen, the Bay City's famous crime-fighting nun, has nothing more on her mind than helping Angelica Bowers, the troubled young woman who works in the library of Mount St. Francis College. Unfortunately, her plans are shattered when dear Gemma Burke, one of her oldest friends, becomes the latest victim of a serial rapist-murderer.

Sister Mary Helen realizes that the San Francisco police, despite their furious protests, need a little divine intervention-so she and her sidekick, Sister Eileen, set off after Gemma's killer. But little do the devout detectives know that they are walking into an intricate web of evil woven by a cold-blooded killer...

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

If you haven't yet had the pleasure of meeting the crime-solving Sister Mary Helen and her feisty sidekick Sister Eileen, Death of an Angel is a good place to start. Deceptive gentleness masks a fierce strength, which Sister Mary Helen no doubt inherits from her creator, Sister Carol Anne O'Marie, who runs a shelter for homeless women in Oakland, California when she's not giving religious mysteries a good name. This time out, the sleuthing sisters get involved in the search for a serial rapist/murderer when he strikes very close to home. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly

O'Marie's maturity as a mystery writer blossoms in this seventh appearance of Sister Mary Helen (Death Goes on Retreat, 1994, etc.). Mount St. Francis College in San Francisco is home to the sprightly senior citizen and Sister Eileen, her friend and sometime sleuthing companion. The peaceful atmosphere is shattered, however, when a wealthy college benefactor, Gemma Burke, becomes the latest victim of a serial rapist-murderer. Over the protests of Inspector Dennis Gallagher, the two nuns determine to find the killer. O'Marie deftly braids three plot strands as she leads readers toward an inevitable conclusion. Gallagher's partner, Kate Murphy, waits anxiously at the hospital as her husband, Jack, a sex crimes detective, lies comatose after being shot by the rapist. Angelica Bowers, miserable and overweight librarian at the college, plots to escape from her overbearing bedridden mother. And Tilllie Greenwood, overprotective and lonely, nurses a secret fear that her grown son, Elvis, could be the rapist. Against an oppressive backdrop of continuous rain, Angelica and Elvis, each the product of an abusive mother, are propelled toward an explosive finale. Relying less on the charm of Mary Helen and Eileen than in previous outings, O'Marie delivers compelling characters and sophisticated plotting in her best effort to date.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Minotaur Books; 1st edition (December 15, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312151071
• ISBN-13: 978-0312151072
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #414,805 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Sister, what happened?, July 7, 2000

By 

Neil Stewart - See all my reviews

This review is from: Death of an Angel: A Sister Mary Helen Mystery (Sister Mary Helen Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)

I have read all but one of Sister's mystery books. I find them light-hearted and fun reading. Also, believe it or not, the author manages to insert some theology in there too. This is something I appreciate since I am a Catholic school religion teacher. Sr. Mary Helen is a pleasant, quaint character and so is her cohort, Sr. Eileen. This book is a fun read also, but it does seem to present a prejudice against the plump. The author has definitely taken a creative leap here compared with her other books and it really did pay off. The ending is very dramatic and fresh, but the author's and, sadly, society's disdain for the hefty of humanity shines through more than was intended. C'mon Sister you can do better than that!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not one of her best, June 5, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Death of an Angel: A Sister Mary Helen Mystery (Sister Mary Helen Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)

Expecting a special treat, I set aside time to read this new (to me) book from Carol Anne O'Marie. This one had no real "mystery" and the Sisters fell into the solution.

I usually reccommend her books to several people, instead I did to one person who, also, was not impressed. It's a shame, I am hoping that next one I try is more to the style that I've become accustomed to expect. Do NOT pick this as you first one to try.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Death of an Angel, April 1, 2001

By 

thomas brawley (Tewksbury, ma United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Death of an Angel: A Sister Mary Helen Mystery (Hardcover)

I have read a few of Sister Carol Ann O'Marie's books in the past, and I was hooked. They are quick reads that have great interesting story lines. It is on the line of a "Murder She Wrote.

This book,"Death of an Angel" was very enjoyable. The ending was a little far fetched, but over all I enjoyed it.

I want to buy all her books, I'm sure they are all enjoyable. Great for a before bedtime read or on a rainy afternoon. Tom