The Irish Village Murder

Torrey Tunet #4

by Dicey Deere

When American translator and sometime sleuth Torrey Tunet returns home to the Irish village of Ballynagh, she wants nothing more than to relax in front of a peat fire in her cottage. But when she finds an eight-year-old girl at the bus stop, waiting forlornly in the gathering darkness, Torrey reluctantly takes charge of delivering the child to the country house where her usually dependable aunt serves as housekeeper. What they find at Gwathney Hall, however, is not a warmly welcoming Auntie it's cold-blooded murder. Historian John Gwathney has been brutally shot in his own house, and the immediate suspect is none other than his housekeeper-the girl's aunt-Megan O'Faolain.

Certain that her friend Megan is not a killer-and unable to resist a good mystery-Torrey vows to track down the murderer herself. As she digs deeper and deeper into Gwathney's research, looking for clues, she gets caught up in a whirlwind of theft, intrigue, and scandal.

Is the guilty party Megan's not-so-secret lover, jealous of the romance Megan and Gwathney had shared? Was it Gwathney's assistant, who stood to gain a great deal upon his mentor's death? Was it Owen Thorpe, whose castle Gwathney visited for mysterious purposes shortly before he was killed? And how does the famous historian's final project-an unprecedented piece of scholarly detective work into the Sack of Baltimore by Algerian pirates-fit into the mysterious puzzle of his murder?

As Torrey struggles to clear her friend's name and uncover the real killer, she must employ all her skills to find the key to this shocking crime-and prove that even in a small town such as Ballynagh, people can keep the most dangerous of secrets...

Genres: Mystery, Cozy Mystery, Cozy, Irish Literature, Ireland

304 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

Dicey Deere (1916-2015) was the nom de plume of Harriet (Adler) La Barre.

Reviews

[Richard Derus · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rating: 3* of five

The Publisher Says: Despite County Wicklow's dismal autumn rain, American translator Torrey Tunet is happy to be back in Ireland after a European assignment. She's longing for a lovely peat fire in her Ballynagh cottage when she spots a forlorn child fresh off the Dublin bus with no one to meet her. Reluctantly taking charge of delivering the child to Gwathney Hall, Torrey walks right into trouble. Historian John Gwathney has just been brutally gunned down, and the child's beautiful Auntie Megan--Gwathney's housekeeper and perhaps his lover--appears the likeliest suspect. But Torrey doesn't agree. She knows many eyes watch from behind the lace curtains of an Irish village, and no secrets are kept for long. Now, she's snooping into other people's business from the pub to the police station. Will her questions prove damning to a ruthless killer? Or deadly to herself?

My Review: Fourth in the series, I read this first. And to be honest, while it wasn't awful, it was nothing special and I don't want to pursue the series.

Why? Because. Well, if I'm honest, because it's got a staccato rhythm to its dialogue that made me twitch. Reminded me of an Ellen DeGeneres monologue, an experience I do NOT enjoy. People trail off, start up again somewhere else, and then simply run out of stuff to say.

Argh.

And then there are the chapters. They're perfect commercial-break-during-NCIS length. For others, this might be a good thing, but for me not so much. Plus I am less interested in clothing than author Deere appears to be. It isn't at all a *bad* book, just not one I found addictive. The mystery, which centers on a child, for once doesn't center on the danger to the child. I'm pleased by that, and by the community warmth and charm, and the sleuth's infectious good humor. She's a positive person, carping aside, and that makes for a better read than average. Try it...maybe start with the first one, The Irish Cottage Murder, but don't be reluctant if you're in the mood for a cozy and can deal with the dialogue's quirks.


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[Sarah (is clearing her shelves) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I hated the internal monologue and external dialogue throughout the whole book. The dialogue and internal thoughts were full of half-finished sentences and fragments of sentences that made reading feel like I was in a traffic jam that kept starting and stopping unpredictably. Passages like '"As a dealer, I deal constantly with private collectors, collectors who can afford... So if, at any time..." Blake Rossiter drew a card from his jacket pocket. Megan, holding the card, said, "Thank you, Mr. Rossiter. I've so far given no thought to... But thank you." Torrey waited by the window while Megan saw Blake Rossiter out and came back. "Nice-enough man," Megan said. "But I'd feel obligated to sell any paintings through Mr. Bendersford, if at all, and not through Mr.--" she glanced at the card she still held. "Through Mr. Rossiter. Not that I've thought of disposing of anything in Gwathney Hall as yet. I...I don't, I haven't...I'm not sure of my future plans."' left me frustrated and wondering why the characters can't manage to finish a thought (pretty much everyone talks and thinks like that).

