THE QUIET WOMAN

A family trip to Ireland goes from bad to worse.

The last time romance writer Danielle “Danny” Furey and her brother Kerry went to Ireland, they were searching for their ancestral home. As far as Danny is concerned, that was the trip from hell, and she’s hustled into going again only because Kerry has been diagnosed with leukemia. Danny is especially unhappy to discover that her ex-husband is joining them. Fortunately, she soon meets Frank O’Shea, an Irish barman she finds a lot more appealing. Frank gets fired for letting Kerry substitute some poteen—Irish white lightning—for the pub’s usual fare. Since he’s also trying to escape his bookmaker, Kerry hires him to drive them around in their search for Letterfenny, the now-deserted village their grandfather called home. Along the way, tour guide Donal Conneely overhears them discussing their favorite film, The Quiet Man, and gains their interest, and a job, by relating a story about Bridey Finnerman, a young girl who was murdered while working on the film. Danny and Kerry, who have endlessly discussed the film and even talked about writing a book about it, are eager to turn to sleuthing when they hear the tale. As the group wanders the beautiful Conemarra countryside picking up clues and meeting the people who knew Bridey best, they realize that nothing is really as it seems.

This stand-alone from the author of two popular series (Dance in the Dark, 2011, etc.) has it all: great characters, a credible mystery, a touch of romance, a loving portrayal of Ireland and even a ghost.