With Our Blessing

Inspector Tom Reynolds #1

by Jo Spain

It's true what they say . . . revenge is sweet.

1975
A baby, minutes old, is forcibly taken from its devastated mother.

2010
The body of an elderly woman is found in a Dublin public park in the depths of winter.

Detective Inspector Tom Reynolds is on the case. He's convinced the murder is linked to historical events that took place in the notorious Magdalene Laundries. Reynolds and his team follow the trail to an isolated convent in the Irish countryside. But once inside, it becomes disturbingly clear that the killer is amongst them . . . and is determined to exact further vengeance for the sins of the past.

Genres: Mystery, Crime, Ireland, Fiction, Thriller, Mystery Thriller, Audiobook

531 pages, Paperback

First published July 27, 2015

About the author

Jo Spain is the author of the bestselling Inspector Tom Reynolds series and several international No. 1 bestselling standalone novels. Her first book, With Our Blessing, was a finalist in the 2015 Richard and Judy Search for a Bestseller.
Jo, a graduate of Trinity College Dublin, writes TV screenplays full-time. Her first crime series was broadcast on RTE in 2018 and she's currently involved in a number of TV developments including adaptations of her own novels. In 2021, she co-wrote Harry Wild, starring Jane Seymour, with the Emmy award-winning David Logan (airing 2022).
Jo lives in Dublin with her husband and four young children. In her spare time (she has four children, there is no spare time really) she likes to read. Her favourite authors include Pierre Lemaitre, Jo Nesbo, Liane Moriarty, Fred Vargas and Jodi Picoult. She also watches TV obsessively.
Jo thinks up her plots on long runs in the woods. Her husband sleeps with one eye open.

Reviews

[Sonja Rosa Lisa ♡ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hier hat eigentlich alles gepasst für mich.
Ein Kloster mit dunkler Vergangenheit spielt eine große Rolle; das finde ich an sich schon spannend.
Der grausige Mordfall, den es aufzuklären gilt, und dann wird immer mehr über das Opfer aufgedeckt. Das war sehr spannend, zu lesen.
Die ganze Atmosphäre war düster, ich mochte das Geheimnisvolle.
Und der Fall an sich, die aufgeklärte Vergangenheit... alles sehr bedrückend.
Ich fand die Geschichte von Anfang bis Ende sehr spannend, das Ermittlerteam hat auch gepasst.
Eine neue Thriller-Reihe für mich, die ich weiterverfolgen möchte.

[Lit with Leigh · Rating 4 out of 5]

One sentence review: a lil bit of everything: live, laff, luv

3.5 rounded up

SYNOPSIS

A nun is found brutally murdered and posed, sending Tom and his team to a former Magdalene Laundry to get to the bottom of things.

MY OPINION

Jo Spain is a new go-to author for me. Maaaan these UK authors just write DIFFERENTLY. I love the thoughtful prose, the banter, and the well-research topics. There were several laugh-out-loud moments in this book. I was legit chortling like a maniac while walking my dog outside in the dark.

Unlike American crime authors, the UK approach is light on egotistical dick-swinging and heavy on real-life sh!t. Spain carves out an identity for each character with their own relationship (familial, romantic, platonic) issues outside of work. I personally vibulate more with character-driven police procedurals than Jason Bourne-esque ones, so if you're more of a 007 type, this might not be for you.

I hadn't heard of a Magdalene Laundry before this book (yeah yeah I'm uncultured). Damn. It was extremely sobering to read about fictionalized events. Although the church isn't painted in the most flattering light, I don't think religious people would be too offended by this. One quote stuck out to me in particular: "People are very moralistic about history but very few of us analyze what we contribute to the horrors of the present." FACTS ONLY!!!

My rich holmie qualms with this book was the length, moments of "well ain't that convenience", and the ending. The last 40% could've been dramatically cut down. It was a lot of running in circles and not investigating the most obvious avenues to deliberately push the plot forward.

Also, a world-class hacker happens to relocate to a village of 23 people and 46 possums and essentially saves the day by cracking the case wide open. Illegally obvi, but YOLO. I'm really not a fan of the citizen hacker character when they're critical to solving the case. GDPR anyone?????

And lastly, the ending. LAWDDDD. Talk about the long game... I'm not a fan. There's too many questions. It felt contrived for maximum shock value, but it fell short on that logic scale pour moi.

Anyways. Don't get it twisted, I will continue to gobble up this series like the hungry hippo I am. Looking forward to completing this series... will it be in order? Only time will tell....

PROS AND CONS

Pros: well-written, legit funny, juicy ass case, learned something new (albeit bleak af), great characters and well-established arcs for the rest of the series

Cons: too long (dragged a bit in the second half), lots of happenstance and convenience, ending was too contrived

[Louise Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

1975: A baby, just minutes old. Is forcibly taken from its mother.
2010: The body of an elderly woman is found in a Dublin park in the depths of winter.

