Ryan; Blackie (Fictitious character), Catholics, Bishops 

Millions of Blackie Ryan fans will be thrilled with his return in this exciting novel of mystery and suspense. Bestselling novelist Andrew M. Greeley has captured the imagination of the mystery reading public with the improbable Bishop Blackie Ryan, who works for the aristocratic, haughty, sometimes arrogant but often slyly good humored Sean Cardinal Cronin, the Archbishop of Chicago.

The Vatican has just assigned auxiliary Bishop Gus Quill to the Archdiocese of Chicago over the violent protests of Archbishop Sean Cronin, and the not so silent protests of Bishop Blackie. Bishop Quill is under the illusion, one might say delusion, that he has been sent from Rome to replace the good Cardinal when in fact Rome was dying to get rid of him because of his incompetence. Immediately on arriving in Chicago, he manages to disappear while riding the L Train and it is up to Blackie to find him. As the Cardinal says, "The Vatican does not like to lose bishops, even auxiliaries."

And thus begins the search for the missing bishop who no one really wants to find.