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4.5 out of 5 stars
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2 star
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carlene connor irish village macdara flannery cozy mystery father kearney irish churchyard dead body police officer looking forward murder in an irish well written day on the job peter mallon small town detective sergeant siobhán sullivan fun read third book main character happy to see
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Joan B. Ford
2.0 out of 5 stars Irish pride
Reviewed in the United States on December 24, 2018
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Rough on Americans. If you don’t like us, don’t bother writing about us. I get it, you’re proud of your country and people, and rightly so. But your portrayal of Americans, essentially as stereotypes, leaves much to be desired. Although the story line is worthwhile I will not read any more of your books.
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Caroline Writer
5.0 out of 5 stars Updated: It looks like the author adjusted her American snark in future work
Reviewed in the United States on February 1, 2021
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I love these books, but the first 3 really offended me as you see here. However, in the last two (which I read despite being annoyed by the snark) she stopped with the sarcastic comments about Americans. These are great, fun reads, and I've upgraded back to 5 star for the last two of the series. I'm glad she listened.
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I have enjoyed the series but the constant digs at Irish American tourists is painful. Think about it—we Irish Americans left due to starvation. We thought you would love us when we came back to visit, and yes some jerks made fun of the leprechauns and acted like you were unsophisticated —- but those are not the people interested enough in Irish culture to read your books. Worse the author is also Irish American. It is one thing to have an occasional obnoxious American character but this is a constant theme. Please think about how hurtful this is. If this is what the Irish think of us when we spend life savings to visit the land of our ancestors and they are two faced in their welcoming as in this book then it is quite hurtful and makes me think twice about saving $& to visit there. I have decided to hope that this attitude of the author and her characters is not common but it is very disappointing to people who have always admired you and been sad we had to escape the land of our ancestors. We don’t have a real home —before we got to America the same brits who tried to steal Erin stole America from the native people— and now I feel it even more. Be a leader not a follower and treat us with respect not snark. Again the ones you are trying to get back at with this are surely not the ones interested enough in the culture and language to be reading your books
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R Retzler
4.0 out of 5 stars A fun and well-written cozy mystery - I'm looking forward to the next three books in the series
Reviewed in the United States on March 6, 2018
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The night before Siobhán O’Sullivan is due to start her first day as a Garda (police) in her hometown of Kilbane, Ireland, Father Kearney, the local priest, knocks on the O’Sullivan family’s door at half past one AM. After hearing a gunshot, Father Kearney had investigated and found a dead body in the church graveyard. Although Siobhán is not yet technically a Garda, she has been successful in catching two previous murderers in Kilbane, and Father Kearney wants her to be the first on the scene. The next day when the case is officially assigned, Siobhán is chagrined to discover that she will be reporting to DS Macdara Flannery, her former boyfriend, who has moved to Dublin while she attended police college. Siobhán and Macdara learn that the murdered man and his family are from Dublin, Ohio and are visiting Ireland to research their family’s ties to Kilbane. They must put aside their feelings and work together to discover which of his family might have wanted him dead.

Murder in an Irish Churchyard is the 3rd book in Carlene O’Connor’s Irish Village series. Carlene is an American author whose great-grandmother emigrated from Ireland with many stories about Ireland. O’Connor also writes under her real name, Mary Carter. I’ve read the previous two books in the Irish Village series and was fortunate enough to receive this book courtesy of NetGalley and Kensington in exchange for an honest review.

I have enjoyed this cozy mystery series. While it is possible for this book to be read as a standalone, I think it makes the book more enjoyable to know the background from the previous two books. The mystery here is unique, well-plotted and holds together logically. The recurring characters, mainly Siobhán’s five brothers and sisters and a few townspeople, are fun and engaging characters, although there is less emphasis on the family in this book than in the prior books. I also appreciate that although the series started out centered around the family’s business, Naomi’s Bistro, O’Connor has progressed the main character, Siobhán. She has gone from primarily running the family business to becoming a Garda, so there is a logical reason for her to become involved in a criminal investigation.

