Irish Humor

With green eyes and an easy smile, Frank McCabe stole me away from the nightmares that awaited me at home. But the son of the Irish Mob would never be mine. I belonged to the Italians. And the moment my mother sold me to the head of the Italian Mafia, I became the one the people of Boston were warned about. The only person more feared than me in our city is the Irish Ghost. When I finally flee my marital prison with my sons and my sister in tow, I unwittingly run straight into the ghost of the Irishman who died in a fiery explosion years ago.

Welcome to the Village of Ballybucklebo. Come and say hello to Dr. O'Reilly's odd-as-two-left feet patients, his housekeeper, Mrs. "Kinky" Kinkaid, and O'Reilly's pets, Arthur Guinness, the beer-swilling black Lab and Lady MacBeth, the demonically possessed white cat. And of course, to young Dr...

Now includes the just-released short story A Backstitch in Spacetime! Derry girls, women, wee boys, hard men, they're all here in the these four stand alone short works from the Derry Women Series. Previously released as a short story (Table For Nine At Kebablicious), a novelette (The Way to A Man's Heart or Strange Things on Plates) and a novella (A Very Fionnuala Christmas) and A Backstitch in Spacetime, they are all together in one anthology. Laugh, wince, fume and cry at the antics of the impoverished Flood family with the mother, Fionnuala, who will stoop to the lowest depths to get ...

A witty, affectionate, and delightfully informal look at Irish history told from the perspective of Leonard Wibberley, the beloved author of The Mouse that Roared. Raised in both Ireland and England, Wibberley offers a light-hearted yet insightful exploration of the complex love/hate relationship between the Irish and English. Through fascinating details of the struggles and interactions between the two peoples over the centuries, Wibberley reveals their shared strengths and surprising similarities. With his trademark humor and warmth, he holds out hope that they can ultimately put their ...

Quinn Langston, a psychologist living on a West Cork farm, discovers a hidden connection to Ireland's past when her young friend Gracie uncovers a mysterious bundle of letters in her grandmother's cellar. The letters reveal the decades-spanning love and heartbreak of Liam Kelly and Maddie O’Shea, two lovers torn apart by time and circumstances. As Quinn's ancestral gift of "Knowing" allows her to delve into the past, she uncovers haunting secrets, including a hidden murder and long-buried truths about love, sacrifice, and betrayal. With time travel, a mystical raven, and the charm of ...

Quinn finds herself in an embarrassing situation when an old high school classmate who now lives in Ireland contacts her about their twenty-fifth high school reunion. Unfortunately, Quinn has gilded the lily as to her and her best friend, Fiona’s, accomplishments. Now, she will have to come clean. To make matters worse, Adler James, or Addie as she likes to be called, was one of the popular girls in high school. Soon after their meeting, Addie is accused of murder. Quinn believes she’s innocent and decides to do some investigating with the help of her cousin Charlotte. Quinn quickly ...

From battling oppression and famine in Ireland to overcoming poverty and discrimination in America, we Irish gained our fightin' moniker by standing up for our rights and earning the respect we deserve. Now, the amazing feats, astounding people and incredible facts in this fascinating book of Irish trivia will make you proudly say, “F*ck you, I'm Irish”. 

After four years of renovations, grief and chaos, Rosie and Ronan’s dream home in Italy is finally coming together—or so they hope. Whether it’s the last remnants of a housebound ghost or renovation fatigue, something seems to be draining their energy. With plans to open their doors to guests looming, the gardens need taming, the house needs sprucing, and—most importantly—they need to figure out if hosting strangers is a dream worth pursuing or their next life disaster waiting to happen. To prepare, Rosie and Ronan hit the road, scoping out the quirks and perks of BnBs in Italy ...

I just want to be naughty for one night of my life. I think I’d be really good at it... I need to escape. I’m a bad girl trapped in a good girl’s body. Perfect grades, star volleyball player, lead in the drama club. I know it’ll lead to a great career. But I need more. Just one night. In Ireland. On St. Patrick’s Day. Thousands of miles away from anyone who knows me. That’s how I met Dare Mackenzie. With fire in his emerald eyes, sinful promises on his lips. And an accent as intoxicating as the darkest stout. He keeps saying I’m too sweet, too innocent, too good. I dare you, ...

