The Night of the Party

by Rachael English

From the bestselling author of The American Girl

January 1982: In the village of Kilmitten, the Crossan family are holding their annual party during the biggest snowstorm Ireland has seen in decades. By the end of the night, the parish priest, Father Leo Galvin, is dead.

The lives of four teenagers - Tom, Conor, Tess and Nina - who had been drinking beer and smoking in a shed at the back of the house, will never be the same. But one of them carries a secret from that night that he has never shared.

The friends go on to lead very different, separate lives - some quiet, others in the media spotlight - but the four remain connected by what happened during the time of the big snow.

As the thirty-fifth anniversary of Father Galvin's murder approaches, Conor, now a senior police officer, becomes obsessed with the crime his father failed to solve. He believes that Tom can help identify Father Galvin's killer. But does Tom wish to break his silence?

His dilemma draws the four friends back together, forcing them to question their lives and to confront their differences. But only Tom can decide whether Kilmitten's secret will finally be revealed.

Genres: Mystery, Ireland, Contemporary, Irish Literature, Fiction

426 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 3, 2018

About the author

Hi, and thanks for visiting my page.
I'm the author of seven novels. The latest is WHATEVER HAPPENED TO BIRDY TROY?Before that there was GOING BACK, EACH AND EVERY ONE, THE NIGHT OF THE PARTY, THE PAPER BRACELET and the Irish number one bestsellers, THE LETTER HOME and THE AMERICAN GIRL.
Like many many writers, I also have a day job. I'm a presenter on the radio programme, Morning Ireland.
You can find me on Twitter - @EnglishRachael, on Instagram - @RachaelEnglishWriter or on Facebook.

Reviews

[Paromjit · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a story of 4 young teenage friends, Tom, Connor, Tess and Nina, living in small town Kilmitten, in County Clare in 1982, present at the annual party thrown by Tom's parents in January amidst the worst snow storms seen in Ireland for some time. By the end of the party, Father Leo Galvin is found dead in suspicious circumstances, whilst young Tom is burdened with a secret that is to weigh him down and haunt him through the years. This is less a crime novel, more a focus on 4 friends drawn closer by the events of that night and how Father Galvin's murder binds them and tears them apart through the years. Kilmitten in 1982 is a place where everyone knows everyone, where the Catholic Church dictates social norms, so single mothers are frowned upon and ostracised, and illegitimate children hounded as seen with the treatment of Ginny and Tess. Gossip, secrets, speculation and judgementalism flourish, people marry young, are expected to rigidly adhere to their social strata, fostering an atmosphere of claustrophobia, stress and pressure where many of its young folk wish to break free of the place, as indeed all 4 friends do, although only Tess settles in England.

The story follows the drama surrounding the friends through the years, their careers, marriages, children, as they return to Kilmitten intermittently, where surprisingly Tom settles down in later years. Nina, finds her life more difficult, succumbing to ill advised decisionmaking that risks the relationship she is in. She grew up with a privileged lifestyle, her good looks guaranteeing she was the centre of attention, so when Tess's unexpected career brings her global attention, success and money, she is jealous and envious, precipitating a desire in her for more glamour and excitement. Her conduct finds her forced to accept a period of ostracisation in Kilmitten and from her friends, especially Tess. Tom forges a path in politics from unlikely beginnings, and Connor walks in his father's footsteps by joining the police. Tess refuses to give up on finding out who her father is, only to be shocked when the truth comes out. Father Galvin's unsolved murder continues to attract attention, such as a documentary being made to mark 10 years, and Conor just cannot stay away from it, as he keeps delving into the mystery despite being constantly warned off. 35 years later, he has an inkling that Tom might be holding the missing piece of the puzzle, can he get him to open up?

