Carlene O'Connor > Quotes

“A life that was surprisingly full, even though it was simple. Or maybe because it was simple.”
― Carlene O'Connor, Murder in an Irish Village

“Every person is like a lock, her da used to say. If you want to spring them open, you just have to find the right key.”
― Carlene O'Connor, Murder in an Irish Village

“through. Grief was a thief, stealing bits of you like a vulture, pecking anew when you least expected it. “I went to the restroom after we took the photo,” Brandon said, snapping his fingers.”
― Carlene O'Connor, Murder in an Irish Churchyard

“Home should be like a soft cushion to fall upon at the end of a hard day.”
― Carlene O'Connor, Murder at an Irish Wedding

“Silly, how much time human beings wasted on things that didn’t matter.”
― Carlene O'Connor, Murder in an Irish Village

“Hand fasting was an old Irish tradition in which the bride and groom’s hands would literally be tied together during the ceremony. It’s where tying the knot came from.”
― Carlene O'Connor, Murder at an Irish Wedding

“Siobhán wished she could control the thoughts that popped into her mind. She’d have to settle for being grateful that nobody else could hear them.”
― Carlene O'Connor, Murder at an Irish Christmas

“Lucky for us, once glitter gets out, it’s almost impossible to clean it all up.”
― Carlene O'Connor, Murder at an Irish Christmas

“It was their money. Entitlement should be one of the seven deadly sins.”
― Carlene O'Connor, Murder in an Irish Churchyard

“She hated the Irish way of answering most everything with sarcasm disguised as a question.”
― Carlene O'Connor, Murder in an Irish Village

“much to do to get ready. Father Kearney wouldn’t be happy with them, but hopefully he would understand. The next hour flew by as they put the finishing touches on everything.”
― Carlene O'Connor, Murder in an Irish Village

“through a patch of vibrant trees glowing from the kiss of rain, reminding Siobhán why her home was called the Emerald Isle. The leaves indeed sparkled like precious emeralds. And she knew that, if forced to make a choice, she’d rather gaze upon this beautiful land than wear true emeralds around her neck.”
― Carlene O'Connor, Murder in an Irish Village

“INGREDIENTS 2½ cups stone ground whole wheat flour
1½ cups white flour (some bakers use whole wheat again)
½ cup rolled oats
1½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1¾ cups buttermilk
2 Tablespoons molasses or treacle (optional, but Siobhán uses it)
Siobhán even splashes in some Guinness for luck. In a large bowl, combine all flour, oats, salt, and baking soda. In a separate bowl, whisk together the buttermilk and molasses. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the buttermilk mixture. (Add a drop of Guinness for good luck.) Stir with a fork or spatula until combined. Cover your hands with flour and knead the dough into a ball. Place the dough ball on a lined baking sheet and press it flat, a few inches thick. With a knife, make a cross on top of the loaf. Bake at 450°F for 15 minutes. Then reduce to 400°F and bake an additional 20 to 25 minutes, until the bottom of the bread sounds hollow when tapped. Note: I once asked an Irish woman for her brown bread recipe. She let me know that recipes are handed down, not out. So I pushed my luck and asked how hers was so soft. She relented on this and suggested longer baking times at lower heat, that is, 180 degrees for one hour.”
― Carlene O'Connor, Murder at an Irish Christmas

“Siobhán sighed. “Sometimes doing things for money takes all the love out of it.”
― Carlene O'Connor, Murder in an Irish Village

“When the roots of a tree begin to decay, it spreads death to the branches.”
― Carlene O'Connor, Murder in an Irish Garden

“It didn’t matter what was happening in the world; there was nothing”
― Carlene O'Connor, Murder in an Irish Village

“Sometimes doing things for money takes all the love out of it.”
― Carlene O'Connor, Murder in an Irish Village

“Butler’s Undertaker, Lounge, and Pub”
― Carlene O'Connor, Murder in an Irish Village

“Until one experienced a profound loss of their own it was impossible to explain that sorrow never vanishes. It was a war fought not in long, drawn-out battles, but in the everyday, unexpected moments.”
― Carlene O'Connor, Murder in an Irish Cottage

“Hope is like a balloon,” Sheila Bisby said. “It can’t fly to the heavens if you’re hanging on to the string.”
― Carlene O'Connor, Murder at an Irish Chipper

“What do we know about the Yank?"
"The one you were flirting with in there?"
"I was not flirting."
"You were flirting."
"You catch more flies with honey."
"Yeah? Well why in the heck would you want to catch flies in the first place?"
He had her there.”
― Carlene O'Connor, Murder in an Irish Village

“I thought the butler always did it," someone remarked under their breath.”
― Carlene O'Connor, Murder in an Irish Village

“You would do the same thing if a dead body turned up in your home."
Siobhán stopped when she remembered who she was talking to. "I mean, if you weren't an undertaker like.”
― Carlene O'Connor, Murder in an Irish Village

“The avocado was chopped along with hardboiled eggs and seasoned with sea salt and a bit of cayenne pepper, then laid on top of thick toasted bread, slathered with butter. Tiny bits of radish and cilantro topped it off.”
― Carlene O'Connor, Murder in Connemara

“for”
― Carlene O'Connor, Murder in an Irish Pub

“Save your strength for your darkest days, her mam used to say when Siobhán was bothered over some trifle of a problem—a boy who didn’t fancy her, or a friend who didn’t invite her to go shopping with the other girls, or a less than perfect mark in school, or heaven forbid she gained half a stone over the holidays. Such were the worries that used to rock her world. Silly, how much time human beings wasted on things that didn’t matter. She”
― Carlene O'Connor, Murder in an Irish Village

“She was daft. That's what she was. Completely mental. There was no other explanation for why she was lurking in the back of Butler's Undertaker Lounge and Pub while her siblings were about to go in the front so they could distract him.”
― Carlene O'Connor, Murder in an Irish Village

“Siobhán batted her eyelashes. “Do you have something stuck in your eye?” he asked politely.”
― Carlene O'Connor, Murder in an Irish Village

“Save your strength for your darkest days, her mam used to say when Siobhán was bothered over some trifle of a problem”
― Carlene O'Connor, Murder in an Irish Village

“Entitlement should be one of the seven deadly sins.”
― Carlene O'Connor, Murder in an Irish Churchyard