Peter Quinn books

Peter Quinn is an American author of historical fiction and non-fiction, known for the Fintan Dunne detective trilogy and the American Book Award-winning novel Banished Children of Eve.

Fintan Dunne Reading Order

Title Published Buy on Amazon
The Hour of the Cat 2005 Buy
The Man Who Never Returned 2010 Buy
Dry Bones 2013 Buy

Non-Fiction

Title Published Buy on Amazon
Looking for Jimmy 2007 Buy

Standalone Novels

Title Published Buy on Amazon
Banished Children of Eve 2008 Buy

Peter Quinn earned his bachelor’s degree from Manhattan College and a master’s in history from Fordham University. He worked as a speechwriter in political and corporate settings before turning to fiction. His first novel, Banished Children of Eve, won the American Book Award and tells the story of New York City during the Civil War draft riots.

Quinn’s Fintan Dunne trilogy picks up a descendant of one of that novel’s characters and follows him through decades of New York history as a private detective. The Hour of the Cat (2005) is set in the late 1930s and involves a Nazi-inspired eugenics plot. The Man Who Never Returned (2010) revisits the real unsolved disappearance of New York Supreme Court Justice Joseph Crater in 1930. Dry Bones (2013) moves into the early Cold War, with Dunne working for the OSS, the forerunner of the CIA.

Quinn has also written the non-fiction essay collection Looking for Jimmy, which explores Irish-American identity and history. His fiction blends real historical events with noir-inflected mystery, rooted in the streets and politics of New York City.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many books has Peter Quinn written?

Peter Quinn has written five books across three series.

What was Peter Quinn's first book?

Peter Quinn’s first book is The Hour of the Cat, published in 2005.

What is the Fintan Dunne series about?

The Fintan Dunne series follows an Irish-American private detective through key moments of twentieth-century New York history. The Hour of the Cat is set on the eve of World War II, The Man Who Never Returned investigates the real-life disappearance of Judge Joseph Crater, and Dry Bones takes Dunne into Cold War espionage with the OSS.

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