This story introduces DI Tessa Burns, a detective with great instincts and a very interesting backstory, who is on a mission to protect children from harm. The story begins with an action scene showing just how bad ass and somewhat impulsive Tessa can be. After becoming a heroine for saving a child, Tessa is granted the opportunity of putting together her own team. She chooses her old friend Maggie, a young constable Danny, and Maggie's little dog Pavlov to form her unit which is focused on the protection of children. Having a traumatic childhood herself, Tessa is passionate about protecting the most vulnerable victims. Enter the Connollys, a family that dabbles in the illegal booze trade. The parents have gone missing and it's up to Tessa and her team to find them and protect their daughter.

I really enjoyed this book despite some of the issues I had with it. It was a pretty easy listen. The narrator did a good job of giving the characters life.

The good: The characters are very noble and likable. I immediately wanted Tessa, Danny, and Maggie to succeed and I liked young Ailing and other police officers they encountered. While I found the backstory of Danny to be a bit over done, I enjoyed getting to learn about Maggie and Tessa.

The bad: There are too many outlandish action scenes that don't really make much sense and there wasn't much of a mystery here. This was like a police procedural/triller without any real twists. There are so many suspects at first that the reader (or in my case listener) can't really tell the difference between all the shady characters. I would have preferred less violence and threats of violence and more detecting. The main issue, and I think that might be because this is our first introduction to DI Tessa Burns, is that she's a wholly unabelievable character. She's absolutely fearless when it makes no sense to fearless. She runs, not walks, into every situation. There's never really any examination about this and then later she berates Danny for doing the same. That said, I'm looking forward to more stories about this team. I also really appreciated a book that centers adults who were once in care and a person with a disabliity,

Thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture for an ARC of this audiobook.

I really enjoyed this book, it took me about 4-5 chapters to get invested. The characters were perfectly imperfect. S.a Dunphy really knows how to capture the human emotions and downfalls. My favorite character was Pavlov, the dog... of course (no animals were hurt in this book). The reason why I took one star off was because I felt like the ending was a bit rushed, but the epilog made me want to see what happens next.
I did listen to this on audiobook and I thought the narrator was great. The timing was a bit slow for my liking so I sped it up just a tad.
I will be reading/ listening to more books by this author.

Really enjoyed this Audio book and I will look out for further books in the series .
Di Tessa Burns puts together a team to help children in trouble and so far so good

I enjoyed this story. The 1st in the DI Tessa Burns series.
Tessa Burns is a police detective, who after she rescues a young girl, who had been kidnapped is offered promotion and a team of her own. She sets up a group of fellow Gardai, who she wants to support and protect children, who are victims of crime.
When Tessa was a young child, her parents were murdered. She grew up in care and after leaving the army, she joined the police. She’s always wanted to support children who have suffered like she did.

On their 1st case the team of 3 are sent to investigate the disappearance of Joe and Daisy, parents to Aisling, who was found hiding in a deserted outbuilding on their farm.

It seems Joe and Daisy are deeply involved in the distilling of illegal alcohol. Has a rival group become involved? When another family, also involved in illegal distillation is murdered, things begin to heat up and the team must hurry to find Joe and Daisy and keep Ash their daughter safe.

Told from the prospective of the investigating team and interspersed with chapters from Daisy we follow Tess and her team, Maggie and Dan as they follow the trail

I listened to an audio version of this story and struggled with the awful accents when the narrator was talking as another character, however the story itself was good enough to allow me to overcome and ignore this..

Highly recommended and cannot wait to read the rest of this series. I think Tess and her team could be a great fit in the detective series’s

Little Witness by S.A. Dunphy
Narrated by Melanie MacHugh

I received an advance review copy for free thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture Audio and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Blurb

They came in the dark. They took her parents. And now she is the only one who can save them.

Hidden away in an isolated cabin on the edge of her farm, seven-year-old Aisling Connolly shivers as the cold night air whistles through her thin jacket. It’s been two days since the men came, since her mammy told her to run like she’d never run before, to not look back. She hasn’t seen her parents since. And she’s terrified.

But when Aisling is finally found by the police, she knows instinctively she can trust Detective Tessa Burns. A former child-witness herself, Tessa understands what Aisling has been through, and that Aisling must remember everything she can about that terrible, dark night if she’s to save her parents. Something Tessa was unable to do for her own parents all those years ago.

As the little girl slowly starts to open up, Tessa uncovers much more than she’d bargained for – another murder, clearly a horrific warning to Aisling not to speak. But time is running out, and any hope of finding Aisling’s parents alive is rapidly fading. And Tessa must do everything in her power to ensure the little girl isn’t next…

My Opinion

S.A. Dunphy is an author that I have recently discovered and when I saw that this latest release was available as an audiobook I thought I would give it a listen. There is quite a bit of drama to keep the reader entertained, as well as a dog - always a firm favourite. Overall this was a highly entertaining read and is a great introduction to a new series and some great characters.

