What a terrific start to a new series!

Mercy and Lizzie move from the US to Shamrock Cove, Ireland, after receiving an inheritance from a grandfather they didn’t even know existed! It includes a home (cottage) in a well known area that you can only get into if someone you know gives the property to you! And, an old, beautifully maintained, quaint little bookshop!
Mercy is an author from NYC. Lizzie a lavender farmer from the Midwest. They both suffered some terrible losses/tragedies in the recent past and are looking forward to a new start!
They are welcomed into their new home by a circle of neighbors, most of which are lovely! But, the judge, (one of the neighbors) is a cranky old man who has nothing nice to say to either of them.
On their way back home, they hear someone yelling…and find the judge on the ground…all but dead! Mercy tries to help him, but is not successful. AND, he says…just before dying, that he knew it was her trying to kill him! And…now all of the others neighbors have gathered around…and witnessed this!

THIS WAS THE OPENING OF THE BOOK! So, as you can see, off to a good start! And…it gets better!

I understand this is the start of a new series, so I am looking forward to continuing the series as they come out!

4 1/2 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 for me, rounded up to 5!

Thanks to #NetGalley and #BookoutureAudio for an ARC of the audiobook in exchange for an honest review.
***Release date is 8/22/24…so a few days from now!! ***

#AnIrishBookshopMurder by #LucyConnelly and narrated nicely by #KimberlyWetherell.

Feel free to like, follow and friend me on: Goodreads,
Insta @ #BookReviews_with_emsr and/or
My Facebook Book Club: Book Reviews With Elaine.

Thanks so much for reading! And if you ‘liked’ my review, please share with your friends, and click ‘LIKE’ below!! 📚⭐️

I listened to the audiobook and the narrator was perfect! This is the first book in a new cozy series that has fun characters and an intriguing mystery. I loved this book and it’s a great start to a new series, I cannot wait to read more!!

'An Irish Bookshop Murder' is a cozy mystery with all the right vibes: a small town (in Irland!!), two sisters, an author as the main lead, quirky neighbors, a handsome police officer, a crazy mystery, a bookstore, (and a dog that will probably be the main attraction of the books to come!!!).

First of all, I loved the sisterly bond and the background the author gave them, making them multidimensional and not just some random newcomers trying to solve a mystery.

The mystery, also, was nicely embedded in the whole cozy small-town story, though it was easy to predict after the small crumbs the author kept leaving us here and there.

However, there was an immense effort to make other characters seem like the culprits or throw the reader off the murder's scent, which ended up being tiring, especially when the police officer was involved.

Finally, the audiobook production was splendid and the narrator did a great job with the accents.

An Irish Bookshop Murder is a cute, cozy mystery. I enjoyed the twins and their attempt to settle into a new village and culture. Meeting the characters was charming (most of them). I did enjoy how quickly the court welcomes and embraces Mercy and Lizzie. Once the judge is found dead the action picks up. There are plenty of red herrings to make the reader ponder and wonder. It is a clean story with a touch of romance. There is a gay couple, so if that is not your reading preference, you may not enjoy this book. Mercy is intelligent and driven and you can see her American culture rubbing against the more subtle Irish nature. I did enjoy the sisterly bond and their determination to look after one another. I was not overly surprised by the culprit, but the story takes a decent path to get there.
I did listen to the audiobook version and found the narrator to have done a great job.
I received a complimentary copy from the publisher via NetGalley and all opinions expressed are solely my own, freely given.

This was an enjoyable first in series with promising characters and a delightful setting. The hidey-holes and secret doors are fun, and I am sure there are many more secrets to discover in books to come. That said, I grow weary of the seeming need to populate these cozy villages with all manner of eccentricity and idiosyncrasy. Nonetheless, I look forward to the next book in the series.

Mercy and Lizzie are twins who have moved from America to run their deceased grandfather's bookshop in Ireland. On arrival, a local resident is found dead - accident or murder? Mercy is a crime writer and quickly tries to put on her sleuths mantel, but his is real life and she keeps being found in the wrong place at the wrong time by the local policeman!
Engaging listening, really compelling.
I enjoyed it and will certainly listen to more of Mercy and Lizzie’s adventures.

