Irish Coffee

Notre Dame #7

by Ralph McInerny

An Anthony Award-winning Author When Fred Neville of the Notre Dame athletic department winds up dead under mysterious circumstances, academic and amateur sleuth Roger Knight and his P.I. brother, Phil, investigate the apparent murder. The trouble is, there are no suspects - until two grieving women show up at the poor man's wake. Could it be that unassuming Fred Neville was actually involved with two women, in secret and at the same time? Roger thinks not, and finds a notable piece of evidence to back up his hunch. Available only in Basic 6 & 7.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction

332 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2003

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

[Kathy]

I have been struggling to get interested in this Notre Dame based book for a couple of days and have decided it is just not for me. There is a murder mystery to be investigated, but I can't get into an of the characters. This was my first trial of this author's writing who did write a large number of books.

Library Loan

[Kerry]

This is a PSA: it is not good when an author’s voice devolves into “Pleaseeeeeee think I’m smart! I know 3 Latin phrases and the most common bits of Shakespeare :(“

OH and—jeez Louise—if you’re gonna do that, DON’T ACCIDENTALLY REUSE THE SAME SHAKESPEARE QUOTE. Good Lord.

Also, random, but writers really shouldn’t overuse the word “Had.” One would think a professor would know not to, but, alas.

I respectfully disagree with other critics who say the issue was excessive sports and Notre Dame lore. 20th-Century Catholic philosophers also come up frequently, which is fun and interesting. But when it comes to original prose, you might be better off elsewhere.

[Judith Shadford · Rating 3 out of 5]

Weellll, it was mildly amusing. Set at Notre Dame, slightly sports related, heavily male fueled, but, fair play, even the male guys who were so smart unless they were crooked, were two-dimensional. Females, gorgeous and devious, or homely and psychotic. But he has fun with names, most especially a couple female cops showing up at a crime scene: Benson and Hedges. Laughed out loud on that one. Also Mr Jacuzzi. And Thelma Maynooth, she of the long tooth and highly flirtatious demeanor.

[Brenda · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fast ,fun read. Goofy but likeable characters.

[Mia Benade · Rating 2 out of 5]

Usually love reading mystery but I found this book slightly boring, ended up skipping a few pages so that I could find a climax as sometimes the book would have scenes that dragged on for too long.

[Walter · Rating 2 out of 5]

Completely mechanical, competent and underwhelming.

[Sandy White · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was amusing but not thought provoking.

[Geoff · Rating 1 out of 5]

Maybe mysteries aren't my cup of tea, but even the setting at my alma mater didn't help. The author seemed overly concerned with sliding in obscure english/poetry references, and I never grew to like any of the characters, alive or dead. The 'love triangle' and its effects were lame and unbelievable.

The only mildly humorous bit happened when characters agreed that books featuring ND only sell because fans are obsessed with the school- and I don't doubt that this book was originally purchased in the same vein, but quickly found itself donated to the library.

Save yourself a couple hours, and read something else.

[Kate · Rating 2 out of 5]

Doug's sister gave us this book since it was set at ND (the author is or was - not sure if he's still there - a professor). I could tell right away that the author was an older man by how the women were written -- not very modern! (The book was only published 10 years ago). However, it's a quick read and the story line is not terrible, so I'll finish it just to see what happens.

[Fredrick Danysh · Rating 4 out of 5]

A media specialist for the athletic department of Norte Dame is murderd and two fiancees turn up at the funeral. To help maintain the reputation and dignity of the school, the Knight brothers investigate. Then one of the fiancees is killed. This work was hard to put down.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Complex murderer mystery for Catholic literature and history intellectuals.

[Erin · Rating 1 out of 5]

I couldn't even get past the first page. The writing is atrocious.

[Alice · Rating 2 out of 5]

One of the books based in Notre Dame lore-- Too many inside jokes/references -- might have been a selling point for the book but off putting to this reader and not germane to the plot.

[Debby Plummer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easier to follow then some of the series, and with a nicely surprising ending!

[Jean Kovats · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've enjoyed books by this author before, but this one was not good. I ended up skipping pages and being bored.

[Joanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Put out at the library in honor of St. Patrick's Day probably because of the name, but it was actually set in the late fall. A mystery set at Notre Dame University centering on a love triangle, sports and literature. Obese Roger, the main sleuth, worked with his brother to solve the murder case. A lot of history on the university setting and Catholic religion in general. A little more substantial in the detective work than the usual cozy.