This is Jo Spain's debut novel where we are introduced to Detective Inspector Tom Reynolds and his team. He's convinced the murder is linked to historical events that took place in the Magdalene Laundries where horrific events took place. Tom Reynolds is a good family man and a character I really liked. He reminded me of a good old fashioned policeman from a TV series decades ago. This book is full of suspense and tension. The convent is well described, with its truly heartbreaking past. A well written book that keeps you turning the pages.

[Ceecee · Rating 4 out of 5]

4+

Inspector Tom Reynolds #1.

I can’t believe I let this languish on my kindle for so long, it’s Jo Spain for goodness sake!

An elderly woman is found horrifyingly murdered and shockingly posed in Phoenix Park, Dublin. Inspector Tom Reynolds of the National Bureau of Criminal Investigation heads up a team alongside his partner Sergeant Ray Lennon. Who is this woman, why has she been murdered, who by and what’s the significance of leaving her in the Park? They identify her and that opens a whole huge can of worms.

This has just the right blend of police procedural with the personal as we follow several officers in their private and working life. There are some very interesting backstories that have you glued to the storyline. I like Tom very much but there are plenty of varied characters here who are well fleshed out and three dimensional. What emerges is shocking, pertinent and hard hitting, it’s full of suspense and tension with a plot that barrels this way and that, keeping me glued. It’s a powerful story, full of atmosphere provided by the setting and the snowy December weather. I’m definitely going to keep going with the series -already eagerly anticipating number 2.

[Liz Barnsley · Rating 4 out of 5]

A new crime series. Always a good reading day especially when they turn out to be as involving and intriguing as “With Our Blessing” – a really quite beautifully written, immediately immersive story that is completely gripping throughout.

A few things that made this a stand out for me: Firstly Tom Reynolds. A really fairly normal policeman. Its kind of nice to have someone who simply has the usual problems we all face. He was a great character, plenty of depth and he felt very realistic. In fact the police team as a whole had a wonderfully authentic feel to it, which only added to the atmospheric and emotional case they were investigating.

The story itself was fascinating and completely addictive – admittedly beyond a general knowledge that they existed I did not know anything about the Magdalene Laundries – Jo Spain manages, with her gritty and no holds barred styling to paint a really horrific picture of the things that happened in that time, the echoes of that reverberating down into the present, at times it was difficult reading….for all the right reasons.

The mystery element itself is really well done – it kept me guessing, kept me turning the pages and this is one of those novels that you devour in fairly short order, excellent pacing, unpredictable and intriguing from the moment you start to the moment you finish.

There is a terrific balance of dark and light here – the author manages to walk that line, the narrative is unrelenting in its descriptive prose, yet there is respite to be had in the odd humerous moment. No punches are pulled especially in relation to the historical aspects, an eye opener into the way women were treated, there is no way that you’ll come away from this book without a sense of sorrow for anyone who was affected.

Overall a really excellent debut and one that promises great things from this series in the future. Most definitely Highly Recommended.

[Paul · Rating 5 out of 5]

With our Blessing – A Stunning debut

With our Blessing is the stunning debut thriller from former journalist and political advisor Jo Spain, and it is easy to understand why this book has been shortlisted for the Richard and Judy Search for a Bestseller competition. Her debut is both atmospheric and compelling while picking at an open sore in Irish history that is casting along shadow over the church and state.

With our Blessing introduces us to Detective Inspector Tom Reynolds and his team based in Dublin, when a body is discovered in a local cruising area, a body of a female, has been crucified and a message adorns her body, and her tongue has been cut out. When they discover the murdered female is a nun they are shaken to the core, especially as Christmas is approaching upon them.

Things start turning dark for Reynolds and his team when they realise that the victim was a member of an order and lived in what was a Magdalene Laundry which also had a mother and baby home. As they have to travel out to the convent which is out in the Irish countryside and need help from the local Kilcross garda station.

It is not helped that they have to stay in the convent and the winter is turning bad all around them, it enforces the eerie desolation of the former Magdalene Laundry as there are so few nuns left living there. All the detectives while out in Kilcross and staying at the Laundry have to face some of their own inner demons.

While Reynolds is investigating Father Seamus also is found murdered which adds to the complexity of the investigation. It also calls in the behaviour of the Catholic Church and the role of the state, as they dig deeper, as they know it is only by looking back they will be able to find the truth and the killer.

This is a wonderfully dark noir thriller that casts light on some parts of Irish history that both Church and State would rather remain hidden. This is a wonderfully vivid thriller that explores those dark depths and shows the more you try to hide the truth the more likely it is to come out in to the light.