Rating 4/5

Aisling Connelly is a 7 year old who is found in an old isolated cabin by the police.. Her parents are missing and she may be the only one that can help. Detective Tessa Burns puts a team together to find the Connelly's and to keep Aisling safe, as well. Maggie, a member of the team is skilled in working with children and Aisling feels safe opening up to her. I thought this audiobook was a great introduction to a Tessa Burns series. I can't wait to read the next book. Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for this arc.

3.5

I listened to the audio version which was read very clearly by Melanie McHugh who did not, thankfully, try to do different "voices" for men and women rather using intonation as a differentiation. Much better.

The story centres around the abduction/possible murder of Daisy and Joe Connolly leaving their little girl, Aisling, alone and terrified. The question is what have Joe and Daisy been doing on their Monaghan farm and who have they upset?

The job falls to newly-minted DI Tessa Burns and her team (consisting of Danny - who loses his temper a lot, Maggie - an FLO who is Tessa's best friend and generally uses a wheelchair/guided missile (you'll find out) plus Pavlov, Maggie's assistance dog/second only to wheelchair in deadliness.

What I liked about this story was that even though it was a little farfetched at times it tripped along at a fast pace, was full of action rather than introspection and had a satisfying conclusion. Also good to have a kick-ass wheelchair user. I think the line about if you don't know what a person with any differing abilities -physical/mental is capable of then just ask, really resonated. I'm paraphrasing.

What I didn't like was the too-detailed back stories. If this is to be a series I'd have liked things to evolve naturally. I know this is a plus for some readers and its a purely personal preference. There was a lot of swearing but I don't really mind that. Some people might.

So, in the main, a decent start to what I assume will be a series of more than 2. I'd be interested to see how the team progresses.

Interesting story and decent characters. I am intrigued by Tessa Burns and happy to see this is the first in a series but unfortunately I had to give up on the audiobook about 50% of the way in. I will purchase and read the book on after its published because it is a decent story and I really want to find out what happens. My issue with the audio is a specific Dublin accent issue. I am fairly sure I have listened to and enjoyed this narrator in the past and for the most part the narration of this is fine apart from when she reads in a what I assume is meant to be a flat Dublin accent. For anyone not familiar with the accent this wont be an issue , as a Dub it was akin to nails being scratched on a blackboard and it got to the stage where it was completely ruining this book for me.

If you're not from Dublin you will enjoy this, if you are, proceed with caution and gritted teeth. I look forward to continuing this book in print.

I really enjoyed this book!! It was a fantastic mystery with well thought out characters. I have a bunch of them that are my favorite. I am looking forward to the next book in this series!!!

I liked the opening of the book and I liked the ending. Some of the middle bits I felt contained a bit too much. Too much ongoing, however overall I did enjoy it.
I think the idea of the special unit is a good one and the mix of characters is good.
It was full of action and I'd be interested to get to know the characters more in further books.
I listened to audio and I felt the narrator was easy to listen to and didn't put me off.
The only constructive feedback would be that the police related information is not really correct, which as a police officer, put me off slightly. Maybe a consultant would be beneficial.

But all in all, liked it and would listen to the next one.

⭐️3.5
Bad-ass (there is no other fitting description) Irish Detective Tessa Burns has past trauma in her own life. This only motivates her in Little Witness, the first book in this series.

Aisling Connelly, a frightened seven year old girl, witnesses the kidnapping of her parents and is left all alone.

Tessa assembles a team to find her parents, but as time goes by, the detectives find that Aisling is in more danger than they’ve realized.

This is your classic detective story with a heartfelt twist. Danny, Maggie and her precious dog, Pavlov make for a unique task force and I truly connected to their characters. The pacing became a little slow at some parts, but overall a great first novel in this series.

Thank you to Bookouture Audio and NetGalley for this early audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

Publication: February 12, 2024

⭐⭐⭐⭐
Little Witness S.A. Dunphy, an audiobook narrated by Melanie MacHugh is the first book of Irish detective Tessa Burns series.
The book starts with an action and it's always good as you are straight into the story. Then forming a team for a new department is interesting as this is a chance to get now many great characters. I was truly invested in this story, I enjoyed every part of how each team member worked in the process but the end went a bit flat for me. If all book felt so realistic then the end felt a bit over the top.
Took me a while to used to Melanie's Irish accent. It's so different but I am glad that an Irish narrator was chosen as this made this book truly original.

This is a story about truly brave people who value their jobs more than their lives! They will not stop in front of danger to protect the little ones, the ones who can't protect themself. This is a book about everything possible if you are not giving up.

Thank you, NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for this book, I truly enjoyed it!

