Stained Glass (Father Dowling Mysteries) [Hardcover]

Ralph McInerny (Author)

Book Description

Series: Father Dowling Mysteries | Publication Date: October 13, 2009

Tough times and the unsolved murders of anyone with ties to the Deveres---a family of wealthy parish patrons---back Father Dowling up against a wall in his struggle to save his church from the chopping block.

With too many churches and not enough people to fill them, the Archdiocese has to make some cuts, and many of them, including the proposed closing of St. Hilary’s, are dangerously close to the bone. Father Dowling rushes to drum up support from church officials and parishioners, including the Deveres, who don’t want to see the stained glass windows they donated go anywhere other than the church they were meant for, but they can hardly be of help when those closest to them start turning up dead.

Church politics, long-kept family secrets, and a determined killer come together to put St. Hilary’s---a church that countless characters and devoted readers have come to love---and its parishioners in peril in Stained Glass, the latest in Ralph McInerny’s treasured mystery series.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Isolated by demographic changes, St. Hilary's of Fox River, Ill., struggles for its very survival in McInerny's timely 28th novel to feature Father Dowling (after 2008's Ash Wednesday). When the archdiocese decides to close half a dozen parishes, including Father Dowling's, the congregation of St. Hilary's joins the priest in a campaign to prevent the action. Meanwhile, the discovery of a nude female body hanging from the cross strut of a garage door points to a ritual killing. More murders follow. The police, local reporters and Father Dowling get on a trail that comes dangerously close to the Devere family, longtime church benefactors who donated the magnificent Menotti stained-glass windows to St. Hilary's. The outcome will surprise even the most astute reader. Series fans will enjoy catching up with old friends, while everyone will find much to savor in the fresh and challenging plot. (Oct.)
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Review

Praise for Ralph McInerny’s Father Dowling Mysteries

“Father Dowling’s twenty-seventh gently probes questions of guilt, intention, and absolution while having a bit of fun with small-town nattering.”
---Kirkus Reviews on Ash Wednesday

“In his usual gentle, thoughtful way, Father Dowling makes compassionate decisions. . . . Readers who long for a down-to-earth story of ordinary people and events will be well rewarded.”
---Publishers Weekly on Ash Wednesday

“This series continues to deliver, with a fascinating protagonist, intelligent plotting, and dry humor.”
---Booklist on The Widow’s Mate

“Father Dowling is not the average priest. . . .  He has been through the mill himself, is tough, yet has compassion.”
---The New York Times Book Review

“You don’t have to go to church to worship mystery lovers’ esteemed Father Dowling.”
---Entertainment Weekly

 

“Mystery at its bloodless, cerebral best . . . Dowling is the perfect father confessor, dealing with moral dilemmas and the weakness of man with compassion and understanding.”
---The Chicago Tribune

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Minotaur Books; First Edition edition (October 13, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312582641
• ISBN-13: 978-0312582647
• Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 6.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,252,850 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Filled with Sub-Plots and Secondary Characters, October 27, 2009

By 

Linda Faulkner (Massachusetts) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Stained Glass (Father Dowling Mysteries) (Hardcover)

Father Dowling returns in this series to head the cast of characters whose lives revolve around St. Hilary's, a Roman Catholic church in the small town of Rox River, Illinois. While he copes with rumors that St. Hilary's will be closed by the Bishop--not to mention the shenanigans of his anxious parishioners, Father Dowling is peripherally involved in the investigation of a young woman's murder.

McInerney's characterization of the Church and its inner workings is right on the money, which lends a credibility to the story that I enjoyed. He also has a dry sense of humor that makes some of his dialogue and narrative unexpectedly humorous.

The book is populated with numerous sub-plots and secondary characters and, unfortunately, I found myself more drawn to some of them than I was to the plight of Father Dowling and St. Hilary's. I also found the book's format of successive short scenes frustrating: each scene involved different characters and, just as I became absorbed, the scene ended and we switched to another set of characters. Some of the best scenes in the book, however, involved Agnes and Cy, the detectives investigating the murder. The twists and turns in that sub-plot were excellent.

Although I kept hoping to be more drawn to the characters and engaged by the author's writing style, I did enjoy the book.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Last Father Dowling, June 3, 2010

By 

David A. Heskin (Brielle, NJ) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Stained Glass (Father Dowling Mysteries) (Hardcover)

Ralph McInerny died this winter so this is most likely the last Father Dowling mystery. Suffice it to say that right up to the end, McInerny never lost his touch for story-telling. A good final read!

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars the best Father Dowling mystery in several years, October 17, 2009

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Stained Glass (Father Dowling Mysteries) (Hardcover)

The Archdiocese decides to close down several parishes whose congregation has diminished. Among them is St. Hilary's of Fox River, Illinois. The priest Father Dowling understands the economics behind the decision, but worries for his flock. The St. Hilary's members and Father Dowling hope (and pray) they can save their church and begin an effort to do so, the "Save St. Hilary's movement.

A nude female body is found hanging from the cross strut of a garage door. The police believe a ritual perhaps satanic homicide occurred. As the cops, reporters Tetzel and Rebecca and Father Dowling investigate they find a link to the divided Devere family. The nonagenarian matriarch Jane has used trust fund money to hire an author to write a book on Menotti's church art to include a stained glass window provided to St. Hilary's by her family; other Devere kin are outraged by her generosity, which apparently surfaces with more murders occurring.

This is the best Father Dowling mystery in several years as the amateur sleuth struggles with the impact of the economy most likely closing his church and the homicides that seem tied to the one of the deadly sins, avarice. The story line is intelligent although Father Dowling follows his usual method to solving felonies, but the back stories of the impact of the economy and the changing demographics of Fox River provide a terrific fresh look at St. Hilary's and the church surviving in a modern world.

Harriet Klausner