I really enjoyed listening to this book, so much that I listened to it in one day! The story was a cosy murder mystery and I always love them. I liked the different secrets and mysteries throughout the story. My only issue is that I felt that the motive of the murderer seemed a little bit meh and not all of the secrets were wrapped up by the end of the book. I wanted the girls to learn more about their grandad by the end. All in all I did really enjoy this though, hence the 4 stars.

An outstanding start to a new series! I am absolutely loving the main characters! Mercy, an author and Lizzy, a businesswoman, are twins who have suffered a series of tragedies and find themselves the heirs to property in Ireland. While the twins have a lot of similarities their personalities are unique and distinct which makes them so much more realistic. The background stories of the neighbors' ties into the mystery that surrounds the twins when they arrive and many suspicious events later, they are fully wrapped into the center of the mystery. The book is so well crafted that I ended up staying up until the wee hours of the morning to finish as I just couldn't put it down. The narrator did such a magnificent job of bringing the unique personalities to life that I will definitely put this series on my must listen list!!! Now, I just want the author to hurry and write more, more, more as there are still unanswered questions about the twin's heritage and inheritance! Whether you are an audio lover or a read the book lover, this series is sure to fill your cozy mystery loving needs!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.
What a nice cozy mystery. I loved the characters and the small town setting. The theme of starting over but also a murder mystery thrown in as well.
Great listen and I loved the narrator. I hope there are more in this series.

Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for the advanced copy of this book.

Kimberly Wetherell does a great job narrating this book. The different voices and different accents really help differentiate characters. I would give her 5 stars for her performance!

A cozy murder mystery set in a small Irish town where two twin sisters have inherited a cottage and a bookstore from their late grandfather. One sister is an author and the other sister is hoping to have a fresh start after things in her life go wrong. When a well known member of the community dies their first night there, they spend their time proving they aren’t the guilty party.

Everyone is a suspect but you don’t get a ton of direction pointing you toward any one person. It wraps up much differently than i expected with a motive that didn’t seem to match the rest of the story.

**An Irish Bookshop Murder**

**Rating:** ⭐️⭐️⭐️
**Format:** Audiobook
**Speed:** 1.25x

Our story begins with twin sisters Mercy and Lizzie. Both women have just moved to Ireland for a fresh start. Their estranged grandfather left them his house and bookstore. Lizzie had a lilac farm in Texas, and Mercy is a famous mystery author. The move was prompted by the decline and death of their mother, as well as Lizzie’s fiancé and his daughter. No sooner had the women settled in on their first day than a local resident is murdered. Readers are taken on a murder mystery adventure with a touch of romance and a frantic rush to solve the case before someone else in this quaint town ends up dead.

**Highlights:**
⭐️ **Lizzie & Mercy:** Their sister dynamic brings a breath of fresh air to the story.
⭐️ **Character Background:** I was genuinely surprised by the “darkness” in Lizzie and Mercy’s past. Both women lost their mother, Lizzie lost her fiancé and his daughter, and Mercy mentions having a stalker in NY. When I think of cozy mysteries, I imagine a Hallmark or Lifetime happy-go-lucky scenario where the protagonist stumbles upon a case; I certainly wasn’t expecting their reasons for moving to be so serious.
⭐️ **Little Spark of Romance:** 😉
⭐️ **Story Location:** A bookstore in a cute, quaint little town by the shore in Ireland? Yes, please.

**Pitfalls:**
❌ **The Twist Was Meh:** I was surprised by the reveal, but to be honest, I didn’t fully understand it. I didn’t think the motive or intention behind the murder made much sense.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for the early ARC of this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.
*Social media posts will be done closer to publication dates.

Fantastic kickoff to a new cozy mystery series. This book is chocked full of cozy charm, great characters, and an intriguing mystery. I really enjoyed it and can’t wait to read more.