This is a brilliantly researched and written debut novel, that has a complex twisted plot, not afraid to use misdirection in her story, Jo Spain shows us she has the potential to be one of the top Irish crime writers. Jo Spain manages to get under your skin and gives you a kick when she thinks as a reader you are getting too complacent and think you know who the killer is.

A truly superb debut, promising a bright future for Irish writing.

[Gary · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the first book in the Inspector Tom Reynolds series by author Jo Spain. I read the 4th book in this series sometime ago and have planned to catch up with the earlier books since.

Tom Reynolds is not your typical fictional detective, a dedicated family man, no vices, no hidden secrets, a all round good guy. In spite of all the above this normal man makes interesting reading.

Detective Inspector Tom Reynolds is searching for the missing links between a recent murder case and a series of cold cases.
In 1975, a baby just minutes old is taken from its devastated mother. In 2010, the gruesome corpse of a nun is found in a Dublin public park. Detective Inspector Tom Reynolds and his team are on the scene and he’s convinced the murder is linked to historical events that took place in the infamous former Magdalene Laundries, institutions for “fallen women.”

As Reynolds and his team follow the trail to an isolated convent, everything seems perfectly normal and it seems perhaps they’ve followed the wrong lead. But it soon becomes disturbingly clear that the killer is amongst them and determined to exact further vengeance for the sins of the past.

A good start to the series and I found it enjoyable but not outstanding.

[Katerina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'll start by saying that I was seriously tired of detectives with vices and a huge amount of personal drama and I'm glad my latest choices in crime novels introduced me to detectives that are well balanced and have a stable family life!

Tom Reynolds is the leading police officer and quite likeable! His wife and daughter didn't have a large present in this installment but I got the feeling I'm gonna like Tom's wife a lot!

His team consists of Ray, Laura and Michael that are sympathetic and have their own special segments to add to this story!

The plotline is interesting and well developed and also has references to events that took actually place in Ireland and had an impact to girls that society didn't tolerate!

I really enjoyed reading the first case of this series and am eager to read the next one!

[Virginia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very accomplished work of debut crime fiction. Set in Dublin, the first of a series, it’s getting a lot of attention for former journalist Jo Spain because of the taught twisting plot that keeps the reader guessing with its clever and unexpected turns. The story is embedded in a big social issue in Ireland’s recent history – convents run by the Catholic church that imprisoned young unmarried mothers-to-be and ‘troublesome’ teen girls, forcing them to work long hours in laundries, not to see their families, and suffer appalling abuse, often leading to their suicides or a lifetime of mental illness as a result. Spain has done her homework well and the story springs from the generational consequences and collective social stain of those practices, which ceased only a few decades ago. In this way it reminded me of some of Sara Paretsky’s best V.I. Warshawski crime fiction – where the social issue is an integral part of the power of the story.

The other strength of the book is the characterisation. The story takes place in a convent with a dark past and Spain handles a bunch of nuns with great skill, detailing their individuality in ways that move the story forward. They might all look the same in their wimples but the reader never gets them mixed up. And we’re never sure who the culprit could be because they all have guilty secrets. There are other quirky characters, members of the extended police team, who add colour and variety. And as the mystery unravels there’s a very clever twist embedded in the characterisation that I doubt any reader would see coming – both subtle and devastating.

I’ve given the book four stars because there were a couple of things that didn’t quite work for this reader. At the beginning I found the banter of the police investigators clunky and their jokes clashed with the gruesome nature of the crime – creating a bit of a cliché. It almost stopped me getting past the first two chapters and I’m glad I hung in there. (I never did get a feel for the characters of the two principle investigators.) I was also annoyed by contrived cliff-hangers, where the reader didn’t get a piece of information given to the police until much later, and by contrast there were a couple of convenient holes where the police ignored an obvious line of investigation until later. The other thing that’s just a pet irritation of mine, is the long monologue at the end where the culprit tells all. In this book it’s well handled – and the culprit wanted the glory of parading their motives – but I’d like less telling and a little more discovery of certain facts revealed in the monologue, either before or after we know who dunnit.

In spite of my quibbles, this is an excellent read and highly recommended to all crime buffs, especially those looking for a new series to get their teeth into – I believe Spain’s next book isn’t far away.

[Carol · Rating 3 out of 5]

***3.5 Stars**** A long, tragic and shameful story. For me, the horror of the Magdalene laundries overshadowed the crime narrative.

[Nigel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this book to have a very atmospheric, powerful start. The issues with the Magdalene laundries are now quite well known and this story is about one of those institutions mainly. I guess I should add a warning that some of the descriptions can be quite dark and, to some, unpleasant - personally I felt the approach to the writing here was entirely appropriate though. I realised that this book was about a murder and I suppose expected it to be simply a crime novel however it is far deeper than that. I felt that there was rather a lot about the domestic lives of the police concerned with the case in the early stages; I realise that we need to get to know them as characters however there seemed to be a relatively small amount about the crime itself initially. This made the pace rather slow for me. However, as the book progressed the pace and the writing seemed far more compelling and the ending would be very difficult to put down for most people I imagine; it certainly was for me.