The plot was okay, FULL of red herrings, but at least it kept me guessing till the end and that's what dragged it from an irritated two star to a begrudging three star book.

Going in the donation box and I won't be looking for any of the other three books in the series.

[Dannelle Kouf · Rating 3 out of 5]

A "cozy" murder mystery, nothing to gripping. Perfect as an easy read or palate cleanser between heavier reads. I appreciated that the storyline wasn't too predictable, and the ending was a bit of a surprise.

[Therese Gilardi · Rating 4 out of 5]

i like the characters, i love the setting - having lived in ireland, i'm amazed that a non-irish woman was able to nail the atmosphere. but the end of the book ... why that fifth star's not ticked. i just could not believe some of the twists to the plot. having said that, the author did a fantastic job of throwing out a lot of false leads.

[Colleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book. I read about half of it over the course of one day. I like the super short chapters and the way the author writes. She accomplishes a lot in a couple of paragraphs. I will likely read more from her series. I also enjoyed the witty Irish dialogue.

[Charlene King · Rating 4 out of 5]

Except for a few errors in time table, in the very beginning, I enjoyed this very much. Oh and some characters nead not be described exactly the same way every time, in every book!

[Corky · Rating 3 out of 5]

Easy to read, fun cozy set in a quaint Irish village with all the requisite quaint Irish characters. Protagonist Torrey, an American interpreter living in Ireland makes the story. She knows what the local gardia should be doing, even if they don't, or shall we say - when they don't?

[Chris, RN · Rating 4 out of 5]

well-written story. 1st book I read by this author, now I'm looking for more of them. Didn't catch on to the murderer until almost the end

[Sherry Mahi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very compelling.

I loved the setting, theme and most of all, the food references. Would have liked more personal insight from the lead character.

[Cathie Murphy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book. Plot and characters were interesting, but could have been more developed. Worth reading. Recommend.

[Jeanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Huh, I read this only a year ago but I completely forgot it. Also I decided that it’s not 4 stars but only 3. This time I noticed many of the errors. Torrey calls someone local at 8:30 in the morning and then calls her employer in Boston and is frustrated to get not a person but a voicemail. Well, duh. It’s still the middle of the night in Boston. Then multiple thunderstorms increase the tension in the plot - only thunderstorms are extremely rare in Ireland.

First 5/16/20 Total fluff but just what I needed after a couple of difficult books. Torrey Tunet is a translator and amateur detective in the small town of Ballynagh. A local man is murdered in his home - shotgun up close. Who did it? The local Gardaí don’t seem to be able to do much. Good thing Torrey is on the scene although she nearly had the police on to the wrong suspect. Whew. Of course everything turns out right in the end. It’s that kind of book.

[Grey853 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Torrey Tunet is an American translator living in Ireland. When she returns home one evening from a work trip, she finds a young girl waiting for her auntie at the bus stop. Torrey knows the woman and since it's raining, she walks the girl to the home where her friend works as the housekeeper. There she finds the owner of the home murdered. Of course, her friend becomes the prime suspect. It's up to Torrey to find the truth.

From there we work though a fairly interesting account of what might have happened and why.

I enjoyed the story despite the constant changing of point of view with nearly every chapter.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kind of a disappointment but I just can't figure out why for sure. Maybe it was that I figured out the mysteries early in the book. Maybe it was because of the choppy dialogue (characters were constantly interrupting themselves, if that makes sense). Maybe it was because of the unnecessarily detailed descriptions of what everyone was wearing. Probably won't read another book by this author.

[Sandy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Reasonably entertaining mystery taking place in contemporary County Wicklow in Ireland. Good characters and interesting twist at the end.

[Marsha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good, but not great. As I've said about this author, it's the characters... It's hard to feel much more than mild interest in what they are doing.

[Jeanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

cute little mystery to pass the time

[Ginny · Rating 5 out of 5]

First book I've read by Dicey Deere. Very pleasantly surprised....couldn't put it down... Can't wait to read the next one..

[Martina Kopel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it.

[Peter Thompson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyable little book. Nothing extraordinary, but I enjoyed it enough to seek out another of the author's books.

[Jane Chizmar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read/ Keeping the book to read again in the future.

[Joan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading out of order as I found at library #3 and 4. Really enjoyed and will read the others.

[Cat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Always a great read! This is my third time reading this book, and I was just as enthralled as the first time.

[Katherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

not the best of the for but good ending.

[Linda · Rating 2 out of 5]

maybe be cause this wasn't the first one, but I think the characters need more development.

[Carmen · Rating 3 out of 5]

The plot and characters are interesting, but I almost gave this one 2 stars because it so badly needs a good editor.