A Christopher Worthy and Father Fortis Mystery. The story feels a bit like a “cozy” mystery to me — amateur sleuth solving crime in a small town. Father Fortis, a Greek Orthodox monk, is the amateur sleuth who helps his friend, Police Lieutenant Christopher Worthy, solve the murder of a priest. The church community, even though in the city of Detroit, functions as a small town.

Worthy believes the killer is someone in the congregation. His nemesis on the police force, who continually interferes in the case, believes it‘s some punk from the projects close to the church—a robbery gone bad. Worthy and Father Fortis track down and interview several parishioners who appear to have motives for killing the priest. They are also searching for the priest’s journal, which they believe may hold clues.

At the same time, Worthy is trying to reestablish ties with his teenage daughter and attempting to understand his surly new police partner. The characters and interactions between them are interesting and add to the story.

The novel keeps a slower pace than many of the mysteries and thrillers in today’s market. But I enjoyed the story and kept reading.