Author. A former Roman Catholic priest, he is remembered as the creator of Father Bob Koesler, a Detroit clergyman and the detective of two dozen well-received mystery novels. Raised in Detroit, he was ordained in 1954 and for the next 20 years served as pastor of a number of parishes in the Detroit Archdiocese and for a time was editor of "The Michigan Catholic". As his career went on Kienzle grew dissatisfied with the strictures of canon law and with some Church policies leading him to leave the priesthood, but not the Catholic Church, in 1974. That same year he married a Detroit journalist and relocated to Minneapolis where he worked as a magazine editor. Kienzle headed Dallas' Center for Contemplative Studies then returned home; in 1978 he published "The Rosary Murders" in which Catholic clergy are being killed while a priest with knowledge of the villain finds himself bound by the seal of the confessional. He followed his initial success in 1980 with "Death Wears a Red Hat" and over the years had Father Bob and a reoccurring supporting cast confront the Mafia, clerical malefactors Roman and otherwise, voodoo, and an assortment of everyday criminals while dealing with a number of ethical difficulties occasioned by Catholic Church rules. Kienzle produced a steady stream of books until his death from a heart attack with his final offering, "The Gathering", being posthumously published in 2002. Father Bob made it to the silver screen once when he was portrayed by Donald Sutherland in 1987's adaptation of "The Rosary Murders".
Author. A former Roman Catholic priest, he is remembered as the creator of Father Bob Koesler, a Detroit clergyman and the detective of two dozen well-received mystery novels. Raised in Detroit, he was ordained in 1954 and for the next 20 years served as pastor of a number of parishes in the Detroit Archdiocese and for a time was editor of "The Michigan Catholic". As his career went on Kienzle grew dissatisfied with the strictures of canon law and with some Church policies leading him to leave the priesthood, but not the Catholic Church, in 1974. That same year he married a Detroit journalist and relocated to Minneapolis where he worked as a magazine editor. Kienzle headed Dallas' Center for Contemplative Studies then returned home; in 1978 he published "The Rosary Murders" in which Catholic clergy are being killed while a priest with knowledge of the villain finds himself bound by the seal of the confessional. He followed his initial success in 1980 with "Death Wears a Red Hat" and over the years had Father Bob and a reoccurring supporting cast confront the Mafia, clerical malefactors Roman and otherwise, voodoo, and an assortment of everyday criminals while dealing with a number of ethical difficulties occasioned by Catholic Church rules. Kienzle produced a steady stream of books until his death from a heart attack with his final offering, "The Gathering", being posthumously published in 2002. Father Bob made it to the silver screen once when he was portrayed by Donald Sutherland in 1987's adaptation of "The Rosary Murders".
Bio by: Bob Hufford
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