William X. Kienzle William X. Kienzle ( September 11 1928 - December 28 2001 ) was born in Detroit , Michigan . Kienzle was a Roman Catholic priest for 20 years , before leaving the priesthood to begin a second career as a mystery writer . He was the author of twenty-four crime fiction/mystery novels featuring Father Robert Koesler , a Catholic priest who doubles as a detective . One of his best known novels is The Rosary Murders ( 1979 ) , which was made into a movie starring Donald Sutherland as Father Robert Koesler . Most of Kienzle 's books take place , at least partly , in Detroit , Michigan . His biography , JUDGED BY LOVE , by Javan Kienzle , was published in 2003 .  This article about an American writer is a stub . You can help Wikipedia by expanding it . Categories : United States writer stubs | Michigan writers | 1928 births | 2001 deaths 