Virgin and Martyr (1985)

Cathy Collins, the virgin and martyr of the title, grows up Irish Catholic in Chicago. Daughter of a religion-obsessed mother and a distant father, her major stability comes from her relationship to her cousins, particularly John "Blackie" Ryan, who loves her and watches as she becomes a nun, then leaves the church to marry and then returns to be a missionary. When she is killed by reactionary militia in Latin America, her family and her childhood sweetheart Nick reflect on her life and try to figure out what they might have done to help. Nick and Blackie search out information, trying to understand what happened in the final days of Cathy's life. This is one of Greeley's early novels about Blackie Ryan and the story is fresh and compelling. ( )