The parts of this that are good are convincingly so but I guess I find myself a little conflicted here. If you are after a simple well paced crime novel this may not be for you. However if you want something that dramatically explores the darkness created in certain religious institutions in Ireland's past then this should be a good read for you. I am a little unsure that I found the mundane, social police interactions fitted in fully with the darkness of the subject matter overall but that may just be me - those affected would be better judges and the author's family was affected by these issues so I'll certainly bow to that. All in all I think this is 3.5/5.

Disclosure - I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher.

[Eva · Rating 5 out of 5]

You’re probably familiar with Jo Spain’s psychological thrillers but did you know she also writes a crime fiction series, set in Ireland? The DI Tom Reynolds series has been on my shelf for ages and since I heard there is a new book on the horizon, I decided to try and squeeze this series into my reading schedule in an attempt to catch up.

Best decision ever!

With Our Blessing is the first book and hoo boy, what a first instalment it is! Despite its 531 pages, I absolutely flew through this one because once I started reading, I just couldn’t stop. The body of an elderly woman is found in a park in Dublin. It’s quite a gruesome scene and the investigation leads DI Tom Reynolds and his team to a convent in the Irish countryside and a part of history Ireland would probably quite happily forget all about.

The notorious Magdalane Laundries have been in the news often these last few years. The events that happened there remain horrible and With Our Blessing starts with one such horrific scene when in 1975, a newborn baby is forcibly taken from its mother. If that doesn’t break your heart, I don’t know what will.

But how does that prologue connect to the murder of the elderly woman? That’s for DI Tom Reynolds to figure out and it’s a race against the clock because this killer is quite obviously on a mission to get revenge and if they aren’t stopped, more people will die. I quickly ruled out a number of potential suspects which left me with a tiny problem, in that I had nobody left. I was convinced I knew who wasn’t the killer but couldn’t at all figure out who was!

As brilliantly gripping as the murder investigation was, I also really enjoyed the perfect balance Jo Spain achieved by including information about the various team members’ private lives. I got a really good feel for them and loved getting to know them along the way.

With Our Blessing is a fantastic start to this series. With intriguing characters, a compelling investigation, a beautiful setting and even some humour, this had me hooked from start to finish. I’m kicking myself for not reading this series sooner and I can’t wait to read the other books. If Jo Spain wasn’t already on my go-to list, she would most definitely be now! And if you are looking for another crime series to sink your teeth into, you should definitely check this one out!

[Belle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Morality. Legality. Justice.

Three words that should work together but somehow often don’t.

I thought this a great mystery although I did get a bit of a thriller vibe throughout.

The convent in a snowstorm was deeply atmospheric. It lent itself to a closed room mystery so well.

The characters were three dimensional. I see great potential for Tom Reynolds and his murder squad in this first in a series.

The Magdalene Laundry history at the crux of the mystery was a bit incredulous but the author had personal reasons for this so I’m all in.

I’ll definitely be continuing on in this series.

BEST OF 2023 for excellent atmospheric writing.

[Margaret Madden · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars.
When a newborn baby is snatched from its mother's arms, in 1975, it destroys the life of a young woman and causes ripples of trauma down through the years. But she is one of many, and goes unnoticed, like them all.

Thirty five years later, and a brutal murder is uncovered in Dublin's Phoenix Park. The victim is elderly and has suffered a grisly death. DI Tom Reynolds and his team are called into to investigate. Before long, they discover a link to Ireland's sordid secret, The Magdalene Laundries. While they are offered assistance from the nuns of a former institution, they are met with a veil of secrecy and decades of Catholic hierarchy. Could one of the religious order be involved in such a personal killing? Could they commit such a sin? One thing is clear. The past is catching up on the convent and DI Reynolds needs to get there first...


