The Discourtesy of Death: A Father Anselm Novel (Father Anselm Thrillers)

by William Brodrick

Overview

An ingenious, gripping thriller for readers of P.D. James and William Boyd

An anonymous letter accuses a prominent academic, Peter Henderson, of a grotesque murder: the calculated killing of Jenny, his disabled partner, believed by everyone to have died peacefully two years ago.

Time has moved on. Grief and loss were tempered by a comforting thought: Jenny was spared a long and painful illness. Knowing the truth behind the soothing lie, Father Anselm—former barrister, current clergyman—must move cautiously to expose the killer and the killing without harming young Timothy, Jenny and Peter’s son. But Jenny’s father is looking out for his grandson, and he is capable of anything if he thinks it’s for the best. He has set out to execute Peter Henderson.

Death, dying, and killing have never been so complicated.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781468311860
Publisher:	The Overlook Press
Publication date:	07/26/2016
Series:	Father Anselm Thrillers
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	352
Sales rank:	382,389
File size:	1 MB

About the Author

William Brodrick was an Augustinian friar before leaving the order to become a barrister. He won the Crime Writers’ Association Gold Dagger Award in 2009, and is the author of six novels featuring Father Anselm, all available or forthcoming from Overlook.

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

 

Praise for The Sixth Lamentation: 

“It’s indeed rare to find such a masterful blending of sharp suspense and literary resonance as we see in The Sixth Lamentation. Brodrick has produced a truly compelling novel.” —Jeffery Deaver 

“Engrossing . . . An intricate mystery of both the mind and the soul.” —USA Today 

“A cat’s cradle of a mystery with the interwoven stories pulled as tight as a piano wire.” —Martha Grimes 

Editorial Reviews

06/13/2016
Early in Brodrick’s mild fifth Father Anselm thriller (after 2012’s The Day of the Lie), the prior of Larkwood Priory near Sudbury, England, hands Anselm, who has made a reputation for himself as a detective, a typed anonymous letter, which obliquely accuses Peter Henderson of murdering his disabled wife, Jenny Henderson, two years earlier. The letter’s author may be Jenny’s father, former Army captain Michael Goodwin, who’s bent on taking revenge on his son-in-law, who’s about to be released from prison. Anselm uses his skills as a former barrister along with the assistance of Mitch Robson, a criminal he worked with in the past, to begin the search for justice, but what could have been an engaging investigation becomes mired in tangential essays regarding the morality of mercy killing and confusing threads that have little to do with the central plot. Anselm identifies the killer long after it becomes obvious to the reader. (Aug.)

Publishers Weekly

 Praise for The Sixth Lamentation: “It’s indeed rare to find such a masterful blending of sharp suspense and literary resonance as we see in The Sixth Lamentation. Brodrick has produced a truly compelling novel.” —Jeffery Deaver “Engrossing . . . An intricate mystery of both the mind and the soul.” —USA Today “A cat’s cradle of a mystery with the interwoven stories pulled as tight as a piano wire.” —Martha Grimes 

From the Publisher

A remarkable novel that succeeds both as mystery fiction and exploration of ethical dilemmas.

The Weekly Standard