The Death of an Irish Sinner: A Peter McGarr Mystery (Peter McGarr Mysteries) [Mass Market Paperback]

Bartholomew Gill (Author)

Book Description

Series: Peter McGarr Mysteries | Publication Date: March 5, 2002

Local benefactress and celebrated biographer Mary-Jo Stanton is a supplicant to death -- left lifeless on her knees in a patch of daffodils, a barbaric religious implement wrapped tightly around her neck. A clergyman has approached Peter McGarr, requesting that the Chief Superintendent quietly investigate this outrage that occurred at Barbastro, the slain grand lady's compoundlike Dublin estate. Murder is McGarr's business, but this one might be his undoing, as it draws him ever-closer to Opus Dei. A secret order of religious zealots devoted to enforcing the Lord's edicts no matter what the cost in money -- or human life -- it has ensnared the dedicated policeman in its lethal web. And now its madness is reaching out across a century to touch the place Peter McGarr is most vulnerable: the precious heart of his own adored family.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

HChief Superintendent Peter McGarr of the Dublin Police has faced great dangers in 14 previous novels in this fine procedural series (The Death of an Irish Lover, etc.), but never has the danger come from so many directions and embraced so many of those closest to him. The murder of author Mary-Jo Stanton, one of Catholic organization Opus Dei's most important supporters and at the same time a great threat to its secrets, drops McGarr and associates into a nest of vipers. As depicted here, Opus Dei is powerful, secretive and ruthlessly determined to protect its interests. Among its members are highly placed clergy, wealthy and powerful politicians, and trained killers. Its enemies, which include crusading journalist Dery Parmalee, are equally determined to expose its secrets. A phone call from Father Fred Duggan rousts McGarr from his in-laws' home and brings him to Barbastro, the mansion/fortress home of Mary-Jo, where she was killed. Attempts are made to co-opt McGarr and failing that to misdirect him, even by threatening the lives and livelihoods of his family and colleagues. As the doughty Irish policeman explores the tangled lives of the inhabitants of Barbastro, the action turns deadly, driving McGarr to the point where revenge may overrule professionalism. Written with the depth of characterization and subtlety of plot that readers have come to expect from Gill, this is a not-to-be-missed addition to a not-to-be-missed series. (June 1)Forecast: Portraying the real Catholic organization Opus Dei in a sinister light is a bold and controversial move on Gill's part, but one that could result in higher than usual sales.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Dublin's Chief Superintendent Peter McGarr struggles to solve the murder of a famous biographer. His investigation uncovers a powerful secret Catholic organization and subsequent personal threats. Another well-written police procedural from the author of The Death of an Irish Tinker.
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Avon; Reprint edition (March 5, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0380808641
• ISBN-13: 978-0380808649
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,028,250 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another engrossing mystery featuring Dublin's Insp. McGarr, June 8, 2001

By 

J. obrien (Louisville, Ky., Kentucky USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Death of an Irish Sinner: A Peter McGarr Mystery (Peter McGarr Mysteries) (Hardcover)

Those readers who have followed Chief Superintendent Peter McGarr Of the Dublin police and his fascinating wife Noreen will find this book to be another good read - lovely Irish settings, familiar characters from the police force and incredibly evil killers, determined to keep their secrets at all costs. The ending of this book is a real shocker! This series is just wonderful, you can't stop until you have read them all.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Last McGarr, July 23, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: The Death of an Irish Sinner: A Peter McGarr Mystery (Peter McGarr Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)

With the untimely death of Mark McGarrity (pen name, Bartholomew Gill) this is, unfortunately, the last McGarr.

Fortunately, it was one of his best.

This is certainly the darkest of the McGarr series. The characters are ageing, and all not gracefully; their foibles and weaknesses laid bare in sharp focus. McGarr wonders if he has held on too long, if the price he has paid now too dear.

The murder of a wealthy religious biographer, and member of the Catholic secret society Opus Dei, begins a whirlwind plot that embroils all of the characters. Not much of a "who-dun-it", why and how the more fascinating questions.

The end of the book is a shock for all long-time followers of the head of Dublin's "Murder Squad."

The book has a nearly palpable sense of mortality that resonates even more given McGarrity/Gill's accidental death...

Ah, lad, we'll miss ya!

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Opus Dei, ad gloriam dei, January 16, 2002

By 

lvkleydorff - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Death of an Irish Sinner: A Peter McGarr Mystery (Peter McGarr Mysteries) (Hardcover)

The author hits on Opus Dei. He hits so hard that one might think that he wants to settle a score. After all, Opus Dei is the major order in today's Roman Catholic church, having supplanted the Jesuits. And its founder, Josemaria Escriva de Balaguer, will be pronounced to be a saint of the church any day now. While I am familiar with some of the tenets Mr. Gill mentions, others have to be taken on faith or as exaggerations.

The book, as a mystery, has a tendency to move slowly and in convoluted ways. Every one of the main characters could be the culprit, and the process of elimination is none too swift. But, if you are interested in learning about Opus Dei, then this book is an easy to read introduction.