Musings From Munsch – Top of the Morning to You

Top of the morning to you, and top o’ the rest of the day for some good Irish reading.

Since it is the month of St. Patrick, I thought it would be a good time to muse about some Irish mystery writers and some writers who write about Ireland.

Tana French

The first name that jumps to the head of the line is Tana French, who penned the Dublin Murder Squad books. The first book in the series, IN THE WOODS, is excellent. The ensuing books in the series feature a different protagonist in each, but are tied together since this person appeared in the book previous as one of the noticeable characters, but definitely not the lead.

Ken Bruen

Many years ago, my daughter and I visited Ireland on a short trip. We dashed from Dublin to Galway on the train, which took a blink of an eye to go from one coast to the other. Ireland is, after all, about the same size as the state of Illinois. We explored Galway. After we returned home, I discovered author Ken Bruen, who is from Galway and sets his books there. The first one, THE GUARDS, introduces us to Jack Taylor, an alcoholic ex-Garda who solves problems. The books were very successful and made into movies starring Ian Glen as Taylor.

Adrian McKinty

Adrian McKinty was born in Northern Ireland, but now lives in Australia. He drew on his heritage to write a series of books featuring Sean Duffy, a Catholic cop in Northern Ireland during the Troubles. Each time before Duffy gets in his car, he stoops down to study the undercarriage in case there is a bomb. This award-winning series is definitely worth your time.

Stuart Neville

Another Irish author whose books are set during the Troubles is Stuart Neville. THE GHOSTS OF BELFAST is an award-winning book worthy of your time.

Irish Cozies

The aforementioned authors do not write cozies, which have become the better selling sub-genre of mystery. Irish cozies pepper the bookstore shelves and customers devour them in stacks. A good browse and you will discover that not only do Irish authors write about Ireland, but a plethora of American authors have discovered the Emerald Isle as a setting. These authors’ protagonists live abroad, working in a variety of occupations, but always stumbling upon a body or two which dot the beautiful countryside and graveyards. At this rate, Ireland may decide to close its borders to Americans for fear the homicide rate will rise as its visitors ramble around the cities, towns and villages. Some of the authors to look out for are: Carlene O’Connor, Cathie Murphy, Sheila Connelly, and Dicey Deere among others.

Brew yourself a ‘cup o’tae’ or pour a bit of Jameson to sip as you turn the pages of any of these wonderful works. Sit back and let the leprechauns peek over your shoulder.