Dublin author, Jo Spain, has debuted with gusto. This is not only another crime fiction book, in an already busy genre, it is a character based novel with a good bit of bite to it. DI Tom Reynolds is a protagonist that lingers. A good family man, not perfect, yet likable. Thankfully, he is not like other 'troubled' Inspectors. No drink problem, no sneaky cigarettes, no lusting after his female partner. and no shady dealings within the force. Just a genuine guy, doing his job, missing his wife and worrying about his daughter. This is refreshing, as a lot of crime fiction has the angst-ridden hero who battles inner demons alongside their cases. Not so with Tom. He has a great team, male and female and a comical driver to add to the mix. The make up of the investigative team is well rounded, with plenty of scope to feature them in subsequent novels.
The narrative is strong. While we are all aware now of the horrors behind the walls of the Magdalene Laundries, the author somehow manages to make it feel fresh and sharp. There is no blurring of facts, or large canvas brushstrokes. It is focused and fair. There is balance added with the stories from the nuns too. Far too often there is a general dogmatic approach to the sisters who worked behind these walls, although it is known that there were individuals who were also horrified with the circumstances in the laundries. Jo Spain acknowledges these nuns and yet still portrays the events with fact-based honesty.
This is a novel of tension, suspense and stories. Stories from the past and the present. From a convent in rural Ireland, to a police force in Dublin. The Gardaí are well presented, doing their jobs, intent on finding out the circumstances surrounding the murder. They are just like any of us. Doing their best, while making a few mistakes along the way. The convent is well described, with echoes of its heartbreaking past. The atmosphere is multi-layered, depending on the area of the building, or which sister is in the room at the time. I did lose track of the nuns at one point, and had to turn back a few pages, but not enough for me to lose focus. This is a page-turner, no doubt. The warmness of the characters made it an extra special read, with the added feeling of reading a modern Agatha Christie tipping it into one of the best crime thrillers I have read for a while. I applaud Jo Spain for this debut, and for introducing DI Tom Reynolds to us. Book two better not be long coming. We need more books like this...

[sheyda · Rating 5 out of 5]

عالی بود. داستان غم انگیز و تاثیر گذاری داشت.
باورم نمیشه این رخت‌شور خونه ها واقعیت داشتن... پایان و روند داستان خیلی خوب بود. یه کوچولو با کمبود نقش یکی از شخصیت های فرعی مشکل داشتم که مهم هم نیست. اما واقعاً جنایی خوبی بود. غافلگیری محشری داشت و اصلا به فکر آدم نمی‌رسید. شک کمی بهش داشتم ولی واقعا مظنون های دیگه ای هم بودن که از این بیشتر می‌شد بهشون شک برددد. هنوز تو شوکممم.
و خدایا من برای قاتل دلسوزی می‌کنم. خوشحالم که کشتشون! مرسی ازت 🙂
وایب دارک و برفی کتاب رو هم خیلی دوست داشتم. مخصوصاً که نزدیک کریسمس بود و پلیس ها تو یه صومعه مونده بودن. اصلا نمی‌تونم عجیب بودن فضاش رو توصیف کنم.

[Mobina · Rating 4 out of 5]

با دعای خیرمان🕯
نویسنده: جو اسپین

خلاصه:نوزادی که تنها چند دقیقه ای از تولدش می گذرد به زور از مادر درهم شکسته اش گرفته می شود.
جسد زن مسنی در دل زمستان در پارک عمومی دوبلین پیدا می شود .سربازرس کارآگاه تام رینولدز مسئول این پرونده است . او متعقد است که این قتل به وقایع تاریخی مربوط به رخشورخانه خانه های بدنام مگدالین ربط دارد. رینولدز و تیمش سرنخ ها را تا یک صومعه منزوی در حومه ایرلند دنبال می کنند اما پس از ورود به آنجا آشکارا مشخص می شود قاتل میان آنهاست و مصمم است تا انتقام های بیشتری بابت گناه��ن گذشته بگیرد.

خب همونجوری که از خلاصه معلومه انگیزه قتل تقریبا مشخصه و در صفحات ابتدایی میخونیم که راهبه ها نوزاد تازه به دنیا اومده ای رو از مادرش جدا میکنن.
اینکه داستان این رخشورخونه ها واقعیت داره غم انگیزترش میکنه.

حدس زدن قاتل برای من زیاد آسون نبود و
از اونجایی که هی مظنون ها تغییر میکنن بیشتر گیج کننده میشه


نکات منفی

طولانی بودن داستان به نظرم میتونه نکته منفی باشه و نویسنده میتونست زودتر داستان رو جمع و جور کنه

❌️هشدار اسپویل
اینکه ری بازم به اون دختره چسبید و لورا رو ندید خیلی عصبیم کرد امیدوارم تو جلدای بعد این ماجرا حل بشه

نکات مثبت

فضاسازی و شخصیت پردازی هر دو خوب بودن و این باعث می شد بهتر بتونم شخصیت ها رو درک کنم مخصوصا قاتل رو

شخصیت ها دوست داشتنی بودن به خصوص تام ،لورا و ویلی و اینکه هر کدوم مشکلات خودشون رو داشتن خیلی ملموس ترش می کرد

تیم شون رو هم خیلی دوست داشتم مخصوصا رابطه ری با تام

❌️هشدار اسپویل
و اینکه خواهر کلر هم با عذاب مرد خیلی دلم رو خنک کرد

متن داستان هم کاملا روونه و پیچیدگی خاصی نداشت.

