Ralph McInerny Books in Order
110 books are credited to Ralph McInerny, published between 1967 and 2014; 2 of them appeared after Ralph McInerny's death in 2010. The first book is Jolly Rogerson (1967) and the newest is A Student's Guide to Philosophy (2014). Publication order is the reading order below.
- Books
- 110
- Published
- 1967–2014
- Confirmed
- 110 of 110 titles
- Pages on record
- 24,632 in 100 of 110 books
- Reading time
- 411–616 hours
Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 24,632 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 100 of 110 titles with a page count on record.
Ralph McInerny (February 24, 1929 to January 29, 2010) was an American novelist and a professor of philosophy at the University of Notre Dame. Father Dowling is the priest at the centre of the most popular McInerny mysteries, which were adapted as the Father Dowling Mysteries television series from 1987 to 1991. The catalogue holds 110 books from Jolly Rogerson (1967) to A Student's Guide to Philosophy (2014), including philosophy titles such as Thomism in an Age of Renewal (1968). Other series include Sister Mary Teresa, Andrew Broom and Notre Dame. McInerny also used the pen names Monica Quill, Harry Austin, Matthew FitzRalph, Ernan Mackey and Edward Mackin.
How many Ralph McInerny books are there?
Ralph McInerny has 110 books, released between 1967 and 2014. 2 of them were published after Ralph McInerny's death in 2010. They include 8 separate series.
Ralph McInerny Books in Publication Order
The table lists all 110 Ralph McInerny books in the order they were published, with the release year, the page count where one is on record, and how many independent book listings confirm each title. Catalogue data as of September 2026.
- 11967–3/4
- 219682063/4
- 319684163/4
- 41969–3/4
- 519735313/4
- 619752933/4
- 719762163/4
- 819772103/4
- 919771983/4
- 1019771603/4
- 1119782193/4
- 1219782123/4
- 1319781163/4
- 1419782093/4
- 151979–3/4
- 1619802243/4
- 1719811923/4
- 1819812553/4
- 1919822083/4
- 2019822333/4
- 2119831853/4
- 2219841723/4
- 2319841843/4
- 2419851863/4
- 2519853203/4
- 261985–3/4
- 2719861823/4
- 2819862103/4
- 2919872063/4
- 3019871823/4
- 3119882053/4
- 3219882003/4
- 3319881993/4
- 3419892453/4
- 3519891973/4
- 3619892563/4
- 3719892603/4
- 3819902153/4
- 3919902683/4
- 401990–3/4
- 4119911503/4
- 4219912183/4
- 4319912433/4
- 4419912613/4
- 4519912903/4
- 4619922403/4
- 4719922443/4
- 4819922503/4
- 4919922503/4
- 5019932503/4
- 511993743/4
- 5219932223/4
- 531993–3/4
- 5419933463/4
- 5519942153/4
- 5619945873/4
- 5719951493/4
- 58The Case of the Constant CallerFather Dowling Young Adult Mystery #21995 · 139 pages · confirmed 3/419951393/4
- 5919952023/4
- 6019951843/4
- 6119961693/4
- 6219967503/4
- 6319973203/4
- 6419971983/4
- 6519972293/4
- 6619982283/4
- 6719981683/4
- 6819985813/4
- 691999–3/4
- 7020002553/4
- 7120002873/4
- 7220002323/4
- 7320003483/4
- 7420003743/4
- 7520012353/4
- 7620012253/4
- 77Death Takes the Veil and Other StoriesSister Mary Teresa Mystery #102001 · 216 pages · confirmed 3/420012163/4
- 7820011523/4
- 7920012113/4
- 8020013713/4
- 8120022103/4
- 8220022083/4
- 8320023413/4
- 8420032953/4
- 85The Very Rich Hours of Jacques MaritainRalph McInerny Non-Fiction #172003 · 235 pages · confirmed 3/420032353/4
- 862003–3/4
- 8720033073/4
- 8820042343/4
- 8920042083/4
- 9020042633/4
- 912005963/4
- 9220052323/4
- 9320052603/4
- 9420062403/4
- 9520061673/4
- 9620062603/4
- 9720072403/4
- 9820071543/4
- 9920072883/4
- 10020082313/4
- 10120082643/4
- 10220093233/4
- 10320093113/4
- 10420093433/4
- 10520092793/4
- 10620101003/4
- 1072010–3/4
- 10820101643/4
- 10920113463/4
- 1102014–3/4
Ralph McInerny characters in order
Each character linked below has its own reading-order page.