I was also excited that Dublin, Ohio, my home, was mentioned in the book. Carlene graciously responded to my email, and I found that she has visited here for the annual Irish Fest. She also told me that she had signed another three-book deal for the series.

I recommend this book, and series, to anyone who enjoys a fun and well-written cozy mystery. I’m looking forward to the next three books in the series.
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Kindle appreciater
2.0 out of 5 stars I would not recommend this book
Reviewed in the United States on March 7, 2018
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No character building at all. Just constant wringing of hands. I will not be reading anything else by this author.
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Allyson M. W. Dyar
5.0 out of 5 stars It's now Garda O'Sullivan!
Reviewed in the United States on December 18, 2020
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Siobhán is now Garda O'Sullivan and she's on her first case.

Woken up in the middle of the night by Father Kearney, she finds a stranger who was killed in the cemetery pointing to a headstone. The deceased turns out to be the head of an American family, filming a documentary about their illustrious Irish past.

However, one of her first cases concerns the missing socks of a curmudgeon; little did she know that these socks were important to discovery of the recently deceased murder.

Of course, as all this plays out, Siobhán and Macdara, who was assigned to Dublin, figure out what to do about their personal relationship.

As with the first two books in the series, I greatly enjoyed this one and I think you will too, especially if you enjoy cozy mysteries that are set in Ireland.

I give this book a <b>5 stars</b> -- fun stuff and so is the next book (which I duly reviewed as well).
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Kindle Customer
4.0 out of 5 stars Not her best story.
Reviewed in the United States on September 14, 2020
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Not one of my favorites. I listened through Audible. The narrator was a good fit for this story. Less humor in this book. I missed the humor. The story line was interesting but the characters were not. I still enjoyed this story but it could have had better characters. I don't know how to explain them, maybe flat... I did like the curmudgeon with the lost woolly socks though. Could have been more humorous with this character.
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Kindle Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Great series
Reviewed in the United States on March 4, 2018
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This can certainly be read as a stand alone but do yourself a favor and read this series in order. Great characters. Interesting mystery. Ireland. What's not to love. I was happy to see this book pop up on my kindle. Of course I had preordered this as soon as finishing the last book. I hope there are more books to come. This series is perfect for anyone who likes a smart cozy mystery. The setting in a small Irish village is interesting. It is easy to become invested in the characters. There are some twists and turns that will keep you guessing.
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Top reviews from other countries

avid reader
4.0 out of 5 stars Predictably Lottie but one person can only take so much
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 6, 2021
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Okay time for a change think Lottie needs to retire
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Lucy G.
3.0 out of 5 stars Not my favourite of the series.
Reviewed in Canada on January 21, 2021
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I was very pleased with the first two books of this series, but I did not enjoy this third one very much. Why was the spelling of the bookstore owner's surname changed from the previous books? An author should keep track of
his/her characters' names. I found the constant winking of various characters very annoying. Do the Irish only eat curried chips and brown bread? These two were mentioned ad nauseam. George's mother was Tara Mallon who was John's (Michael's) daughter, as stated in the text, making John (Michael) George's Grand-father, not Great-grand-father. Hopefully the fourth book will be written with more care.
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Wanderlust
3.0 out of 5 stars Okay
Reviewed in Canada on February 21, 2020
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The story was okay. The main characters were okay. There were a few things that bothered me in the general writing, one being that the H seemed to "wink" every time he said something to the h. Multiple times, in the course of one conversation. It became irritating after awhile. Anyway, I doubt I will be reading another Irish Village mystery by this author. It wasn't terrible; just not really good.
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G. Hutchins
5.0 out of 5 stars Great reads.
Reviewed in Canada on October 4, 2020
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Own ALL 4.
Read all 4.
Awaiting #5 26/01/21.
ABOUT SAYS IT ALL.
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Bunnie
5.0 out of 5 stars Irish trip
Reviewed in Canada on February 14, 2020
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Loved the book as it took me back to Ireland a few years ago ,while travelling.
The people we met were just as lovely as the characters in the book. A very nice mystery to curl up with on a winter day.
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