Author: Kerry Greenwood
Publisher: Allen & Unwin
Review and tribute: Jacqui Horwood
Note: published on the one year anniversary of the day that Kerry Greenwood left us ‘for the Plains of Heaven’.
While the much-loved author Kerry Greenwood wrote more than sixty books over her lifetime, her enduring legacy is the Honorable Phryne Fisher. The wonderful Phryne has kept us captivated through 24 books, three-season TV series and a movie with her wit, intelligence and refusal to live her life according to society’s rules.
Kerry always said that Phryne just appeared one day, walked through the door, and demanded Kerry’s attention. I’m sure Phryne would have been very well-dressed when she did so.
Kerry’s death in 2025 has left a gaping hole in Melbourne’s reading and writing community. She was a major figure in the history of Sisters in Crime Australia and we all miss her. Much like Phyrne, she too was witty, intelligent and lived her life her own way.
So it is bittersweet to be reading the final Phryne Fisher outing, Murder in the Cathedral. In this book, we meet Phyrne and the soon-to-be-married Dot on a train to Bendigo. Phryne’s war time friend, Lionel Watkins, is about to be ordained Bishop of Bendigo, and he has invited her to attend. Phryne though suspects ulterior motives and she is right. One of Lionel’s deacons has something urgent to tell Lionel but won’t tell him until after the ordination. Of course, Deacon Holloway doesn’t make it through the ordination to unburden himself.
Starting like your classic locked-room mystery, the crime in this book happens at the ordination in a crowded cathedral. How did the killer manage this feat and how did they get away? Phryne of course is in the midst of everything, leading us through the streets of Bendigo to find the murderer. Along the way, there are long-held secrets to be covered and societal conventions to be upended.
Kerry was a Legal Aid solicitor so, given her experiences with the realities of crime and its impact, made a choice to write cosy crime. Life could be grim but books didn’t have to be. Murder in the Cathedral has Kerry’s familiar light touch, her humour, and her love of history. It is a book to be read slowly and savoured. Then when you have finished, find a copy of Cocaine Blues and take the journey with the Honorable Phryne Fisher all over again.
Publishers blurb
The indefatigable Miss Phryne Fisher returns to solve what may be her most puzzling murder.
When Phryne Fisher is invited to Bendigo to witness the investiture of her old friend Lionel, who is being made a Bishop, her expectations of the solemn and dignified ceremony do not include a murder.
Phryne quickly involves herself with perspicacious local Constable Watson and eagle-eyed Detective Inspector Mick Kelly as they identify the murder victim – an overzealous deacon with a nose for trouble.
Applying her quick wits and magnetic charm, Phryne and her expanding team of sleuths discover murky layers of church politics, social scandals and business scams and blackmail. Soon, various suspects begin to populate a long list, each with excellent motives to kill.
Meanwhile the clock is ticking … Will Phryne be able to bring to light the proof she needs before the murderer strikes again or disappears completely?