This was nearly everything I want out of a cozy mystery. Irish, small town community setting? Check. Nosy neighbors that make you laugh? Check. Amateur sleuthing? Check. It was such a fun book, and the narrator was wonderful.

Title: An Irish Bookshop Murder
Series; Mercy McCarthy Mystery Book #1
Author: Lucy Connelly
Format: 🎧
Narrator: Kimberly Wetherell
Publisher: Bookouture Audio
Pub Date: August 22, 2024
My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐.5 - rounded up!!
Pages: 290

Mystery writer Mercy McCarthy and her twin sister Lizzie are new to Shamrock Cove, Ireland.
They have recently experienced personal tragedies - their mother recently died and Lizzie also has been grieving the death of fiancé.
They just found out that a Grandfather they never knew had left them a cottage and bookstore in Ireland.
They decided they have nothing to lose by leaving the US (Mercy-New York and Lizzie-Texas) and head to Ireland.

They are immediately greeted by a wonderful group of grandfather’s friends. Well- all but an elderly judge who was a close friend is NOT friendly.
As the story title indicated there is a murder – yep the judge! Although there are a lot of suspects- whodunit fooled me!

I love the main characters. Narrator Kimberly Wetherell does a fab job performing the characters. Additionally I love Shamrock Cove and am looking forward for the next book in this fun cozy mystery series.

Needless to say - I just loved this story. I didn’t want to give too much away as I want
you to enjoy and love it as well.

Want to thank NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for granting me this audiobook.
Publishing Release Date scheduled for August 22, 2023.

Loved it!
Quaint, charming, cosy, funny, lovely characters, a mystery I can’t guess the answer to, everything I want from a cosy mystery!
I haven’t been to Ireland myself so I can’t comment on the accuracies of the culture but I found the whole thing very enjoyable and can’t wait for more.
Loved the narrator.

Mercy and Lizzie need a fresh start, so when they receive a surprise inheritance from the grandfather they didn't even know existed, they head off to tiny Shamrock Cove in Ireland - just a bit different to Texas! They are welcomed with open arms by the locals and the descriptions of the little village, the bookshop they inherited and the fabulous characters, was wonderful! I adored the secret doors!

When the local judge dies, accusing Mercy of being his killer as he takes his last breath, the two sisters are thrown into turmoil, as is the whole village. As a bestselling crime writer, Mercy thinks she can solve the crime, but the local police aren't so keen for her involvement.

I loved Mercy’s directness and there is some great banter in the book - throughly enjoyable.

Kimberly Wetherell's narration was excellent, she had the accents spot on and it made it very easy to understand which character I was listening to.

4 ⭐️ Thanks to Netgalley, Lucy Connelly and Bookouture for an ARC in return for an honest review.

I really enjoyed the whole book! It was really interesting from the start. I really hope to be able to read more from this author in the future! I loved the relationship between sisters, working the law enforcement officers, and the amateur sleuthing. A quick listen and super enjoyable!

This was a good start to a new series. I loved the setting but never really warmed to Mercy. The rest of the characters seemed like caricatures, the required quirky people that have to be in each town in a cozy and never really felt fleshed out. I am not a fan of breaking in to get clues so the multiple attempts to get into the same place were annoying. I will read the next in the series to see how the series develops.

This is a tidy start to a promising series. In An Irish bookshop Murder, the quaint and cosy community of Shamrock Cove is packed with quirky and fun characters whose adventures you'll be keen to follow. Mercy and Lizzie, are newcomers to the cove, following a shock inheritance and make solving this mystery light-hearted entertainment, making this perfect for reading while cosying up in your favourite comfy spot.

Thank you so much netgalley!
This book is so cute, a real cosy mystery. I audiobooked this and I really enjoyed the narrator and how well she changed up the accents. I loved the difference between the twins and their back stories. Mercy is such a nosy nelly! This book reminded me of a less disastrous version of Finlay Donovan!
I will 100% be picking up more from this author.