Highly prolific Irish author Leonard Wibberley (1915–1983) sometimes wrote under the names Patrick O'Connor and Christopher Webb. As Leonard Holton he also penned the action-packed Father Joseph Bredder mystery thrillers.
The series begins with The Saint Maker (1959):
Father Bredder is a Catholic priest and amateur sleuth based in Los Angeles. He is a former professional boxer and a sergeant in the US Marine Corps.
He is currently trying to make peace with the cold, disapproving Reverend Mother of the convent where he is chaplain, by sending her a present of a melon. Unfortunately, she discovers that what the bag actually contains is a woman's head.The series ends 10 books later with A Corner of Paradise (1977).
About the author
Born in Dublin, Wibberley worked as a reporter in London before moving to the USA in 1943 and finally settling in California.
He produced over 100 books, of which the best known is The Mouse that Roared (1955, also published as The Wrath of Grapes), a Cold War satire about a tiny European state that declares war on the USA.
Three of his books have been made into movies: The Mouse That Roared (1959, with Peter Sellars in multiple roles), The Mouse on the Moon (1963) and The Hands of Cormac Joyce (1972).
He also published over 50 children's books, short stories, plays, historical novels, YA novels and science fiction.