Racheal English writes a compelling piece of contemporary fiction, revolving around the lives of friends through the years, how they support each other, fall out, and whilst there is a long period of estrangement with Nina, they do sustain their valued connections with each other. I was particularly drawn to forthright, take no nonsense Tess, and loved how she upturned everybody's low expectations through a piece of luck that results in her modelling career. Poor Tom pays for his loyalty by being psychologically troubled by what he saw as a 12 year old child. The author documents Ireland's cultural shifts such as the declining influence of the Catholic Church after its history of abuse, and the slow rise of women's rights in the country, progressive moves that are to be welcomed. This is a wonderful glimpse into Irish small town life revealed through the characters in the book, the dark secrets that lurk beneath so called respectable lives, and an examination of friendships that weather all the turbulent years. Highly enjoyable, entertaining and engaging read which I recommend highly. Many thanks to Hachette Books, Ireland for an ARC.

[Pauline · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed The American Girl by Rachel English and was delighted to receive a copy of her new book The Night Of The Party.
Tom's parents throw a party every year in early January. Tom and his friends are enjoying themselves when a body is found on the premises and it looks like a murder. The incident has long reaching consequences for the friends and a secret that has to be kept. This story gives an insight into living in a small village in Ireland.
I would like to thank NetGalley and Hachette Books Ireland for my e-copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Eva · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved Rachael English’s previous novel, The American Girl. So much so, that I was never quite able to put it into words and the review remained unwritten. Since then, I sat eagerly awaiting the author’s next offering and it sure was worth the wait. The Night of the Party and its various characters had me completely enthralled.

The story begins in 1982 when Tom’s parents throw their annual January party during a massive snowstorm. By the end of the night the parish priest, Father Leo Galvin, is dead. The lives of Tom and his friends, and the other villagers, will never quite be the same again. Kilmitten is a quiet village, where nothing ever happens and the priest’s death rocks this little community to its very core. It will take thirty-five years for this mystery to be solved and the story follows Tom, Conor, Tess and Nina throughout the decades. As Tom and his friends go on with their lives, the mystery surrounding Father Leo’s death remains with them. Some won’t rest until it is is solved, others wish the whole thing would just go away.

I was a teenager in the 80’s myself and so I truly enjoy stories set in that era. Despite the fact they make me feel rather ancient. The mention of certain bands or items of clothing is enough to turn me into a gigantic puddle of nostalgic goo. The struggles Tom and his friends go through felt quite relatable. There’s always that one friend who seems to have everything together and knows exactly what to do with their life. And there’s the one who doesn’t have a clue, who drifts from course to course, from job to job and hopes some day they’ll figure it out. (That was me, in case you wondered. Still haven’t figure it out 😉)

As an avid crime fiction reader, you’d think I’d be all about trying to solve the case of Father Leo’s death. While I admit it was always in the back of my mind, I actually found myself utterly absorbed by the lives of Tom and his friends. Their careers, or lack thereof, their relationships, families, hopes and dreams, lost loves and grief … it was all brilliantly engaging and I cared about these characters, rooted for them, urged them on and sometimes felt sorry for them as well.

Set in the lovely surroundings of Ireland, this beautifully written tale kept me engrossed from start to finish. The Night of the Party is a truly wonderful story about friendship, secrets and life in a small community with characters I began to miss as soon as I turned the final page. The journey through the decades really highlights the differences in the way lives were led, beliefs and thoughts changed, albeit it a slower pace in a village like Kilmitten. This is a captivating and enchanting story that wormed its way into my heart and I very much look forward to whatever is next from Rachael English.

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

Over the past few years, I've become addicted to Rachael's heartfelt, believable plots. The characters feel authentic, and the Irish settings are as familiar as the road outside my house. I see myself and I see my friends and I see my village in these books.

The Night of the Party is another book that I'll be recommending left, right and centre to all this summer as it ticks all the boxes for a perfect summer read. So if you like stories about a group of friends, a puzzling mystery and lots of heart, then add this to your summer TBR. And allow yourself plenty of reading time to enjoy, as once you start, you'll want to keep reading and reading.

[booksofallkinds · Rating 5 out of 5]

THE NIGHT OF THE PARTY by Rachael English is a story that pulls you in, makes you feel like you are part of the story, and then shocks you to the core with secrets that you cannot imagine.

