From Publishers Weekly
The radical changes set in motion in the 1960s by the Second Vatican Council continue to reverberate in the Roman Catholic Church and the lives of its adherentsAincluding Father Robert Koesler, in his 21st novel (after The Greatest Evil). Retired but by no means inactive, the Detroit priest, now in his 70s, retains an active interest in his former parish of St. Joseph's. At the behest of Bishop Patrick McNiff, Father Koesler has taken up residence at St. Joseph Major Seminary to help out. An aging priesthood, closed or much smaller seminaries, "folk" masses, an increasingly conservative seminary faculty, female seminary students and the desire of some of them to become priestsAthese are a few of the issues Kienzle explores as he shows how the friction among seminary students and faculty build up to murder. Kienzle's grasp and detailing of church problems is impressive. Well-conceived charactersAsuch as Patty Donnelly, a young woman determined to be a priest; Andrea Zawalich, another woman confident she can become a priest in all but name; and Bill Cody, a zealot determined to make his only son a priestAadd depth to the conflicts. And the structure of the book is unusual: in a prologue, Koesler is meditating by a coffin, and the rest of the novel consists of a long flashback leading to the body within. The plot thus plays itself out neither as whodunit or a whydunit, but as a tragedy and morality play that develops slowly and inevitably to a violent climax. Mystery Guild alternate selection; Books on Tape audio.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Product Description
PREY FOR SINNERS
Scarcely has Father Koesler begun counting his blessings of retirement when his old friend Bishop McNiff spirits him back to restore harmony and balance at St. Joseph's in downtown Detroit. The seminarians are edgy: Senior women Patty and Andrea have revolutionary liberal goals. Their classmate Bill Page is organizing an unholy agenda. And Al Cody, confused about the sincerity of his vocation, seems fair game for everyone. When Al's dad asks Father Koesler to ensure that his son remains committed to the priesthood, tragedy becomes inevitable--as St. Joseph's volatile brew of innocence, evil, prejudice, and devotion explodes into murder. . . .
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