Little witness from S. A. Dunphy was a great start to a new detective series with Detective Tessa Burns, she has handpicked her team and her first case with them is to find the parents of a little girl, Aisling Connolly who was found hiding on her family farm, there was nothing about this story I didn't enjoy, the story was gripping and the characters were well written and likeable and the narrator Melanie MacHugh did a fantastic job and bringing the story to life. I look forward to book two.

This first entry in a new series featuring Irish DI Tessa Burns finds the detective and her newly-formed team searching for the parents of a small child. The actions of characters stretch the bounds of believability at times, but this is a serviceable cozy mystery and fans of the genre will be eager to see how Tessa fares in her next case. My enjoyment was mightily improved by the excellent narration from Melanie MacHugh.

This is book one in a new series that has a lot of promise. I enjoyed this book with Tessa, a detective that has a great team. Tessa and the team are trying to find a missing family and with Tessa having witnessed her parents being killed when she was a child, the case is personal when the little girl of the family is found and Tessa needs to get answers. Things get more interesting when it is found that the girlś parents are both part of crime families.

This has well developed characters and the audio was enjoyable to listen to with the narratorś accent.

Thank you to NetGalley for the Audio ARC of Little Witness, which releases February 2024.

The story: Definitely a solid 4 star read. It wasn't my favorite plot because it focuses a lot on Ireland police politics, a topic I don't have much interest in, but there are great action points throughout. as the mother of a young daughter, the premise of this story did tug at the heartstrings a bit.

The audiobook narration: While the narrator's accent was relaxing, I found her inflection to be the slightest bit monotone at points.

This is the first book in a new Irish detective series and I couldn’t love it more! Right out of the gate, DI Tessa Burns is introduced, demonstrating her passion and strength in a hostage situation. She finds herself promoted and heading up a new team made up of herself, her best friend Maggie and another officer Danny. The team’s specialty being child crimes. When a young girl named Aisling is found in hiding after her parents have been violently taken, Tessa and her team get to work trying to solve the case. This was an exciting, action packed read. I am looking forward to the coming books in this series.

I love it when a detective and her team are not the usual kind of team you would expect in the police force. Detective Tessa is one who does not shy away from danger. When she goes for it, she goes for it. It sometimes feels a bit like a case of diving in and thinking later but she certainly achieves the goals she has set for herself.

After that one case where she went for it like a true hero she recognizes where her forte lies. And she is going to make certain she is the right woman for the job. She asked for one thing, which she received, and she chooses the team she wants to work with. I can assure you this team is one-of-a-kind, but it is not possible to not love them.

The first case together it's not an easy one and they find themselves more than once, eye to eye with one or more villains.

Tessa is the boss, but she wants to be a boss who wants to work alongside her team. She wants them to see her as a companion although she still holds the reins. She knows how she wants to lead her team and when needed she shows a very compassionate side.

So yes, this is a very promising start do a new series and I am happy I can start reading part two straight away.

This book is very suspenseful but also emotional and very compassionate and human. The author has created some great characters and reminds us that criminals use every means to try to get what they want most, which is power and money of course.

Five stars for this remarkable story.

Thank you

This is the first book in this new series about DI Tessa Burns, set in Ireland. A family vanishes in the middle of the night, but leaves their child behind. The little girl Aisling is terrified, but after being found by the police, Tessa and her friend Maggie she finally starts to open up.

This is a gripping intense criminal drama full of twists and turns. It will keep you engaged and the writer really knows what he’s talking about. The characters are likable and I liked that they were all very different.

I listened to the audio book and can’t fault this narrator, she is ace, her different accents are very good and was easy to follow all the different characters. All were different and really made the story. She promoted the chapters well and look forward to listening to her again.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for a copy.

I'm kind of on the fence about SA Dunphy's "Little Witness," the first book in the DI Tessa Burns series, a new entry in the Irish police procedural category. On the one hand, I like the premise of a small detective squad tasked with investigating crimes that involve young children, either as victims or witnesses. Tessa's hand-picked squad members--Maggie, who has cerebral palsy (along with her service dog Pavlov,) and Danny, a large man with a big heart and a hot temper--are likable and provide plenty of opportunities for further development in future books. And the opening sequence, in which Tessa singlehandedly rescues a kidnapped child, was gripping and well-written. But I'm a bit ambivalent about the character of Tessa herself; her insistence that everyone call her Tessa became a bit annoying after the third or fourth time it happened, and some of her exploits/decisions (as well as the circumstances surrounding the establishment of her unit) just didn't feel believable to me. There's enough to like here, however, that I'll give the next installment of the series a try. Note that I listened to the audiobook version of this novel, and Irish narrator Melanie MacHugh definitely enhanced my enjoyment of the book with her lovely Irish accent.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for providing me with an audio ARC of this title in return for mt honest review.