Four friends growing up in a tiny village in 1980s Ireland have to make their own fun so on the annual big party night in their community, they gather in a shed with a stolen beer and some smokes. But what happens that night will forever change them and bind them together in ways that they can never truly imagine.

As the story moves from their lives as children to their lives as adults you cannot help but notice that they have grown and changed in so many ways but that lingering question about who really killed the parish priest all those years ago never really goes away and for one of them, holding his silence has certainly had its toll. But after all these years can the truth ever really surface and can damaged friendships ever truly mend?

Gripping, dynamic, fresh, and with characters that you can really relate to, THE NIGHT OF THE PARTY by Rachael English is an astounding novel that hits on so many important changes in Irish society across the decades as well as in the characters lives themselves.

​There is drama, secrets, lies, love, and above all friendship that creates such an engaging narrative that will leave you feeling like you know these characters in real life. Hard topics are confronted alongside those of family and the mistakes of life, and I could not put this book down.

THE NIGHT OF THE PARTY by Rachael English is a masterpiece of Irish fiction and I cannot wait for Rachael's next book as she never disappoints.

*I voluntarily reviewed this book from the Publisher

[Mairead Hearne (swirlandthread.com) · Rating 4 out of 5]

'A story of friendship, a small town and a big secret...'

The Night of The Party is described as a 'page-turning novel from a gifted story-teller, combining warmth, drama and an unforgettable twist' and has just been published by Hachette Ireland.

Rachael English is known to many of us as a presenter on RTE Radio One's Morning Ireland, but she has also worked on many current affairs programmes over twenty years as a journalist.

Coming from a family of story-tellers, Rachael English has the ability to bring you back to old familiar days, invoking nostalgic emotions throughout the story.

I read the final page of The Night Of The Party with the realisation that I was really going to miss Tom, Conor, Nina and Tess. Rachael English took me on a trip down memory lane as we meet four friends, twelve years of age, all on the cusp of their teenage years, all excited at the prospect of what lay ahead.

1982 saw Ireland hit by one of the biggest snow storms ever, with massive repercussions around the whole of the island. Rachael English uses this historic event as the backdrop of her story. January of that year, the town of Kilmitten, in the county of Clare on the West Coast of the country, was almost shut down with the volume of snow that arrived. For the adults it was of huge concern and a major inconvenience for many, but for the school children of Kilmitten life could not get any more exciting

‘They had never seen anything like it. The first snowflakes arrived on Thursday afternoon. Before long the flurries blurred into a steady fall, the snow folding itself around Kilmitten until everything was white….Snowballs went zinging through the air, while kids on makeshift sleds – here a coal sack, there a tea tray – zoomed down Toomey’s Hill.’

For Tom Crossan, early January had always been the time his parents had an annual party ‘It’s such a miserable month, they’d say. People need cheering up’ and the snow was not going to deter them. As his parents organised the festivities, Tom and his best friend, Conor, had other ideas up their sleeves. Slipping a few cigarettes and a bottle of beer discreetly out of his parent’s stash, Tom sets up the garden shed for a rendezvous with Conor, Tess and her best friend Nina, This would be their own secret hideaway to have a little innocent fun, while all their parents would be socialising in the main Crossan household.

But this was to be the night where the course of their lives changed forever. The local parish priest Father Leo Galvin is found dead in Tom’s house. No witnesses, no clues, no hidden vendettas, no reason for such a violent crime, in a small town in the West of Ireland.

But someone did see something and a decision to remain silent becomes an act that will have repercussions for the lives of all involved for years to come.

The years pass and the people of Kilmitten move on with their lives. ‘Who did kill Father Galvin?’ is a story that remains a topic of conversation, but the memories fade and life goes on.

For the four friends – Tom, Conor, Tess and Nina – their lives veer off in different directions and the contact between them dwindles. Circumstances lead to falling’s out and disappointments, but underneath it all the four are bound together through the unbreakable strength of a childhood friendship.