و در آخر بگم احتمالا جلدهای بعدی رو بخونم

نمره من: با کمی ارفاق ۴ از ۵

چیزی که گفته‌اند حقیقت دارد… انتقام شیرین است

[Bec (becbingesbooks) - sorry, behind with lots of catching up to do · Rating 5 out of 5]

A unique police procedural in which the horrific Magdalene Laundries are a focus. A murder of an elderly woman in a park leads Tom and his team to a convent riddled with skeletons from the past.

I loved this! I do not usually enjoy PPs with male protagonists as much as the strong female MCs in my often raved about series, but Tom is 👌 the other cops also have very sweet and some tough stories going on on the side, dealt with very well by Jo Spain.

The story was great and the twists even better - I thought I'd finally picked it but I never do!

I literally laughed out loud at the fairy in the sky line. Some humour in these crime thrillers is just so good (this is not to say I'm not religious but we won't discuss religion here... it was still funny!).

I cannot wait to dive into book 2.

[Trish at Between My Lines · Rating 4 out of 5]

This review was originally posted on [Between My Lines]

Green Giants is my feature where I share some of my favourite books by Irish Authors.   I’m passionate about Irish Authors, they supply us with a great and exciting mix of books, hopefully you will find something new to try.  Today it’s Jo Spain who is my latest Green Giant and who with a single book has become a must read author for me.

 

With Our Blessing is gristly and disturbing. It tackles the mistreatment of the single mothers that occurred back in the 1970s (and earlier) in Ireland at religious institutions. And cleverly links it in with a current murder investigation.


First Line of With Our Blessing by Jo Spain:
“Her whole body shook as the adrenalin coursed through it.”
My thoughts on With Our Blessing by Jo Spain:
When I think about the shameful history of the places like The Magdalene Laundries (where single mothers were sent), it seems so hard to believe that they really happened. And not back hundreds of years ago but within living memory. The incarceration of the women is depicted realistically with all its cruelty and injustices and would break the bitterest of hearts.

The book kicks off with a murder in contemporary Dublin and it’s a shocking murder that is out to make a statement. To offset the dark plotline that the investigation takes, we have a more light-hearted feel from the detectives working on the case. The balance between the serious investigation, the horrible treatment of the women in the past, the more jovial banter of the detectives and the glimpse at modern day life in Ireland all worked really well.

This is one of those books that you won’t forget in a hurry after reading. It made me so angry while I read it. The way other people looked the other way felt as disgusting to me as the people who inflicted the abuse. The book makes an attempt to explain how and why this happened and it also showed the regrets that many have to live with.

I really appreciated that as well as delving into the horrors of the past, it also showed how times have moved on. Obviously the past can never be forgotten or even forgiven but it’s good to see that this book also showed some articulate nuns with a good grasp of the modern world and contempt for the past. As well as not white washing the horrors of the Laundries and the mistreatment of the women who were forced to live there.

I enjoyed the investigation and it kept me guessing right till the very end. I did get a bit frustrated at one stage when I felt the police were overlooking a very obvious group of suspects. But they eventually caught up with me! That said, I still didn’t guess right.

I’m hoping this book turns into a series as the detectives are likeable and well-rounded characters. They added humour and I got invested in their own personal life stories too.

Overall this is an excellent début novel. And now I can’t wait for more from Jo Spain, she is one to watch.

 



 
Who should read With Our Blessings by Jo Spain?
I’d recommend this to fans of psychological thrillers with gripping plots, or if you like Irish settings and to those who like to be kept guessing. Fans of The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins  and Can Anybody Help Me by Sinead Crowley should also enjoy.

Thank to Quercus Books for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

[Mira Margitta · Rating 5 out of 5]

Volim kad čitam i guglam.Magdalenske praonice su stvarno postojale u Irskoj. Navodno su se brinule o mladim djevojkama, a zapravo su bile izložene raznim vrstama zlostavljanja.
Odličan triler, veselim se nastavcima.

[Leah · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is the depths of winter in Dublin when the police receive an anonymous tip-off that there’s a dead body in Phoenix Park. It turns out to be a scene of true horror – an old woman, naked and nailed to a tree in a sick parody of the Crucifixion, with the words “Satan’s Whore” carved on her breast. Closer examination shows that her tongue has been cut out. Detective Inspector Tom Reynolds of the National Bureau of Criminal Investigation will have to trace the woman’s identity before he can begin the task of finding who has committed this terrible crime, and why…

The reader is a little ahead of Tom and his team at the beginning, because we have been given a prologue that lets us know the story will relate to the forced adoptions and cruel treatment of women and girls that happened in the Magdalene laundries, run by nuns. This is a story that has been used about a million times now, but I’ll give Jo Spain some leeway since this book dates back to 2015, when it may have been a little less of a cliché. I’m also inclined to give her leeway because she handles it much better than any other version I’ve read.

