Dead in Dublin (The Dublin Driver Mysteries)
by Catie Murphy
About Dead in Dublin
Dead in Dublin (The Dublin Driver Mysteries)
Cozy Mystery
1st in Series
Publisher: Kensington (December 31, 2019)
Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages
ISBN-10: 1496724186
ISBN-13: 978-1496724182
Digital ASIN: B07Q3NPNFB
In Dublin’s fair city, where the girls are so pretty, murder occurs at the feet of sweet Molly Malone . . .
Ferrying tourists around Dublin for the Leprechaun Limo Service makes quite a change after years in the military. Still, Megan Malone is enjoying her life in Ireland. She likes the scenery, the easy pace, the quirky, quick-witted locals. Everything—except having one of her clients drop dead at the statue of fabled fishmonger, Molly Malone.
Most restaurant critics notch up their share of enemies. Elizabeth Darr, however, was a well-loved international star. She and her husband, Simon, had just had dinner when Elizabeth collapsed, and spoiled seafood is the first suspect. The restaurant’s owner, worried her business is doomed, begs Megan to look into it. Between her irate boss and a handsome Garda who’s both amused and annoyed by her persistence, Megan has her hands full even before she’s cajoled into taking care of two adorable Jack Russell puppies (which she is almost definitely not keeping). But if cockles and mussels aren’t to blame, can Megan find the real culprit . . .before another fishy death occurs?
Dead in Dublin is a fun read and a great start to a new series by author, Catie Murphy. Let’s get straight to the meat of the matter.
The mystery we have to solve is who killed Liz Darr, travel blogger and food critic. At first it doesn’t seem as if there will be many suspects, with her and her husband being on vacation and all, but the tale starts spinning and motives and possible suspects start popping. Megan’s involvement in the case isn’t too unrealistic as she simply promises to help find a few answers for Liz’s family. She’s also trying to help a friend clear her restaurant’s name of any wrong-doing. Along the way, Liz meets a sweet and competent detective, who just happens to be quite good-looking too! The clues are revealed at a good clip and enough red herrings are placed to keep the reader guessing. The plot does, at times, get more intricate and it’s only when certain connections are made that it’s possible to figure out the key to this murder-mystery puzzle.
In terms of characters, we meet several animated and interesting folks. Megan’s closest friends are a restaurateur, Fionn and an actress, Niamh, both of whom lend an element of sweetness and hilarity to the story. Their friendship will be a fun one to enjoy as the series progresses. Readers also meet the surly Orla, Megan’s boss, and the quirky Brian who runs a small-press publishing house out of his spare room.
The show-stealers, however, would have to be Mama dog and her adorable newborn puppies who manage to worm their way into Fionn’s restaurant and Meg’s heart. I can’t wait to find out if/ how Meg is going to keep these guys.
The Dublin setting is described in just the right amount of detail. Readers get a very real sense of the location and ambiance.
My only peeve is the constant ‘American comparisons’. One of the reasons I chose to read this story is that I was excited to read the Irish setting. I don’t need to know how everything from street sign locations to temperatures to ground floor locations compare between the countries. I’m happy to simply explore and enjoy the setting for what it is. Hopefully, as the series continues there will be less need to constantly compare U.S. versus Ireland.
That said, I really did like that the story is prefaced with a pronunciation guide for common Irish names. It is super informative and I’m pleased to be able to pronounce the names correctly! And I was thrilled to learn about the hauntingly beautiful Sinead O’Connor version of the Molly Malone song, which features quite prominently in the story.
Overall, Dead in Dublin is a clever beginning to what promises to be an intriguing series with quirky characters and an old world setting. I give this book 4/5 Irish espresso shots.
Disclaimer: I voluntarily read and reviewed this book. All opinions expressed are my own.
About Catie Murphy
Catie Murphy, who has written numerous award-winning fantasy and Sci-fi books under the pseudonym C. E. Murphy, began writing around age six, when she submitted three poems to a school publication. The teacher producing the magazine selected (inevitably) the one she thought was by far the worst, but also told her—a six-year-old kid—to keep writing, which she has. She has also held the usual grab-bag of jobs often seen in an authorial biography, including public library volunteer (at ages 9 and 10; it’s clear she was doomed to a career involving books), archival assistant, cannery worker, and web designer. Writing books is better. She was born and raised in Alaska, and now lives with her family in her ancestral homeland of Ireland.
Author Link – Website
Purchase Links – Amazon – B&N – Kobo – Kensington
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The Cozy Pages 
it really does sound fun. thinking it’d be a good choice for March!
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Oh yes… your Irish themed month of reading. It certainly would fit in. The story definitely brings out the Dublin setting.
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I have so many series on the go, that I passed on starting a new one, but this sounds like one I would enjoy. I can understand your frustration with the comparisons though.
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I think you would like it too…. but I so know what you mean about having so many series to follow. Oh my goodness… the comparisons. Lol. That really was the only thing i didn’t like though.
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