- Father Dowling books in order 32 books
- Sister Mary Teresa books in order 10 books
Ralph McInerny books grouped by series
Each title below is a row in the publication-order table above. A group whose heading is a link has its own reading-order page; the other groups have no page of their own on this site.
Father Dowling books in order
30 books by Ralph McInerny- 1. Her Death of Cold
- 2. Bishop as Pawn
- 3. The Seventh Station
- 4. Lying Three
- 5. Second Vespers
- 6. Thicker Than Water
- 7. A Loss of Patients
- 8. The Grass Widow
- 9. Getting a Way with Murder
- 10. Rest in Pieces
- 11. The Basket Case
- 12. Abracadaver / Slight of Body
- and 18 more in the table above
Ralph McInerny Non-Fiction
20 books20 titles published under this heading without a numbered place in a series.
Ralph McInerny Standalone Novels
19 books19 titles published under this heading without a numbered place in a series.
Notre Dame in order
13 books- 1. On This Rockne
- 2. Lack of the Irish
- 3. Irish Tenure
- 4. The Book of Kills
- 5. Emerald Aisle
- 6. Celt and Pepper
- 7. Irish Coffee
- 8. Green Thumb
- 9. Irish Gilt
- 10. The Letter Killeth
- 11. Irish Alibi
- 12. The Green Revolution
- and 1 more in the table above
Sister Mary Teresa Mystery in order
10 booksAndrew Broom in order
6 booksRalph McInerny in order
3 booksFather Dowling Young Adult Mystery in order
2 booksEgidio Manfredi in order
2 books- 1. Still Life
- 2. Sub Rosa
Rosary Chronicles in order
2 booksProceedings of the Wethersfield Institute in order
1 bookMurder Most in order
1 bookISI Guides to the Major Disciplines in order
1 bookDo you have to read Ralph McInerny books in order?
You only need to read Ralph McInerny books in order within each series: the books listed here span 8 separate series, and each series has its own publication order.
Where to start with Ralph McInerny
Start with the first book of the Ralph McInerny series you want to read: Father Dowling starts with Her Death of Cold (1977) and Sister Mary Teresa starts with Not a Blessed Thing (1981). The earliest catalogued title overall is Jolly Rogerson (1967).
What is the newest Ralph McInerny book?
A Student's Guide to Philosophy (2014) is the newest Ralph McInerny book released so far.
Is there a new Ralph McInerny book coming?
No next Ralph McInerny book is announced in the catalogue, which is a gap in the listings it merges rather than a sign that the run has ended.
Ralph McInerny at a glance
- Died
- Ralph McInerny died in 2010, according to Wikidata.
- After death
- Books credited to Ralph McInerny are still being published after Ralph McInerny's death in 2010; the newest appeared in 2014.
- Release pace
- Ralph McInerny books have appeared more than one a year on average.
- Length
- 24,632 pages across the 100 of 110 books with a recorded length, a median of 228 pages each.
- Busiest decade
- Most Ralph McInerny books, 36 of 110, were published in the 2000s.
What the Ralph McInerny books are about
96 of the 110 Ralph McInerny books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: catholics is tagged on 38 of 96. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.
- Catholics 38 of 96 books
- Father Dowling (Fictitious character) 29 of 96 books
- Clergy 28 of 96 books
- Mystery & detective 20 of 96 books
- College teachers 14 of 96 books
- Catholic Church 13 of 96 books
- Private investigators 13 of 96 books
- University of Notre Dame 12 of 96 books
- Dowling, father (fictitious character) 11 of 96 books
- Nuns 10 of 96 books
- Indiana 9 of 96 books
- Roger Knight (Fictitious character) 9 of 96 books