Tom soon learns that the victim was Mother Attracta, Mother Superior of the Sisters of Pity order, whose convent is in Kilross, a village in Limerick. So he and the team head down there, in the midst of a snow storm that is closing roads all over the country. The nuns offer them accommodation and meals in the convent, and they start by trying to find out who might have wanted Attracta dead. The problem is that she was highly unpopular – her cruelty at the time of the laundries was extreme and her rule over her sister nuns was also often cruel and capricious. And then there’s a second murder…

I loved the team in this one. Tom Reynolds is the lead – a middle-aged man, happily married, whose beloved daughter has just announced that she is pregnant – an unplanned pregnancy as a result of a casual encounter. This allows Tom to compare his feelings about his daughter to the treatment of the ‘fallen women’ who were forced into the laundries because of the shame of out-of-wedlock pregnancies, and whose babies were then taken from them at birth to be adopted or to end up in orphanages.

But the other team members are just as important, and their characters are very well-drawn, especially for a first book in a series. There’s Laura, a young woman who has just discovered her own aunt was sent to the Sisters of Pity and who is nearly as interested in learning her story as in solving the crime. Ray seems to be Tom’s right-hand man, although I’m not quite sure yet of all their various ranks, and he is allowed to be just as good as Tom at interviewing suspects and coming up with his own theories, plus he’s young, single and good-looking, allowing for some romantic shenanigans. Michael’s wife has recently had a miscarriage and is in a bad state, so he has that worry to contend with. Willie is an older man, quite laid back and unambitious, who seems to be there mostly as driver and muscle. And there are the two forensics people, Emmet and Ellie, who are treated as a regular part of the team. They all get along both professionally and personally, which is so refreshing, all are valued for their individual skills and contributions, and the interactions between them are often humorous and fun. I have no idea if they will all be recurring characters in future books, but I’ll be quite happy if they are.

Despite my sigh when it became clear this was going to be yet another evil Catholic church abuse story, I found the plot and investigation interesting and credible. Spain uses the convent and its isolation in the snow storm to good effect to give some Gothic shivers, but she doesn’t go over the top. The present day nuns are shown as real people, with their own personalities. Some are too young to have been involved in the laundries, while some of the older ones hated what was going on at that time but were powerless to prevent it. Some, however, feel they did no wrong and are bitter at the accusations of cruelty. Spain handles this well, and shows that it wasn’t just nuns and priests – the entire establishment of the state was complicit, including the police. And the public, now so pleasurably outraged, knew fine what was going on and turned a blind eye – indeed it was usually parents who sent their wayward daughters there.

My usual criticism of modern crime applies – the book is far too long and a hundred pages of padding could have been removed without loss. However, if I remember rightly, at that time, by some cruel law laid down by a secret cabal of evil publishers, every crime novel had to be at least 450 pages. Happily the newer books in the series are considerably shorter. And this one managed to hold my attention even through the bits where I was feeling like getting out the scissors. Overall, I loved it.

An excellent first book, and I’m very much looking forward to reading the rest. Has she stopped writing them? The last one, the sixth, seems to have come out in 2020, according to Goodreads. That would be a pity.

www.fictionfanblog.wordpress.com

[Nilo0 · Rating 5 out of 5]

خیلی دوست داشتم. هم از نظر موضوع هم جذابیت و کشش.
به عنوان اولین اثر نویسنده فضاسازی و موضوع قشنگی داشت و با اینکه حجمش زیاده خیلی سریع پیش می‌رفت.
یه تضاد قشنگ هم تو داستان وجود داشت که حقایق تاریخی تلخ گذشته رو بپوشونه و پیشرفت ایرلند رو در زمینه اجتماعی و عقیده مردم نشون می‌داد.خوشحالم که جلد دوم هم قراره چاپ شه و مشتاقم همه جلدهاش رو بخونم.

[Elle (IG: simply.elle18) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love a good police procedural and this one ticks all the boxes. Suspenseful, gripping and well paced, With Our Blessing is the first in the Inspector Tom Reynolds series. There are five in total and I'm looking forward to listening to the rest of them

[Leona · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an absolutely fantastic crime thriller. Right from the start I was totally gripped by it . Highly recommend .

[Cathy Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

With Our Blessing is set in Dublin and introduces Detective Inspector Tom Reynolds in a very powerful and atmospheric story. The gruesome murder and mutilated body of an elderly woman has been discovered in Phoenix Park and it’s a murder designed to send out a specific message.

