Snow by John Banville

 

Detective Inspector St. John Strafford has been called to Ballyglass House in Ireland.  The year is 1957 and the country is still heavily Catholic.  The family who lives in Ballyglass House, the Osbornes, are Protestant as is Strafford.  Ballyglass House is the house of title and prestige in the village, the place where hunts are done.  The man of the house is a former Army man.  His wife is his second wife and is one of those vapid, nervous women who seem to find life too, too difficult.  There are two children, both almost grown.  Dominic is at university to start his journey to a medical degree and Lettie is out of control, doing what she wants, including drinking and having sex with anyone she wants.

A murder is the cause of DI Strafford's call.  The town parish priest, Tom, had stayed over the night before due to the snow.  It is snowing everywhere in Ireland with blizzard conditions.  Sometime during the night, someone jabbed the priest in the neck and watched him stagger down the stairs and make his way to the library.  There he was castrated and finally died.

Who would do such a thing?  Father Tom Lawless seemed popular with his congregation.  His father had been an IRA higher up during the Troubles and Tom seemed to be making up for his father's sins.  But Strafford soon finds there were enemies.  Lady Osborne has a scandalous brother, who is forbidden the house and desperately wants Father Tom's thoroughbred horse.  The local doctor calls on Mrs. Osbourne daily and seems to resent Tom's presence.  Tom was assigned to the juvenile delinquent house of correction and one of his former charges may have come to call.  Plus the deeper Strafford digs into the past, the more he starts to hear rumors about Father Tom's relationships with young boys.  Can the D.I. solve the murder?

John Banville is an Irish writer who was born and grew up in this part of Ireland.  One of his earlier novels, The Book Of Evidence, was longlisted for the Booker Prize.  This novel was shortlisted for the CWA Historical Dagger Award and was a New York Times Editor's Choice Pick.  The character of D. I. Strafford is an interesting one and readers would be glad to read more about his cases.  The atmosphere of the claustrophobia causes both by the snowy blizzard and the social mores of the times is done to perfection.  This book is recommended for mystery writers.