Death Wears a Red Hat

Death Wears a Red Hat PDF Author: William Kienzle
Publisher: Andrews McMeel Publishing
ISBN: 1449424805
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 391

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Book Description
"An extraordinary tale of justice and morality . . ." —Otto Penzler, Edgar Award Winner and Owner of the Mysterious Bookshop, New York City "... another dandy tale of homicide with an ecclesiastic twist . . . a fast-moving plot with amusing sidelights." —New York Daily News "Every time I open a book, I hope this one is going to be really smashing, exciting, outstanding. This one is. Death Wears a Red Hat is the kind of mystery that I read the others to find. It has the right ingredients." —Houston Chronicle From William X. Kienzle, author of the classic murder mystery, The Rosary Murders. In Kienzle's second Father Koesler book, the streets of Detroit are stalked by an unknown assailant depositing the decapitated heads of Detroit citizens on the headless shoulders of church statues. But there does seem to be a method in the gruesome madness and Father Koesler is once again drawn into the investigation, this time at the request of Walter Koznicki, the inspector of homicide, and Lieutenant Ned Harris. Meanwhile, the Detroit Free Press and the Detroit News, in the personages of Joe Cox and Pat Lennon, compete for prime coverage of the murders. But as the carefully executed murders continue unabated so does the city's state of fear and bewilderment.

Death Wears a Red Hat

Death Wears a Red Hat PDF Author: William Kienzle
Publisher: Andrews McMeel Publishing
ISBN: 1449424805
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 391

Get Book Here

Book Description
"An extraordinary tale of justice and morality . . ." —Otto Penzler, Edgar Award Winner and Owner of the Mysterious Bookshop, New York City "... another dandy tale of homicide with an ecclesiastic twist . . . a fast-moving plot with amusing sidelights." —New York Daily News "Every time I open a book, I hope this one is going to be really smashing, exciting, outstanding. This one is. Death Wears a Red Hat is the kind of mystery that I read the others to find. It has the right ingredients." —Houston Chronicle From William X. Kienzle, author of the classic murder mystery, The Rosary Murders. In Kienzle's second Father Koesler book, the streets of Detroit are stalked by an unknown assailant depositing the decapitated heads of Detroit citizens on the headless shoulders of church statues. But there does seem to be a method in the gruesome madness and Father Koesler is once again drawn into the investigation, this time at the request of Walter Koznicki, the inspector of homicide, and Lieutenant Ned Harris. Meanwhile, the Detroit Free Press and the Detroit News, in the personages of Joe Cox and Pat Lennon, compete for prime coverage of the murders. But as the carefully executed murders continue unabated so does the city's state of fear and bewilderment.

The Rosary Murders

The Rosary Murders PDF Author: William Kienzle
Publisher: Andrews McMeel Publishing
ISBN: 1449424767
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 375

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Book Description
"A sophisticated and baffling thriller . . . a real bone-freezer." —Publishers Weekly "Ingenious, witty, literate—at once irreverent and compassionate—an impressive tour indeed for a first-time novelist." —Los Angeles Times "Well-paced, tightly written, exciting as hell, and, quite possibly, the best mystery I've read in years." —Dallas Times-Herald The Rosary Murders was William X. Kienzle's first Father Koesler mystery, published in 1978. Twenty-three more books followed, creating a best-selling mystery series mostly set in Detroit and reflecting the personality of its hero, Father Robert Koesler, a diocesan priest with a penchant for sleuthing. The Rosary Murders was named one of the top twenty-five mysteries of the twentieth century in spring 2000 by the Chicago Sun-Times. It was also made into a movie, with Donald Sutherland in the role of Father Koesler. In The Rosary Murders, Detroit priests and nuns are being methodically murdered; all are found with a plain black rosary entwined between their fingers as a calling card. From Ash Wednesday, when the murderer first struck, the police seem helpless to solve the string of senseless murders. The weeks that follow become a nightmare for the crack homicide team headed by Lieutenant Walter Koznicki, until Father Koesler breaks the madmen's code. Here is a story with tension, excitement, intelligence, and a rare wit and humor. Kienzle painstakingly leads you through every step in an intensive police investigation of heinous series of murders. Police procedure and Pulitzer Prize-winning newspaper reporting are as much a part of the action as the crimes themselves. With superb control of the novel's movement, Kienzle can tantalize at a tortoise's pace and torment with a breakneck hare's pace.

