#MurderinGalway – Rosepoint Publishing

Rosepoint Reviews – April Recap – May Day? Already?

Rosepoint Reviews - April Recap

You’ve all heard it…”the best laid plans”…blah, blah, blah

Sorta of what happened with my April which blew by me with our new, not necessarily improved, weekly schedule. Perhaps I can lay it at the feet of the “Y” schedule we’ve adopted. I mentioned last month joining the recreational facility and discovering all kinds of exercise (and social) opportunities, many for us seniors.

Suffice to say, we’ve settled into a “senior (exercise) circuit” (Tuesday), machine circuit and indoor cycling (for me), rowing (for the CE) on Wednesday, and Tai Chi on Thursday. (There are also yoga classes, but in studying the benefits of both, decided that the former was the better choice for our age and goals (balance, whole body). With traveling there and back and incurring ravenous appetites, the remaining available time on those days is limited.

Needless to say, no spring cleaning started, no veggie or flower starts.

Okay, new spring plans: I’ve decided to take a blogging sabbatical. I’ve talked about decreasing the number of posts, either it hasn’t happened or didn’t make a significant difference to my schedule. Blogging does appear to be a full-time job—and I’ve retired twice already. So…

Beginning May 11, I’ll be concentrating on home projects, including said spring cleaning and gardens until May 22. May 14 will mark my first attendance to the “Y” Book Club. National Rescue Dog Day occurs on May 20^th and I hope to acknowledge Punkin that day. May 8^th marks nineteen months with us.

Guess I pretty much stuck to status quo as we read and reviewed twelve books in April.

Of the twelve, six were audiobooks. I got into gothic horror and magical paranormal in April, sampled new authors (to me) as well as favorites and discovered two new K-9 series, both of which I enjoyed, one I’ll continue.

I source many titles through my library, a few in NetGalley, as well as author and publisher requests. As always, the links on titles are to our reviews that include purchase information.

Rosepoint Reviews - April Recap

Open Season by Jonathan Kellerman (audiobook)
Murder in Galway by Carlene O’Connor (CE review-#begorrathon25)
Watchers by Dean Koontz (5*)
The Neon Rain by James Lee Burke (audiobook)
The Cartagena Cartel by T C Roberts (CE review)
A Lesson in Dying by Ann Cleeves
Accidental Magic by Iris Beaglehole (audiobook)
The Stranger Diaries by Elly Griffiths (audiobook)
Chasing Justice by Kathleen Donnelly
The Paris Express by Emma Donoghue (audiobook)
Breaking Creed by Alex Kava (audiobook)
Hunting the Truth by Kathleen Donnelly

Favorite Book of the Month

One five-star review for April? Hard to believe, especially since the CE read and reviewed two. Still, even with just a few little credibility problems, I have to name Watchers as my favorite for the month. Hey, it’s a story about a dog. Not just any dog. This is a special—very, very special, lab dog. Could mean Labrador, but in this case (remember who is the author), the dog named Einstein is a laboratory dog. Okay, I’m easily entertained, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. Great characters, both human and canine. Fast-paced, hard to put down. It’s an old one but a good one.

Favorite for April – Watchers by Dean Koontz

My Reading Challenges page…Okay, don’t faint. I’ve caught up the Reading Challenges page. Dang, I’m proud of myself! And I really hope you’ll check it out if for no other reason than to note my latest counts.

But here’s a conundrum: My Goodreads landing page shows the 2025 Reading Challenge at 63 books completed of the goal of 150 (changed up from 125). But when I go to copy the latest widget HTML to update my blog, it notes a count of 53. Ten difference? How did that happen?

Welcome to my new subscribers! I hope you found a book or two that appealed to you and I always appreciate suggestions! Have a beautiful May!

Have a good week!

Murder in Galway by Carlene O’Connor #BookReview #InternationalMystery&Crime

A Home to Ireland Mystery Book 1

Book Blurb:

In the first installment of bestselling author Carlene O’Connor’s new Home to Ireland Mystery series, New York Tara Meehan’s first trip to Galway, Ireland may be her last.