Thirty-five years after the murder of Father Galvin, Conor begins to wonder what really did happen that fateful night in 1982. His father was the acting Garda (police officer) in charge on the night and now that Conor is himself in a senior position on the force, he decides to re-look at the case that left such a mark on his early teenage years.

He looks to his three friends to assist him and to recall exactly their memories of the night in the hope of unearthing some new information. But he soon finds out that there are some secrets that are buried very deep indeed!

The four friends now live very different lives but soon discover, that although the years have passed, it’s not too late to reignite their friendship. First though, they must unearth the truth and finally expose what did happen in the parish of Kilmitten in January 1982…..

The Night Of The Party is a very engaging story about the importance of friendship. It is also a story about a small community and the secrets hidden behind closed doors. Ireland has changed almost beyond recognition since those early days of the 1980’s and Rachael English documents these changes through the lives of the four friends and the rural community of Kilmitten.

Charming. Captivating. Heartwarming.

[Margaret Madden · Rating 4 out of 5]

January 1982, Kilmitten, West Ireland: The Crossans are hosting their annual 'After Christmas' party. Twelve-year-old Tom has secretly planned a party in his parents' garden shed. He manages to sneak a couple of beers and a few stolen cigarettes to share with friends Conor, Tess and Nina. But things take a dramatic turn when the body of local priest, Fr Galvin, is discovered on the kitchen floor of the Crossan house. The night of the party becomes one filled with lies and omissions.

Spanning four decades, The Night of the Party is a whodunnit with a nostalgic twist. Beginning during the 1982 snow storm - which placed Ireland at a standstill - the setting is idyllic for a group of children. They revel in the closure of schools: using election posters and fertiliser bags to sled down the snowy hills, and plan their own party, away from the watchful eyes of their parents. The 1980s vibe hops off the pages with memories of a bygone era. During a power cut, Tess addresses the lack of TV: "It's not like there was anything worth watching on the telly, anyway. I wish we had all the channels - or a video recorder. The Moynihans rented one for Christmas."

Nina says her boarding school has five channels: "We get the BBCs and ITV. [But] apart from the odd show, like Top of the Pops, we're not allowed to watch the British channels."

The story moves forward to the 1990s, where the four friends have moved in different directions. Tom has abandoned college, unable to face "another soul-sapping year at UCD where the concrete merged with the sky and 18-year-olds thought their opinions were all that mattered".

Conor, Tess and Nina spend their summers in London, where: "There was a pattern to the parties… Hordes of Irish people gathered in houses with English beer and American music and tried to be smarter, funnier and wilder than they'd been at home." Meanwhile, a documentary maker lands in Kilmitten, wanting to feature the Fr Galvin case. Tensions begin to surface, friendships become fractured and lips remained sealed.

It's 2016 and the former friends are now reunited. This time at the hospital bedside of Conor, now a garda, injured in a gang-shootout. He cannot let go of the night of the party and decides to do his own investigation. Tom, Nina and Tess are not happy. But why?

Rachael English writes Irish nostalgia with a genuine touch, bringing readers back to years long forgotten. The recent storylines were a little forced, with two being almost identical to recent events (think a gang-shooting in a Dublin hotel and a 'witch-hunt' of a prominent 'dinosaur', accused of misogyny).

The Night of the Party is less about the night itself and more about becoming an adult before, during and after the Celtic Tiger. From legwarmers, phone cards and secretarial courses; through to family commitment and considering retirement.

[Katy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the story of four young friends Tom, Tess, Nina and Connor, in a small town in Ireland where everyone knows your business. While at an annual party at Tom’s house, attended by many of the townsfolk, the local priest is found dead of suspicious circumstances. The four friends are only 12 or 13 at the time and this proves to be a very traumatic event that haunts them for years to come. The mystery of the death of Father Galvin remains unsolved for many years but is never far from the thoughts of the those in town.

The story is really about the relationships between these four friends and how they change and grow over 35 years. The author creates complex characters in many of the townsfolk and follows these four friends through not only their early years, coinciding with the time immediately before and after the mysterious death, but follows them through their lives, or at least the parts that cross paths, or reflect on their earlier relationships, and alter adult relationships.