Sudden Death

Sudden Death PDF Author: William Kienzle
Publisher: Andrews McMeel Publishing
ISBN: 1449423647
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 371

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Book Description
"As more than a million readers have learned to their delight, Kienzle is a font of funny stories. He has created one of the most likable and authentic of all recent sleuths—the shy, sly Father Koesler—whose exploits into crime and insights into parish life have continued in seven gossipy and cozy mysteries." —Chicago Tribune "Kienzle's best book since The Rosary Murders." —Publishers Weekly "It's a cracking good mystery." —Houston Chronicle When Father Koesler joined the God Squad, he learned that all the fouls weren't on the field. Was murder someone's idea of a game? Abruptly removed from his spectator status by a chilling turnover, the amateur sleuth takes on the pros. Hank "the Hun" Hunsiger had made a career out of making enemies. The thirty-seven year-old tight end for the Pontiac Cougars was widely hated. When the clock stopped on Hunsinger's life, the only question was, which one of his many enemies did it? The focus of the police investigation turned to the God Squad, a Bible Study group consisting of a curious assortment of his Cougar associates ranging from owner Jay Galloway to rookie Kit Hoffer—plus the peripatetic Father Robert Koesler. Asked to aid in the investigation, Father Koesler leads us play by play to a startling conclusion. In his seventh appearance, Father Koesler enters the world of pro football, an involvement his readers will want to renew. From kickoff to final gun, Father Koesler wins again.

Call No Man Father

Call No Man Father PDF Author: William Kienzle
Publisher: Andrews McMeel Publishing
ISBN: 1449423744
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 378

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Book Description
"Kienzle has written another supremely intelligent puzzler featuring his perceptive priest, Father Robert Koesler, and bolstered by a strong cast of engaging supporting characters." —Booklist "Father Koesler is on the case, thank God." —Baltimore Sun From William X. Kienzle, author of the classic mystery, The Rosary Murders. A visit from the pope is cause for celebration for most members of the Catholic community, but for those charged with ensuring his safety, it can be a security nightmare. And when His Holiness schedules a trip to Detroit, the police find themselves in over their heads even before his plane touches down. In Call No Man Father, the seventeenth Father Koesler mystery from William X. Kienzle, the Detroit police learn that a figure as prominent as the pope can be at risk from all sorts of unexpected directions. Some Catholics fear that he will declare his controversial stand on birth control infallible, and are prepared to take extreme measures to stop him. A suburban gang that considers murder a status symbol sees the pope as the ultimate mark. And one renegade newspaper reporter, looking to salvage his career with the story of a lifetime, may be willing to manufacture that story himself. Naturally, venerable Father Koesler finds himself in the thick of things. As preparations for the papal visit transpire, he becomes a pawn in Church political games. At the same time, he is a key source of information in the police security efforts.

Mind Over Murder

Mind Over Murder PDF Author: William Kienzle
Publisher: Andrews McMeel Publishing
ISBN: 1449424899
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 423