Tom and his team are called to the scene and the resulting investigation follows the trail to a convent tucked away in the Irish countryside, where they discover the murdered woman had been the mostly disliked Mother Superior. They also learn that the convent was previously one of the notorious Magdalene Laundries. The more the team uncover the more convinced Tom becomes that the murder relates to the horrific historic events which took place in the convent. The case has taken a disturbing turn, especially for one member of the team.

Tom and some members of the team stay at the convent, the others in the nearby village. It’s nearing Christmas and the weather is only getting worse. Ostensibly the nuns offer to help in the investigation but there are decades of untold suspicions and secrets to uncover before events begin to make any kind of sense. The case hits close to home for Tom, keenly aware of his daughter’s situation.

The murder mystery is attention grabbing and is very well laid out. Jo Spain paints a shocking picture of the appalling treatment and conditions women, and in some cases young girls, were subjected to in the Magdalene Laundries and mother and baby homes. It was a very dark period in the not too distant past and hard to believe the Church and State conspired in such practices. This, coupled with a lot of other stuff that’s come to light over the years, continues to have a detrimental impact on the Catholic Church.

I always enjoy getting to know the characters through their home lives and relationships away from work, as well as their working personas. The characters in With Our Blessing are fleshed out distinctly and extremely well, allowing them to become three dimensional, realistic and easy to connect with. DI Tom Reynolds is a likeable and genuine family man, with a good team around him.

Jo Spain’s writing is self assured and easy to read, the story compelling. The horror of the Laundries depicted without preconceptions, traces of the previous life of the convent giving hints of its chilling history. There are several suspects but the actual perpetrator was a complete surprise. An incredible start to a series, I have the other books already lined up. Aoife McMahon’s narrations are always superb and this was no exception.

[Lyndon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was in Ireland and wanted to buy a mystery set in Ireland by an Irish writer. And I found this one, a debut novel that was a top ten Irish bestseller. (Correction/update: I thought Spain was a pen name, but it's her actual name) and the back matter assured me she's a Dubliner. True enough. It was fun to read about the land, culture, and hear the expressions unique to Éire. Plus, it was a pretty good mystery. The subject matter is a bit rough - the tragedy of the Magdalene Laundries and mother/baby homes - but the writing (although freshman at times) built steam until the final reveal. A kind of an Agatha Christie-esque 'country house mystery' set in a small Irish village and convent. And though blunt regarding the false religion practiced by certain Catholic characters, I didn't get the sense that this was a Catholic-bashing novel. It dealt with the religious abuses of the past as part of a narrative not as blanket condemnation of this dark period of (fairly recent) Irish history. Three and a half stars and recommended for mystery lovers. I'd be open to reading a second Inspector Reynolds novel.

[Sally Sutton · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first book in a police series featuring Tom Reynolds. Another tragic story about the Irish Magdalene Laundries and forced adoption of babies. The cruelty shown by some nuns never ceases to upset me but the kindness of some is explained and how impotent they were to stop the ill treatment, they remained to give some protection/care to the girls rather than abandon them completely. One of the nuns’ did raise a point that whilst some establishments were awful others were not, social pressures were different then but equally terrible things continue to be done now and many prefer to say nothing if indeed they even notice. I hope I don’t ignore injustices/cruelty but I do know that I have a very privileged life.
I will read subsequent books by this author in the series.

[Katrin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Also ich kann mich den Bewertungen der anderen Leser hier wirklich nur anschließen.

Ein super Debüt, mit einem guten und flüssigen Schreibstil, einer sehr guten Story und sehr sympathischen Charakteren. Ich mochte wirklich jeden und das Team passt super zusammen.

Die Geschichte ist wirklich spannend und da es diese Kloster in der Vergangenheit ja wirklich gab, auch unglaublich interessant und gleichzeitig erschreckend was da alles so gelaufen ist.

Werde auf jeden Fall die weiteren Bücher der Autorin und der Reihe lesen und kann das Buch jedem nur empfehlen, der einen guten und spannenden Krimi aus Irland lesen möchte.

[Melissa Sinclair · Rating 2 out of 5]

2 stars only because I forced myself to finish the book. I was interested in the back story of the Magdalene Laundries and thought it would make the murder mystery part interesting. I lost interest with the ridiculous amount of side stories and the detectives who couldn't seem to detect themselves out of a paper bag. At one point they left some of the detectives with all the suspects in one room but they still managed to have several people wander off and wander in. It was just a dumb book. I am definitely not continuing with this detective series.

[Ellen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A decent crime, which sheds more light on the horrendous carry on in the Magdalena laundries and did keep me guessing all the way through.

But could have done without the love interests and pregnancies and domestic troubles of the guards investigating the crime.

[Patricia Carter · Rating 2 out of 5]

this story is good and has the potentional to be good but the author writes so sluggishly
I kept falling asleep
a nun is tortured and murdered and the Dublin police are called in to solve the murder
at half point through the book, I still didn't care about any of it