In 1945 in the Irish village of Creevagh, Phelim O'Brien, a handsome young man of eighteen, nervously awaits a letter accepting him for the novitiate. He doesn't want to become a celibate, for God's sake. Just the thought of Eileen Maille -- or the redheaded Catherine McGrath of the soft skin and delicately featured face that could eclipse the Sacred Heart itself -- can banish the scolding voice of church and conscience. But eternal good should prevail over fleeting pleasure, Father Coyne has taught him, and thus Phelim has decided: the priesthood is his only salvation from the fires of lust that bar his way to heaven.
Phelim's friend Philpot -- Pisspot to one and all -- refuses to accept that the tittle of carnal pleasure is a sin, and where Phelim resists, Philpot happily yields. Father Coyne admonishes, Catherine tempts, and tongues wag in this endearing tale of saints and sinners alike.
