Well, it is six days into March and I have enjoyed my immersion into Irish Culture. I have read 2 books and am partway into 2 others. I also watched one movie set in Dublin, whose storyline involved music.
The Lost Child (D.I. Lottie Parker #3) by Patricia Gibney, Michele Moran (Narrator)
Published October 27th 2017 by Bookouture
4.5 Stars:
The Lost Child is the 3rd book in the D.I. Lottie Parker series and it can be read as a standalone, but there are some references to cases in previous books. D.I. Parker and her partner D.I. Boyd are called in to investigate the murder of an elderly woman, and discover that her daughter is missing. When she is found, she has been beaten and mutilated. Two days later, a nearby house is set on fire with two people inside. As they continue to investigate they aren’t sure if it is drugs, or relates back to a case that Lottie’s father was investigating before he killed himself. although Lottie is not convinced that it was a suicide.
Lottie Parker is a woman, a mother, a widow and a detective that has a lot of baggage. She engages in a lot of self-destructive behaviour. She lives with her mother, her daughter who is a new mother and her son, but no one else seems to do anything around the house but her. She and her mother have a very antagonistic relationship and her kids were involved in her last case, not in positive ways. Despite all of these, she is good at her job. She has book instincts and is able to tie things together well. Some of the crimes are a gruesome but each one gives Parker and Boyd another clue. The mystery they are tracking goes back years. There is child abandonment, mental health issues, abuse, family secrets, drugs and corruption all involved. The ending was shocking and it answered a lot of questions. This is a series that I hope to catch up on this year and The Lost Child has me ready to pick up the next book to see what is next for Lottie, her partner, and family. I listened to this book, narrated by Michele Morin. I listened to the first two books and am enjoying her voice for D.I. Lottie Parker. She has the perfect accent for the characters in this book and her storytelling is perfect with expression where needed to emphasize parts of the story.
Irish Milkshake Murder by Carlene O’Connor, Peggy Ehrhart, & Liz Ireland
Published December 26th 2023 by Kensington Cozies
3 Stars: ⭐⭐⭐
I enjoy these holiday anthologies that Kensington puts out during the year, but this one missed the mark for me. I think this one missed as two of the three stories were from series I don’t read for different reasons. Each one had an Irish Milkshake as part of the story. It might have been the murder weapon, something the characters like to drink or an offering at the local restaurant, but it is there. I enjoyed the first story: IRISH MILKSHAKE MURDER by CARLENE O’CONNOR. Tara Meehan and Danny O’Donnell are off to the Aran Islands with their bridesmaids and groomsmen for a joint hen and stag party. On the ferry to Inis Mór, the passengers enjoy boozy milkshakes and entertainment from a pair of famous Irish-dancing twin brothers. Unfortunately, one of the brothers dies while drinking his shake. This is a bit of a closed door mystery as it had to be someone on the boat. When the captain disappears, he is the main suspect. The investigation continues while on the island, with a storm raging and no one able to leave. It was a fun story with a great investigation and a surprising culprit. The second story: MURDER MOST IRISH by PEGGY EHRHART involves the death of a man after drinking “The Leprechaun Shake”. Pamela Paterson and her Knit & Nibble knitting club pal, Bettina Fraser are on the case trying to determine who and why the murder occurred. This series is one I stopped reading due to the amount of detail given about food and knitting projects. The mystery was well written and I enjoyed seeing how Pamela and Bettina sorted it out, but it was just okay. One thing I did like was the recipe for the Irish Coffee Mallow Dessert. The final story, MRS. CLAUS AND THE LUCKLESS LEPRECHAUN by LIZ IRELAND, was the one I liked the least, not because of the writing, but the setting of the North Pole and the characters, Mrs. Claus, elves and reindeer, just didn’t call to me. The mystery involved an elf being injured thus endangering his team’s entrance into a sporting event, the iceball tournament. There are reindeer with confidence issues that help to save the day, minty milkshakes being sold in the local ice-cream shop and jealousy. The solving of the mystery was well done, but I didn’t really care by that point. Again, not the fault of the writing, just me. I’m sure those that enjoy this series will enjoy this one. Overall, just an okay read for me. I did a read/listen to Irish Milkshake Murder narrated by Callie Beaulieu. She is a familiar narrator to me and I enjoy her performances.
This book isn’t really an Irish one, although Carlene O’Connor is Irish and her story is set in Ireland, I chose it because the theme is St. Patrick’s Day.
Once: a romantic musical drama film
Once is a romance set in Dublin. Glen Hansard plays a street singer who works with his father in his Hoover repair shop. He meets a Czech immigrant played by Marketa Irglova, who earns a living selling flowers. She enjoys his music and encourages him to make a demo, she is sure his can make it big. They work together writing lyrics and music and eventually hire some other musicians to make a demo. Along the way, they fall in love, but can not do anything about it. The ending left me feeling a bit melancholy. It wasn’t sad, but it wasn’t the happily ever after I was looking for either. I really enjoyed this movie and most of the music. I hopped onto google to look up Glen Hansard and listen to some of his music. He has quite a list and I liked it as well.
March 9, 2024 at 12:20 pm
Great reviews, Carla! They all sounds interesting. Too bad anthology turned out okay.
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March 9, 2024 at 2:27 pm
Thanks, Yesha. I guess we can’t love them all.
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March 8, 2024 at 8:24 pm
Once is one of my favorite musicals! It’s based off of the movie and one quite a few Tony Awards.
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March 8, 2024 at 8:35 pm
I saw that when I googled it. I really enjoyed it.
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March 8, 2024 at 5:31 pm
What perfect timing for the Irish stories Carla. My mom and I were just talking about the common use of the F word. She said that the younger adults even used it at her church functions. My kids would never use it in front of me yet I’m sure they probably do otherwise. What really irritates me is when parents use it in front of their kids then yell at the kid when they repeat it.
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March 8, 2024 at 5:37 pm
Yes, telling kids that it is a grown up word and they shouldn’t use it is a cop out. It is so commonplace anymore though.
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March 6, 2024 at 7:22 pm
Thanks for the heads up on the movie. I need something a little happier than that right now!
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March 7, 2024 at 9:17 am
It was a lovely story, but there is some use of the “f word” just a heads up. It is used in a song.
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March 8, 2024 at 4:20 pm
I have had people tell me that the “f word” is just common language these days and people don’t mean anything by it. I don’t buy that, and I would encourage people to read some books and expand their vocabularies so they can express themselves.
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March 8, 2024 at 5:34 pm
I read reviews of the movie and they said the same thing. The use of the word in Ireland is commonplace and not as vulgar as it used to be. I still cringe when I hear it though.
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March 6, 2024 at 10:30 am
Once is a lovely film I think, particularly the music. Thanks for a great round up.
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March 6, 2024 at 10:58 am
I really liked it, too bad it doesn’t seem to be well known.
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March 6, 2024 at 9:34 am
I haven’t heard of Once. I think it’s the kind of movie that my husband and I could watch together and appreciate.
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March 6, 2024 at 11:36 am
It is good but the “f word” is used often. Just an FYI
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March 6, 2024 at 8:38 am
Fab reviews Carla too bad that anthology missed the mark.
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March 6, 2024 at 11:34 am
I need to check the titles and authors closer before I request them. Oh well. First so so book in awhile.
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