The Prodigal Nun

May 19, 2008
In the Thurlos' less than engaging fifth Sister Agatha mystery set in smalltown New Mexico (after 2007's False Witness
), Jane Sanchez, a parishioner at Our Lady of Hope Monastery, requests a time to discuss an important matter with the Harley-riding investigative reporter turned nun. When someone shoots Jane to death, everyone assumes she was killed to prevent her from divulging a dark secret. Anonymous threats made against the monastery add impetus for Sister Agatha to figure out who murdered Jane. Sheriff Tom Green, having benefited from Sister Agatha's help in previous cases, welcomes most of her input, but when her findings point to the possibility of a dirty cop, the cooperative attitude cools considerably. After a promising start to the series, Bad Faith
, subsequent entries have become more routine. Unless Sister Agatha improves her track record, she's likely to disappear into the cloister.

June 1, 2008
Sister Agatha is part of New Mexicos Our Lady of Hope Monastery, where she works as an "extern"--one of the few in this community of cloistered nuns who has dealings with the outside world. Not just mundane dealings, either; this is a mystery series, after all, so Sister Agathas external encounters usually involve murder and evil. The Thurlos, also authors of the fine series starring Navajo cop Ella Clah, have more of a stretch making this one work. Its hard to suspend disbelief when murder so regularly touches the monastery, as it does here, in the fifth Sister Agatha mystery, when a woman parishioner who had left a phone message for the extern nun is gunned down right outside the church. Sisters guilt over not returning the parishioners call propels her to solve the case. Most of the plot consists of a series of threats to the nuns, punctuated by news of a burglar on the loose. Despite the many harbingers of approaching danger, this moves very slowly. For series (or Thurlo) fans only.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2008, American Library Association.)