Jump right into the beauty and splendor—and murder—of Tara’s Irish adventure! With a gorgeous setting, suspicious characters, and a deadly mystery—Murder in Galway will have you packing your bags…

Tara never imagined her introduction to Ireland like this—carrying her mam’s ashes to honor her final request: “Tell Johnny I’m sorry…Take me home.” She’s never met her mam’s estranged brother, Johnny Meehan, who owns an architectural salvage business in Galway. Although Tara is immediately charmed by the medieval city, the locals seem wary of strangers and a gypsy warns her that death is all around.

When Tara arrives at her uncle’s stone cottage, the prophesy seems true. A dead man lies sprawled over the threshold in a pool of blood. The victim turns out to be Johnny’s wealthiest client, and her missing uncle is the garda’s number-one suspect. In trying to find Johnny and solve the crime, Tara uncovers her mam and uncle’s troubled past. But with a desperate killer about, she had better mind herself, or they’ll be tossing her ashes in Galway Bay…

His Review:

Ah, the lure of Ireland to the progeny of Irish ancestors. Tara’s mother had immigrated to the United States from Ireland in her mid20’s. She did not explain to her daughter why she immigrated except that she had some “troubles” with a few of her neighbors. The problem was never explained. Upon her mother’s death Tara decided to go back to Ireland to see if she could understand the reason why.

There is an old warehouse full of odds and ends that has supported her mother’s brother since she left Ireland. Tara goes to the old warehouse in which her mother has an interest. Upon arriving at the building, a dead man is sprawled across the threshold of the business! The local law enforcement called Guarda start to investigate with Tara’s uncle being the principal suspect. In Galway less than 24 hours and she is already embroiled in a major crime!

Tara is an aspiring investigator and she begins to outline the crime and possible suspects. Meanwhile, the Guarda is working to get enough evidence to charge Tara with the crime. Their recommendation is that she leave Ireland immediately.

A budding romance blossoms between Tara and a young man named Danny, however, who has been operating the business since her uncle’s disappearance. The evidence of the crimes seems to always circle back to Tara’s visit to her mother’s homeland!

This book has many interesting twists and turns and a budding romance between Tara and Danny. Will the death spoil their chance for romance? Will Tara be charged with murder? These questions and many more are answered in the book. Read and enjoy this Irish mystery in Book 1 of A Home to Ireland Mystery series Book 1.

[Note: This book was on my list for #ReadingIrelandMonth25 this year, but didn’t get posted in March. It’s late.

[I read Book 2, A Murder in Connemara back in July of 2021 and really enjoyed it. I also read the last three O’Connor novels from the County Kerry series and many more from her other series as well. Thought the CE would enjoy this one. I must say, he was ready to pack his bags and fly to the Emerald Isle.]

C E Williams We received a copy of this book from our library that in no way influenced this review. These are my honest thoughts. 4.5 stars – CE Williams

Rosepoint Publishing: Four point Five Stars

Book Details:

Genre: International Mystery & Crime, Cozy Culinary Mysteries, Ghost Mysteries
Publisher: Kensington Cozies
ASIN: B07TT34D26
Print Length: 297 pages
Publication Date: April 28, 2020
Source: Local Library

Title Link(s):

Amazon-US | Amazon-UK | Barnes & Noble | Kobo

The Author: USA Today bestselling author Carlene O’Connor comes from a long line of Irish storytellers. Her great-grandmother emigrated from Ireland to America and the stories have been flowing ever since. Of all the places across the pond she’s wandered, she fell most in love with a walled town in County Limerick and was inspired to create the town of Kilbane, County Cork. She writes the bestselling IRISH VILLAGE MYSTERIES, the HOME TO IRELAND series, and the new COUNTY KERRY MYSTERIES. Her books have been translated into numerous languages, and optioned for television. Readers can find her at Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100086525205106 or through her website: http://www.carleneoconnor.net