Requiem for a Realtor

Father Dowling #25

by Ralph McInerny

Father Dowling, respected by all, is well-known for being willing to lend a helping hand whenever he can. So it's no surprise when Stanley Collins shows up at the St. Hilary rectory to confide in Father Dowling about the troubled marriage of one of the church's parishioners. Dowling promises to do his best to find a way to help, but it soon becomes too late. One of the parties involved is viciously killed in a hit and run car accident.

Is it murder? Dowling knows there is good reason to suspect it might be, but when his friend, Detective Phil Keegan, labels it an accident, Dowling 's hands are tied. It's a question of ethics. Unable to break Collins's confidence, he can only keep tabs on the investigation from afar. While searching for the truth, Dowling must protect the secrets of his parishioners at all costs.

In Requiem for a Realtor, the charming Father Dowling returns once again, tangled in a web of deceit that will intrigue and delight his dedicated fans in a complex, satisfying mystery from Ralph McInerny.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction

263 pages, Hardcover

First published July 1, 2004

About the author

Ralph Matthew McInerny was an American Catholic religious scholar and fiction writer, including mysteries and science fiction. Some of his fiction has appeared under the pseudonyms of Harry Austin, Matthew FitzRalph, Ernan Mackey, Edward Mackin, and Monica Quill. As a mystery writer he is best known as the creator of Father Dowling. He was Professor of Philosophy, Director of the Jacques Maritain Center, and Michael P. Grace Professor of Medieval Studies at the University of Notre Dame until his retirement in June 2009. He died of esophageal cancer on January 29, 2010.

Reviews

[Penny · Rating 2 out of 5]

Started out great. Too many characters. Not very well written. Hard to keep up who was saying what in the dialogue. This was my first Father Dowling book. I'll try at least one more, but this was disappointing to say the least.

[Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wonder what happened to the Fr. Dowling television show.?

I didn't like the book as much as I thought I would.

[Brenna · Rating 3 out of 5]

"How often good intentions are a pain in the neck," muses Father Frank Dowling upon seeing one of his particularly pious parishioners meddling in the affairs of others. What remains unspoken, of course, is the recent suspicion of murder of which this individual had been recently cleared. A prominent dentist in Fox River (land of the Catholic Parish of St. Hilary), Dr. David Jameson would frequently visit the avuncular pastor to ask for his blessing, and to discuss with him his unkept "vocation." So when the police began to investigate the man regarding the murder of his patient's husband, it became clear that something was amiss...

Requiem for a Realtor does not break new ground. For Father Dowling, this novel represents the twenty-third foray into the realm of murder mystery (and almost the fortieth for author Ralph McInerny). For the first portion of the book, characters are established - or introduced to new readers, who need no advance knowledge of any recurring characters to enjoy this mystery - and it ends upon the knowledge of the death of one such minor player (in this case, floundering real estate agent Stanley Collins, who has himself become wrapped up in the infidelities which seem to formulate his very nature). Throughout the majority of the story, characters implicate each other - and themselves - when it becomes clear that This Was No Accident, and the police find themselves investigating a homicide with the flimsiest of evidence. And finally, the unexpected death of a prime suspect casts suspicion on a number of other, heretofore unblemished, characters for the role of cold-blooded murderer.

All-in-all, Requiem for a Realtor is a fast, simple mystery intended to be read over the course of a slow weekend. No real challenges are presented to the reader other than the ultimate pleasure of trying to crack the mystery before the police do. And true to the series, it is the seemingly-omniscient Father Dowling who decodes the puzzle and manages to convince the guilty party to atone for the sins of murder. No real surprises there. The book has humour, and plenty of it, although the characters are also rich enough, considering the material they are given to "act out." But not too rich. The writing style takes on the presence of what are known commonly as “old ideas” when they apply to gender roles: men are fools, incapable of discerning the truths behind feminine wiles. Insofar as that goes, Requiem for a Realtor is a classic 1920s-style mystery set in the current time.

However, the book still manages to come across as slightly stale, as the final solution to both murders feels decidedly unfair to the reader. The revelation does strike one as a surprise - as one expects of any good mystery - yet given the dearth of evidence, it remains impossible for even the most discerning reader to associate real guilt to the character before the ultimate admission of guilt. And the explanation as to how the good father made his final judgment on the case? Brushed off, almost as if it were but the most trivial detail. In life, it takes a lot of hard evidence to convict a man (or woman) of murder. In the Parish of St. Hilary, it merely takes the efforts of an earnest priest, performing his regular functions, to crack open a case and hand over a criminal.

This isn't great literature. It's light, and enjoyable to read - and that's all. Absorbing Requiem of a Realtor with the right mindset is necessary to enjoy the book. Although even through its own merits, it cannot help but be somewhat disappointing due to the seemingly rushed denouement.

[Lic. Abel Jimenez · Rating 3 out of 5]

De inicio a fin, cautivador, un libro que te mantiene con la expectativa latente, como amenazante cuchillo al que la hora del corte no ha sido anunciada, así con altibajos, con claroscuros que le dan precisamente esa sazón galopeantemente cautivadora, con toques de horror que te mantienen en la expectativa pura, sin merecer elogios en cuanto a su complejidad de escritura. Libro para pasar la tarde noche de verano.

[Sandy Voegtlen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay but slow.