The Ordained

Owen Keane Mystery #6

by Terence Faherty

In The Lost Keats , Owen Keane was a young seminarian in rural Indiana whose encounter with murder, and his search for an unknown Keats sonnet, changed the path of his life forever. Now, twenty years later, Owen returns to Indiana for the parole hearing of the man he helped send to prison. Still haunted and restless, still in search of answers to the doubts that ended his dream of the priesthood, Keane is drawn into a mystery with a whimsical religious element. The residents of the isolated town of Rapture, founded by an Adventist sect, the Ordained of God, are disappearing one by one. The Ordained believed that the world would end in 1844 and that they would be taken bodily into heaven. Now, one hundred and fifty years after their rapture failed to occur, something very similar is happening to their descendants. Encouraged by a young doctor who has shut herself away in Rapture, and disarmed by the legend of the Ordained, Keane investigates and steps directly into the grasp of an implacable, murderous evil.

262 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 1997

About the author

Terence Faherty (1954-) is an American author of mystery novels.

My name is Terence Faherty. I'm a storyteller whose stories most often take the form of mysteries. (A critic once noted, cryptically but correctly, that all my stories are mysteries, even the ones that aren't.) I do see basic storytelling and mystery solving as linked, because in so many stories the protagonist is trying to answer a question or right a wrong. This is why I see the mystery and especially the private eye story as a particularly straightforward form of storytelling: a problem is posed and a hero sets out to resolve it. (At least, it would be straightforward if all clients were forthcoming and truthful.)

I've written two series in book form. The Owen Keane series follows the bumpy life of a failed seminarian turned amateur sleuth (a job title I love). It's been nominated twice for the Mystery Writers of America's Edgar Award and once for the Anthony Award and it's won a Macavity Award from Mystery Readers International. The Scott Elliott series is set in old Hollywood during its decline and fall. Elliott, an operative for a shady security company, tries to slow that decline and fall in his own small way. Elliott has been nominated for three Shamus Awards from the Private Eye Writers of America and taken home two.


* Uncanny: Short story writen by Terence Faherty.

Series:
* Owen Keane Mystery
* Scott Elliott Mystery

Reviews

[Angie · Rating 2 out of 5]

The telling of the story is entertaining, but it's also pretty cliche when it comes to plot. It's a good read if you don't feel like getting into anything heavy.

[Hilda · Rating 2 out of 5]

Strange

[Kristy Trauzzi · Rating 2 out of 5]

This jacket cover was very misleading. (Little inside blurb of what the story was about).

I felt no suspense. I felt no real emotion on whether or not the mystery was solved. And really? The Ordained was a side story that really had nothing to do with the book or "mystery" at all. And wasn't really enough to pique my interest in the Ordained. I mean, so there was one guy left. Big deal! So they wanted a "miracle" that never came. I mean, meh.

And then, of course, the book is magically solved. And of course there would be an insider on the job. One who you all trusted and liked. Cuz you couldn't see that plot twist coming.

I'm tired and this book just kinda sucked. But I read it. lol

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic book by my uncle. This one takes place back in Indiana, as opposed to New Jersey, and brings back a few characters from "The Lost Keats." Good characters, good plot twists. I love how Uncle Terry can create plot developments that send shivers down your spine without tons of glorified gore and destruction.

[Zodama Bug · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quirky character, but I like those. Good for people who like lighter mysteries