The friends’ relationships are at times strong, and changed, and strained, and estranged, and re-connected. This makes the character development a real treat through the novel. The author pulls the characters and plot together with much wit, and humour and emotion. With plenty of drama, small town gossip, secrets and judgmental hypocrites, the friends’ careers, successes, personal partnerships, decisions (good, bad, or otherwise), permeate the story.

The writing is captivating and draws you in from the beginning. As the friends mature and age and their relationships change, not only between and among them, but with the townsfolk, and, as life tends to do, outlooks and perspectives change. But it all keeps coming back to what happened on the night of the party.

The story is as much about the life of the friends as it is about solving the Father Gavin mystery.

The book was very enjoyable and entertaining, and did I mention, extremely well written.

[Sarah - Sarah's Vignettes · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fabulous story!! Thoroughly immersed and captivated from page 1! Blog review to follow soon.

[Marjorie · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 Stars

After having read only one Rachael English book before and loving it I was really looking forward to this one. Unfortunately, it didn't deliver the same punch that The American Girl did. It does an excellent job of examining small town Irish Life between the early 1980s and the mid-2010s but I was just left with the sense that an elusive "something" was missing from the book. I haven't figured out quite what but there was something stopping me becoming fully absorbed in the tale - this may have been that I couldn't actually find it within me to actually care about who had perpetrated the murder of Father Galvin.

The characterisation is strong throughout the book and our 4 main protagonists - Conor, Tom, Nina and Tess - all come across as fairly normal people; good and bad in equal measure. The growth of their personalities from 13 year olds to their late 40s demonstrates well how circumstances imprint themselves on our psyches and Tom in particular demonstrates the disconnect you can find yourself in where nothing feels quite real and the ability to see all sides of an argument can leave you stranded. He is also the poster boy for doing a job you hate but being good at it.

The plot itself can best be described as meandering. Although the murder is the reference point used throughout to keep bringing us back to the four friends the majority of the book actually deals with the changing nature of friendship. Once these four were so close and now they are drifting apart, as is the natural order of things when not living close together or having the same experiences. They do reconnect when Conor begins investigating the murder again but I got the strong feeling that it was a very reluctant connection. Apart from finding out "whodunnit" there is no real resolution to the story and the personal lives of the four are left dangling - which, I suppose, is fair enough.

Where I did feel the book let me down was the way each character managed to be a success of some description. Although Tom starts off as a bit of a drifter who has no idea what he wants to do he soon finds his "calling" as do all the others. I would have thought the law of averages would have meant that at least one of them would have remained in the small town, stuck in a job with no prospects but no. The nearest we really have is Nina who has failed to make her way through the teaching hierarchy. So much success for 4 connected people feels more than a tad unrealistic I suppose and I think I would have preferred it if at least one of them had been left behind in Kilmitten.

Overall, this is a book I struggled to become enthusiastic about. The writing is good but it just didn't capture my imagination.

[Hannah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had never read a book by Rachael English but I enjoy reading murder mysteries and stories with character developments, so it looked like a promising book for me.

When I started reading 'The Night of the Party' I was instantly hooked. I went through the first few chapters very quickly and I loved learning the traits of the four friends and the differences in their personalities. The four main character's personalities grew over time, as this booked flipped between being set in the 80's and in the present day (2016-ish). For me, this was what I found most enjoyable about the story - seeing the character development and what paths their natural personalities led them down. However, part-way through the story, once you could see the shape each of the main character's lives took, I began to lose interest. There were a few chapters I felt were a bit unnecessary to the overall story.

