Audiobook Review: An Irish Bookshop Murder by Lucy Connelly

An Irish Bookshop Murder
Author: Lucy Connelly
Narrator: Kimberly M. Wetherell
Series: Mercy McCarthy (Book 1)
Publication: Bookouture (August 22, 2024)
Length: 8 hours and 25 minutes

Description: Meet Ireland’s newest daring detective: she’s a bookstore owner, a coffee lover, and a crime writer. Now Mercy McCarthy needs a little Irish luck as she takes on her first case!

After receiving unexpected inheritance from her grandfather, Mercy and her twin sister Lizzie are now the proud owners of a charming antique bookshop in the tiny Irish village of Shamrock Cove But before they can take in the beautiful view of the sea, one of their neighbors drops dead!

Mercy finds the Judge, a well-respected man who lives next door, dying on his own doorstep. She rushes to help, but with his final words, he accuses Mercy of murder! Most of their new neighbors hear his words and, with suspicion pointing at Mercy, she decides to investigate the case to clear her name.

Searching amongst the Judge’s old books, Mercy uncovers letters proving several of the townsfolk had reason to dislike the judge—but was it the local pub landlord, the kindly cook or neighborly knitter who killed him?

Then Mercy’s chief suspect turns up dead and she receives a threatening note, typed on paper from her own bookstore… Ireland was supposed to be a fresh start for Mercy and Lizzie, but dead bodies keep turning up.

Does Mercy have what it takes to nail the culprit or will the killer close the book on her time in this charming Irish village?

My Thoughts: The first Mercy McCarthy mystery has the famous author moving to Ireland with her twin sister when they inherit a home and bookshop from a grandfather they never knew existed. 

Mercy and Lizzie are ready for a new start. Mercy has been dealing with a stalker and the loss of her mother to cancer. Lizzie is also dealing with her mother's death and the deaths of her fiance and her soon-to-be stepdaughter in a car accident. Lizzie's losses had her hospitalized and her twin determined to help her. 

A new start in Ireland is eagerly anticipated by both of them, but discovering the body of one of their neighbors is not the start they were hoping for. The Judge dies after a gathering to meet Mercy and Lizzie and, while Mercy tries CPR, she is unsuccessful. Even more strange is that the Judge seems to indicate that he suspects Mercy of his murder before he dies. 

The local police detective Kieran is the grandson of another of the residents of the exclusive court where Mercy and Lizzie have inherited a home. He is suspicious of Mercy who decides that she has to find out who murdered the Judge before she can continue writing her book which is a little schedule.

Since the Court, where their houses are, is a gated community, Mercy is certain that one of the other residents has to be the murderer. As she investigates, she gets to know the gay couple, the shop owner who butted heads with the Judge and her husband the accountant, the photographer who could be a model herself, and Kieran's grandmother. 

Mercy's career as a successful mystery author with a penchant for research gives her a leg up in investigating which Kieran is not very happy about. The two butt heads a lot, but he does take advantage of her talents. 

This was a cute cozy mystery that starts a series. I liked the characters and look forward to more of their adventures. 

I bought this one April 8. You can buy your copy here.