Celt and Pepper

Notre Dame #6

by Ralph McInerny

Martin Kilmartin is a popular young Notre Dame professor and a promising poet, and as far as everyone on campus knows, he's off to visit his ancestral Ireland over winter break. It's a shocking moment when Professor Kilmartin is discovered dead in his office, never having made it on his winter retreat. Apparently the victim of a weak heart, Kilmartin's death comes just months before he is to be wed, and on the heels of some outstanding recognition for his verse.

All in all, it seems to be just another campus tragedy, and while some wonder at the authenticity of the official explanation for his death, the police are content to blame his medical condition for his untimely demise. That is, until Professor Roger Knight, big man on campus and compulsively curious amateur sleuth, gets involved. The rotund professor's interest is piqued after reading some of Kilmartin's melancholic work, and he points to several anomalies at the crime scene in questioning the case. Before long, he's unearthed more than a few people with motive to harm the burgeoning artist.

Roger's first task, with the help of his brother Phil, will be to determine whether there has in fact been a crime, and if so, who exactly was behind it. Before he's through, he'll use his diverse experience with poetry, literature, Irish history, and Notre Dame lore, not to mention his ear for university gossip, to get the bottom of another fascinating acadamic whodunit from master storyteller Ralph McInerny.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction

240 pages, Hardcover

First published December 1, 2002

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

[Meg · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book, and I love this whole series. I recommend this to anyone who enjoys mystery books, fiction books set in universities, or the University of Notre Dame. This book series is a must read for any Domer.

Things I enjoyed:
- The plot is very exciting, and there are many plot twists.
- The characters are enjoyable.
- I really love McInerny's writing style. His diction is amazing, and what you would expect for a book set at a university.
- I love reading a book that is set where I went to college. I love reading about all of the different buildings that I had classes in/ other events in.
- This book is probably going to be my favorite out of this whole series based on the fact that it is set around literature.
- I love fiction that talks about classic literature.
- Love poetry! I didn't always used to be a poetry fan, but my English degree made me fall in love with poetry.

[John Stanifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book for its atmosphere, even if the tension isn't as tight in the first half as it might have been.

We know at the very beginning that there has been a murder. Or at least there will be, because right after we learn about the murder we go back to meet a bunch of characters who may or may not have been involved. Meeting all the players and learning about their relationships is what takes up most of the first half . . . as opposed to the solving of the murder. It's the SECOND half that jumps back to the attempts to solve the case.

That's an unusual format, with its advantages and disadvantages.

But let me explain why I still loved this book overall, even if I wouldn't say it's an edge-of-your-seat thriller all the way through.

It's the setting, mainly. While I've barely been on the Notre Dame campus -- we've driven by it several times over the years and drove THROUGH it once if I remember correctly--we've spent MANY happy hours in and around South Bend in general.

I came looking for the references to academia as a whole and to literature and Irish culture in particular. And THAT was something I got plenty of. So I'm walking away happy and intent on reading the other two books in this series that I have on my shelf.

Celt and Pepper is technically #6 in its series, and this is the first title I've read. The other two are even later. I don't really feel compelled to read in order in this case. I randomly picked these three books up at a thrift shop a while back, drawn in by their charming artwork and (again) the setting.

Recommended for those fond of: academic culture, Celtic/Irish history and culture, literature, and (of course) Notre Dame and its surroundings.

P.S. The author passed away a few years ago, and aside from teaching for more than 40 years on the Notre Dame campus, he is perhaps best known as the author of the Father Dowling mysteries, which were turned into a TV series that ran in the late '80s and early '90s.

[Maureen · Rating 1 out of 5]

Love Norte Dame....could not get into this book....to convaloted in the beginning and then I lost interest ..😟

[G · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lots of conversation and not much action. Moved slow enough that I lost interest. dnf

[James · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have read several of McInerny’s Notre Dame mysteries. This one was just OK. It was boring from start to finish and the murderer goes unpunished.
It was often convoluted and the plot didn’t track.

[Lindsay · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book wasn't bad, but it also wasn't good. The prologue lays out the mysterious death, then the first half is spent building suspects, and the second half is where the actual crime solving takes place. Overall it just wasn't that interesting. The first half was painfully slow. The second half picked up a lot but there weren't enough bread crumbs dropped for the ending to sit well and the other suspects were red herrings in bad ways.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Notre Dame mystery...would have been nice to have a map or a dramatis personae

[Charles · Rating 5 out of 5]

McInearny is becoming one of my favorite authors.

[Patricia Pryor]

Like all of Ralph McInerny's books, this one is a treat.

[Debby Plummer · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love this series but it's awfully hard to keep track of all the characters and follow the plot...