Quinn and Fiona have settled into their new life on Raven Hill Farm in West Cork. They have great friends and a menagerie of animals. Quinn volunteers at the local mental health clinic, while Fiona has her greenhouse and plants to keep her busy. Their lives are turned upside down when Owen Gilpatrick, the farm’s previous owner, is found dead in their barn, the victim of an apparent murder. What’s just as shocking is the DNA results that show Quinn to be Owen’s great-niece. Quinn can’t wrap her head around how she managed to buy her family’s ancestral home without even knowing it. ...

Quinn is in the middle of a midlife crisis. Forty-six, divorced, and having recently walked away from her practice as a psychologist, she fears her best years are behind her. Fiona, Quinn's best friend since childhood, has a plan to get her out of her rut — a trip to Ireland! Quinn loves everything about Ireland: the people, the culture, the scenery and especially a little town called Ballyfrannen. On a whim, she decides to move there, and Fiona is eager to do the same. At first, things seem to be working out perfectly. They find a charming little stone cottage to buy and set about ...

Memoir; life in Italy, grief and healing, women’s midlife memoir, expat life, Irish humor, found family, starting again, loss and love, Italy memoir, solo travel. Read as standalone, but better as part of the series. Welcome back to Casa Anam Cara — where the Italian countryside is beautiful, the guests unpredictable, and the bureaucracy remains undefeated. Rosie’s life in Italy continues with hosting fabulous midlife crisis retreats for women and writers, garden chaos, and a revolving door of creative visitors. Between unexpected animals who move in uninvited, magic holy doors, the ...

Quinn sat straight up in bed. “Annie McClery has been murdered.” She said the words out loud. She tells herself it was just a dream, but then she gets a call from Dermot Brennan, the local Garda. He’s calling to say they just found the old doll maker, Annie McClery, dead in her cottage. He’s sure she died from natural causes. After all, she was ninety-six years old. But Quinn can’t shake off her dream. Did Annie die of natural causes, or was she murdered? But what would be the motive? Quinn visits Annie’s cottage and discovers a drawer full of old journals. The journals reveal ...

A Modest Proposal for Preventing the Children of Poor People in Ireland From Being a Burden to Their Parents or Country, and for Making Them Beneficial to the Public, commonly referred to as A Modest Proposal, is a Juvenalian satirical essay written and published anonymously by Jonathan Swift in 1729. Swift suggests in his essay that the impoverished Irish might ease their economic troubles by selling children as food. By doing this he mocks the authority of the British officials.

Welcome to Patrick Taylor's Irish Country Books and the colourful Ulster village of Ballybucklebo, where two doctors work hand in hand to mend the bodies and spirits of the town's diverse and engaging inhabitants. But who is looking after the wounded hearts of the doctors? In An Irish Country...

The luck of the Irish won't save her this time. Months after clearing her name in a shocking murder case, Sinead Long thought she'd finally found peace in Cloncastle. She's settling back into village life, ready to embrace the warmth of home and the festive buzz of St. Patrick's Day. But when the celebrations take a deadly turn and a well-known local is found murdered, the festive spirit is shattered. The garda are quick to investigate, but as secrets unravel and old wounds reopen, Sinead can't shake the feeling that someone wants her dragged back into danger. With grudges, hidden rivalries...

Something very strange is happening in Tula Nolan’s house. She is visited by the spirits of a young girl and her uncle, and she hears a terrible wailing coming from the attic. Quinn has a chance encounter with Tula, who she realizes is enveloped in a black mist. The Knowing has led her to this woman. She enlists her grandmother’s and her friends’ help as she sets out to find answers. It’s up to Quinn to uncover the truth and bring peace to this haunted young woman.

Quinn and Fiona get an unexpected surprise when Dermot Brennan, the local Garda from the little town of Ballyfrannen, stops by. The grave of a young woman named Hannah Byrnes, who died in the 1930s, has been robbed. He shows them a picture of Hannah, or Pans as she was called, standing in front of the farm that Quinn’s family has owned for generations. Is she a long-dead relative? Soon they’re told a man has been murdered. Are the two events connected? They suspect they are, especially after learning the man had been searching for the ring stolen from Pans’s grave. Events spiral out ...

An Irish Country Family is a charming entry in Patrick Taylor's beloved internationally bestselling Irish Country series. Before Doctor Barry Laverty joined Doctor Fingal O’Reilly's practice in the colorful Irish village of Ballybucklebo, he was an intern, working long hours, practicing new...

"An entertaining plot, fascinating characters, lots of humour and warmth make Patrick Taylor’s 'Irish Country' books enjoyable reads - or listens. This audio book, like the others, is expertly read by John Keating." - Toronto.com A charming Christmas entry in Patrick Taylor's beloved...