Ashes to Ashes

 Ashes to Ashes (1971) by Emma Lathen (Mary Jane Latsis & Martha Henissart)

The Archdiocese of New York has decided that the St. Bernadette's parochial school is no longer viable. The costs outweigh the benefits and there just aren't as many teaching nuns as there used to be. So, when Unger Realty shows interest in buying up the school with an eye to building a high-rise apartment building on the spot, the Archdiocese is pleased as punch. The parents of Flensburg, not so much. They all went to St. Bernadette's and they want their children to go to St. Bernadette's. And, by golly, they're not going to take this lying down. 

So, they organize themselves into a group called the St. Berbadette's Parents League and decide to take on big business and the Church. They file an injunction under the name Francis P. Omara (their leader) vs. Joseph, Cardinal Devlin to put a halt to the sale. And John Thatcher, acting president of the Sloan Guaranty Trust, finds himself smack in the middle of it all. The Sloan has agreed to advance Unger Realty the money for the sale and now Thatcher finds himself served with a subpoena to testify in the case. 

But before much can be done about the court case, Omara is killed by a blow to the head with a butcher's mallet. Who wanted to stop the Parents League badly enough to commit murder? Was it someone from the realty company? Or one of the local business owners who hoped to make huge profits once the new apartments went up? Or--would one of the Church officials behind the sale stoop to killing to finance the Church? Things become very murky when the Parents League is joined by other groups with a gripe against the Church--including women fighting for the right to birth control to Hare Krishna Catholics intent on a merger of faiths. Very disruptive protests break out...and then bomb threats cause even more upheaval. A chance remark by one of the concerned parents makes Thatcher aware that everyone has been looking at the murder from the wrong angle.

Of the three Lathen books I have read so far, this one has been the best. I found Thatcher's subtle humor and not-so-secret siding with "the angels" (that is the parents fighting for their children's school) very amusing and well-drawn. Thatcher's view of his Wall Street world is wry, humorous, and honest:

It was John Thatcher's private theory that during such major downward shifts [in the Dow Jones average], the financial community as a whole went slightly and temporarily insane. Orders went undischarged. Syndicates fell apart. Drinking men went on the wagon and abstainers swilled four martinis before lunch.

The mystery is also nicely executed. It mixes the mystery plot with pertinent issues of the time--issues that are still pretty relevant (especially in the Catholic world) today. So, the book doesn't feel nearly as dated as it might. I didn't put the clues together, so the reveal at the end was a pleasant surprise. For one thing, I just couldn't connect that butcher's mallet to anyone.... ★★★ and 1/2.

First line: Wall Street is the largest and most efficient market the world has ever known.

Last line: "I look forward to seeing what they and Flensburg make of each other."

*********************

Deaths = one hit on head