In terms of being a murder mystery, I felt it was too drawn out. When a mystery goes on for a long time, I often find the ending disappointing. There were not enough revelations or twists in the plot to keep my interest and I think more could have been made out of secondary characters. There were a lot of characters mentioned in passing that were not explored in any more detail; it would have been good to find out another layer to more of the characters, for example Tom's parents. I felt there were not enough suspects for the murder, and I found it very easy to guess who committed the crime, which is my pet-peeve with a mystery as I like to be surprised at the ending! This most likely knocked off a star from my overall review. If I had not been able to guess the outcome, I probably would have reflected on the book more positively. I did also feel that the murderer was not very remorseful considering their connection with Father Galvin, and I felt they did not face many consequences to their actions.

Overall, I liked the idea of the story and learning about the four main characters and how their friendship held over time, despite the many differences between them. My review lost a couple of stars as I felt that there were some missed opportunities for plot twists and character development and that made it relatively easy to guess the identity of the murderer. I still think this book is entertaining and worth reading, but it is not top of my list.

[Susan Lanigan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This novel tells the story of four friends growing up in the same town in the early 80s. The murder of a priest in the freezing winter of 1982 inextricably links their fates. Towards the end, I was swiping the pages very quickly, interested to know what would happen, and it was a good read.

This is a novel of two halves for me, the second half being much sharper since it focuses on the death of the priest. The first half is about the lives of the four friends, Tom, Conor, Nina and Tess and the roles their parents play in village society. There are some good grounding steps that lead to the fast-moving second half, set 34 years later in 2016. There are also pacing issues however - e.g. we are about to learn about the long-concealed identity of Tess's father when the action cuts to another less interesting character and the tension drops. I think a lot of the first half could have been cut, but that might have been because I was less interested in the characters and more intrigued by what was going on with the dead priest.

When it claims its true identity as a crime novel - one of the friends, Conor, who has followed his father into the Guards, wants to re-open the case, questioning the framing of a suspect - the story blazes into life and becomes unputdownable. The four friends have very different lives now, one of them being a prominent Irish politician who is hiding a secret. English does her research into the Gardai and political worlds very well and I enjoyed the interactions and drama. While I was not convinced by the rekindled romance, the claustrophobic world of buried secrets and twitching curtains is really well done, as well as the realities of Irish politics and policing. I honestly think this should have been a crime novel all along - it reminds me in places of Dervla McTiernan's The Ruin. An enjoyable read enfin!

[Robin Patterson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story about loyalty and mystery.

Uncommon words: skinnymalinks, culchie, hames

Some neat expressions, e.g. "The air was clean as peppermint", "faces so shiny their mam must have spat on a hankie and given them a polish", "grassy-knollers" (conspiracy theorists), "Conor had encountered plankton with a higher IQ [than the heavy on the door]", "what-aboutery" (continual complaining about progress of a police investigation)

Chapter and Part headings are a little misleading; e.g. page 58 is still in "Part One 1982" but it's not 1982. And I really wish publishers would not use "I" for "1".

A commendably small number of proofreader gripes:
p 26 "huG" should probably be "hug"
p 231 "whom" should be "who "[... had]
p 336 "h all" should be "hall"

[Margaret Mary Lynch · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rachel English writes a good story with plenty of suspense, however there were a few things that I didn't like. She brought in some elements of famous crimes including gangland feuds that were very close to reality and some scenes didn't really seem plausible. The person responsible for the murder was very emotionally detached after the crime for someone who was close to the victim and the ending of the story tied up too many links.
I would recommend this to my friends but with these reservations

[Sanford Cohn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read a real page turner.

Great read a real page turner, lot a twists and turns. it was hard to A down at times. . The aurhor is a great story teller, has a way with words and paints a picture so well you think your write there living with them. It had an amazing number twist and turns that I just didn't see coming, it was frustrating at times , but it had a some what satisfying ending. . I really kept looking forward to the next reading section of it. The ending left the reader baging a few questions and hence wasn't quite tootally satisfying. Great story though.

[Ramcy Diek · Rating 2 out of 5]

Rachael English is a storyteller, and a good one. But, yawn, is it boring.
The only reason I kept on "reading" (meaning I glanced over the pages and tapped them away on my e-reader), was because I wanted to find out who the killer was. When I did, I tapped through the last pages.
True, it gave me some insight into a 1980's small town in Ireland, but honestly, that's not any different from any other small town back in the day.
If you're interested in a detailed narrative about the lives of four different children until they're middle aged, go for it. For me, no.