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Book Description
"Bill Kienzle's best yet." —Detroit Free Press "It is miraculous, but the third Father Koesler is even better than the first two. It is without reservation the best series ever about a priest detective." —Otto Penzler, owner, Mysterious Bookshop, New York City "Father Koesler is on the case, thank God." —Baltimore Sun Father Robert Koesler unravels his third mystery, this time zeroing in on one of six suspects, each with a motive for revenge, to solve the case of Detroit's missing monsignor. In Mind over Murder, writer William X. Kienzle challenges the reader to a game of reasoning. He sets the stage—Detroit's east side—and situation: Monsignor Thomas Thompson antagonizes a number of people and then mysteriously disappears. His Cadillac is found in a parking lot, with fingerprints wiped clean from the interior and an empty cartridge from a .32 caliber pistol and a bloody tissue left behind. Foul play is suspected by Detroit police and press. Father Koesler, central character in the Kienzle series, is called into the case by Walter Koznicki, inspector for the police department, to interpret the Catholic connection. Thompson's diary, found by Joe Cox, reporter for the Detroit Free Press, becomes a prime piece of evidence in the puzzle. The contents, exposing his innermost thoughts to investigators and the press, foreshadow ominous happenings. Whodunit? One by one, suspects are implicated by virtue of mention in Thompson's diary. Each has a grudge against him. Each knows the moment when he will be most vulnerable. And each has a perfect alibi—almost. Kienzle sets up a rational situation and, with motivation established for the suspects, all the reader has to do is add up the clues. But, as Inspector Koznicki comments, "With unpredictable human nature, every logical bit of evidence can point in one directions, only to prove a false lead."

Assault with Intent

Assault with Intent PDF Author: William Kienzle
Publisher: Andrews McMeel Publishing
ISBN: 1449423612
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 356

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Book Description
"Kienzle's are the best books ever written about a cleric and among the best of everything in the past quarter century." —Otto Penzler, in Mystery Magazine "There are few authors whose books a reader anticipates from the moment he finished the last effort. . . . Add William Kienzle to the list." —Dallas Times Herald "Father Koesler is on the case, thank God." —Baltimore Sun In the fourth Father Koesler thriller, William X. Kienzle proved his versatility. Assault with Intent combines raucous humor with the same clever plotting and strong characterization that are his trademark. Murphy's Law seems to be the only force preventing four arcane conspirators from accomplishing their murderous plans to assassinate priests teaching in Detroit's seminaries. Incredibly, each of their attacks is thwarted by strange coincidence and ineptitude until they finally succeed—or do they? Father Robert Koesler, the crime-solving hero of Kienzle's mysteries, is drawn into the case first as a concerned friend of the intended victims and then as a target himself. Inspector Walter Koznicki returns to investigate for the Detroit police department and reporters Joe Cox and Pat Lennon continue their romance amid the rivalry of their two newspapers, the Detroit News and Free Press. Who is responsible for this series of assaults? A disgruntled seminary student who has gone too far? The dangerously fanatical leader of a secretive arch-conservative Catholic society? Another priest? There are far too few clues and too many possibilities. And when a zany crew of movie-makers arrives from Hollywood to film the story before the crime itself is solved, Assault with Intent becomes a three-ring circus of mystery and slapstick.

Till Death

Till Death PDF Author: William Kienzle
Publisher: Andrews McMeel Publishing
ISBN: 1449423795
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 258

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Book Description
"Father Koesler is on the case, thank God." —Baltimore Sun From William X. Kienzle, author of the mystery classic, The Rosary Murders. The priesthood or Lil. It would be a gut-wrenching decision for Rick. Sixty-year-old Father Rick Casserly, the much loved, socially conscious pastor at St. William of Thierry Church, and Lillian "Lil" Niedermeir, the principal at nearby St. Enda's elementary school, share a common bond. They are secret lovers, driven into the closet by the Catholic Church's position on the marriage of its clergy members. And when troubled former nun, now reporter, Dora Riccardo sets her cap for Rick, the already complex state of affairs unfolds into a spiraling scenario that isn't resolved until someone is dead. Till Death is the twenty-second mystery from the pen of William X. Kienzle featuring Father Robert Koesler. In Till Death, Father Koesler is a member of the "St. Ursula Survivors Club"—a group of current and former clergy who served under the tyrannical Father Angelico. Koesler is the confidant whom some of the club members turn to when there's nowhere else to go, but even the temperate Father Koesler struggles to bring closure to a set of circumstances charged with forbidden love and tortured souls. Kienzle fans have snatched up almost two and a half million copies of the author's mysteries. Till Death provides readers with his signature twists and turns, while also exploring the explosive social issue of whether priests should be allowed to marry.

