Murder at an Irish Wedding (Irish Village Mystery, #2)

by Carlene O'Connor

For whom the bell tolls . . .
 
The O’Sullivan clan of County Cork, Ireland, are thrilled to be catering the matrimonial affairs of a celebrity couple—until a cunning killer turns an Irish wedding into an Irish wake . . .
 
Any wedding is a big deal in the small village of Kilbane—even more so when the bride is a famous fashion model. Siobhán O’Sullivan and her five siblings have a full plate catering for the three-day affair. But when the best man is found murdered in the woods, his replacement, Siobhán’s own beau, local garda Macdara Flannery, is suddenly the best suspect. Like the bride walking down the aisle, Siobhán needs to watch her step. For as she gets closer to unveiling the truth, the murderer is planning a very chilly reception for her . . .
 
PRAISE FOR MURDER IN AN IRISH VILLAGE
 
“A smart whodunnit in an idyllic locale. I dare you not to be charmed by sleuth Siobhan and her siblings, the O’Sullivan Six.”
—Barbara Ross, author of Fogged Inn
 
“This entertaining combination of Maeve Binchy’s old-world Irish charm and Janet Evanovich’s roguish humor is a smart, fast-paced read. Devotees of the ­Hibernian mysteries of Dicey Deere and M.C. Beaton will toast this debut with a pint of Guinness. Sláinte!”
—Library Journal

• ISBN10: 1617738506
• ISBN13: 9781617738500
• Publish Date: 30 January 2018 (first published 28 February 2017)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Kensington Publishing
• Format: Paperback (US Mass Market)
• Pages: 308
• Language: English
• URL: https://penguinrandomhouse.ca/books/isbn/9781617738500

Reviews

[MurderByDeath]

I received this for fee at Bouchercon, and I'm pretty sure I met and liked the author.  Unfortunately, I can't say the same about the book.   It's the second in the series, and I've not read the first, so maybe there's some second book syndrome at play here, but mostly, it was the MC I just didn't click with. At all.  She's pushy, nosey and for someone who claims to not being a liar, lies an awful lot, be in a lie of omission, misrepresentation, or blatant untruth.  Some writers can take a character like this and make them likeable, or grudgingly admirable, but that failed to happen with Siobhán.  She just appeared incredibly immature.  How she maintains any relationship with her love interest, a member of the local garda, when she's so blatantly disrespectful of him and his responsibilities is a wonder.   What I did like was the setting: a small Irish village, one of the few remaining that are walled.  Some of the secondary characters were charming, and the mystery plot had a lot of potential.  Actually, the mystery plot was pretty good; I didn't guess the murderer at all, so the author completely fooled me.  I also appreciate that the author does the 'right thing' at the end of the book:  Siobhán signs up for the garda (or, presumably, enrols in the proper training course).  Maturity seems to be arriving in book three, though I'll just have to take the ending of this one at face value.  My TBR is too high to take chances on reading another.