[Nikaeya Ridyard · Rating 5 out of 5]

(Wholesome, Romantic, Inspiring) - A fictional story that follows four teenagers (Tess, Conor, Nina and Tom) from the night of a party, notoriously concluding in the mysterious death of the village priest, later found to be committed by Nina’s mother. The 4 protagonists endure lives that drift and collide back together, showing the strength of a good friendship whilst experiencing tragedies that life has to offer, also providing a sweet romance between Tom and Nina. 473 pages.

[Katie S Mitch · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a little too long and slow for me, but I really enjoyed some things. I liked seeing how much things changed over time. It's easy to forget how much things change in some people's lifetime. I liked the evolution of friendship and relationships. I loved seeing Tess and Conor thrive. I was guessing until the very end who the killer was and I was surprised at who it turned out to be. It was just a little long for me. I found myself just ready to move on. But a nice read, nonetheless.

[Debra Mirs · Rating 4 out of 5]

Childhood friendships can get so messy when one little secret is held. Surprising end!!!!

Set in Ireland, 4 friends grow up but have a murder of a priest that they don't know who did it. Tess, Tom, Donor and Nina go their ways but are drawn back together when after 30 plus years is revealed. Will written story of life in a little village, especially when the for friends grow up. Will established characters that you'll enjoy. And the ending......!!!!!

[Carrie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Holiday read. 4 13 year old friends drinking and smoking in a garden shed whilst their parents and neighbours are at a party. The local priest is murdered at this party one of the 13 year old Tom, witnesses an altercation it doesn’t tell anyone. The story got through different time periods unfolding tge lives of the four friends until the last few pages when the truth of what happened at the party is revealed.
If I was a character I would have liked to be Tess.

[Janine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed this book. Captured the often intense atmosphere of a small town. A place where a murder years ago still comes up in regular conversation. Where suspicions always follow. But yet also a place of familiarity and comfort. Who killed the young priest? What did the kids see? How does this impact their ongoing relationships? Enjoyed this read.

[Miriam · Rating 5 out of 5]

My first time reading anything by Rachel I'm ashamed to admit as we are from the same place. Even though the place was fictional, I'm sure I could guess where it was based. This is a gripping read that I found impossible to leave down and I now have bought more from her. I don't like spoilers but I would have not guessed who killed the victim.

[Sheila · Rating 3 out of 5]

Set in Ireland , four young 10 yr old friends have a drink in the shed as one boy’s parents have a party. A murder happens at the party and one of the children sees who did it but keeps it hidden to protect others. Many years later it still haunts them. Murder story with a surprising twist at the end

[Jennifer Rhodes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Mystery Read!

This was a riveting read! I enjoyed the developing relationships of the four friends and how the murder intruded into their lives.
It really made you think about who the possible murderer could be and I believe I had worked it out before the big reveal.
A good holiday read! Enjoy!

[Annabel Attwell · Rating 4 out of 5]

I did really enjoy this book. I could connect with the characters and loved the development from children to adulthood. I have to say that I found the ending a little disappointing and anticlimactic. Overall it was still a good book.

[Lee Meyers · Rating 4 out of 5]

enjoyed getting to know the characters

A good read with characters that are easy to get to know. The characters and environment are better than the story and felt like some of chapters were not necessary

Overall, I liked itcc bc and have recommended it in my reading circle

[Elaine Xiques · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting story

Good story that starts when a group of close friends in their teens and their secrets that take them through their life until in their 50’s when everything comes to a head.

[Aoife · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.75 stars rounded to 3. Nothing amazing about the writing in this book but the story was alright and it was an easy to read story which I enjoyed reading over a bank holiday weekend.

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Picked up this at Eason's in Dublin...good story about four childhood friends who spend much of their lives picking up the pieces after a riveting murder.

[Helen Gibson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyable, very readable, well developed characters and pace was fine..