Shadow of Death

Shadow of Death PDF Author: William Kienzle
Publisher: Andrews McMeel Publishing
ISBN: 1449423620
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 349

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Book Description
"Another Kienzle top seller. Excellent in style and story. Original and timely." —Lucy Freeman, Mystery Writers of America From William X. Kienzle, author of the classic mystery, The Rosary Murders. A bizarre plot to destroy the papacy seems to be the motive for murder in this fifth thriller from best-selling mystery writer William X. Kienzle. One cardinal is brutally murdered in his own church. Another is slain in the Vatican. A clue is left at the scene of each crime. What is the connection? Who is behind these sinister attacks? When Kienzle's crime-solving hero, Father Robert Koesler, and his friends intervene to catch the criminals, they find themselves targets for assassination. And the plot takes an unexpected twist toward an ending that brings Koesler's past back to haunt him. Kienzle's fans will cheer the return of all their favorite characters as they make a treacherous journey to Rome, London, and Ireland, where this series of murders and attempted murders threatens the lives of the Catholic hierarchy. Father Koesler, the priest with a talent for detective work, is joined by his old friend Inspector Walter Koznicki in the search for a solution to these puzzling crimes as they accompany Detroit's archbishop to Rome for his induction into the church's College of Cardinals. Along to report the action for their rival Detroit newspapers are reporters Joe Cox and Pat Lennon, who continue to share everything but their leads. Kienzle completes his cast of characters with a rich array of expertly drawn personalities so human they seem like old friends.

Deathbed

Deathbed PDF Author: William Kienzle
Publisher: Andrews McMeel Publishing
ISBN: 1449423655
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 412

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Book Description
"The realistic setting, discussions of theology and humanism add to the appealing the author's new urbane, witty mystery.—Publishers Weekly "Score another direct hit by Father Koesler and William Kienzle." —Kansas City Star In Deathbed, the eighth book in a series by acclaimed mystery writer William X. Kienzle, Father Robert Koesler takes on a temporary tour of duty as chaplain in a Detroit hospital whose dark passageways lead eventually to murder. But along the way, the antics of a security guard, a few nurse's aides, and a bumbling volunteer lead to madcap mayhem in a deft (and daft) counterpoint to the unfolding mystery. Deathbed follows the tracks of at least four people in St. Vincent's Hospital in Detroit whose rancor toward a single individual is so great it could translate into violence. The object of their wrath is an indomitable, unsinkable nun in her late sixties who almost single-handedly keeps the inner-city Detroit hospital open. As Father Koesler begins to learn what really goes on in a hospital, he discovers that St. Vincent's beds are used for more than convalescence. And in the Keystone Kop-like gropings in dim corridors, the real question becomes, Who's doing what to whom?

The Sacrifice

The Sacrifice PDF Author: William Kienzle
Publisher: Andrews McMeel Publishing
ISBN: 1449423809
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 245

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Book Description
"The clever plot, the subtle clues, and above all, the ideas make this well worth reading." —West Coast Review of Books From William X. Kienzle, author of the classic mystery, The Rosary Murders. When Father George Wheatley decided to convert from the Anglican Church to the Roman Catholic, he thought he had painstakingly considered the sacrifices he would have to make. He knew his celebrity status as a beloved Anglican priest, evidenced by his newspaper column and radio show, would be in jeopardy. He understood the strain the change would put on his wife and children and the challenges he would face to be accepted as a married Roman Catholic priest. He even acknowledged that reactionaries in both camps would oppose such a spiritual changeover. But he never dreamed that his decision would breed such waves of ambition, jealousy, and hatred that the ultimate human sacrifice—murder—would be the result. Nor did he appreciated how much of a sacrifice would be asked of him. In his twenty-third appearance, Father Robert Koesler, a Detroit parish priest with a penchant for being involved in murder, accompanies his friend Father Wheatley through his tortured path to conversion and helps him seek resolution of a crime. With his compassion, knowledge of human nature, and experience, Father Koesler is able to not only resolve a murder mystery, but also to give true understanding to the concept of sacrifice.