This started out as a very interesting tale but it soon lost momentum. An Irish brother and sister head to America and encounter many of the pitfalls that befell people of the late 19th century. A compelling mystery that was overshadowed by a strange romance plot. However, I did find the author's note to be incredibly interesting.


Goodreads review published 19/08/23

I originally had requested this title on NetGalley from the University of Minnesota Press but it was archived before I was able to read it. So I am reviewing a finished copy today.

Publication Date 12/05/20

#TheStreel #NetGalley.

i loved the use of western and mystery they really worked well together. I liked the main character and really enjoyed reading this book. I hope there is more in the series.

A well-written pleasant cozy read. Not exactly my cup of tea tho. :)


I'd like to thank to the publisher and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

Powerful and driving book based I think on real event .. brigid has strength she knew she had in rousting effete, lying aristo, and recognising sexual dangers of being solo woman in frontier towns .. murders happen and are covered up in bid for survival .. all the actions are plausible and based on moral criteria .. and love .. great story, great research!

I loved the main character in this book, a spirited and independent Irish woman, an emigrant who worked hard and took no nonsense. I thought her getting sucked into Charlie's lies was a bit much though but her character won out in the end.
Thanks to Netgalley for an advanced copy of this book, really enjoyed it
#Netgalley #TheStreel

I love stories with strong heroines and Brigid is definitely one. Newly arrived in North America from Ireland, she follows her brother to Deadwood in the territories during the gold rush. When he's accused of a murder she knows he didn't commit, she stays to clear his name and take care of his interests while he escapes to an agreed-upon location. This is a fast pasted story that was easy to read kept me glued to it to the end. I highly recommend!

A historical mystery about a young girl and her brother who were shipped to America amidst the gold rush, to alleviate the struggles of their family in Ireland. Brigid, 15 and her brother Seamus, separate and work hard to find their own ways in this new land, but eventually end up back together in Deadwood, South Dakota. What she hopes to be a happy reunion with her brother, turns into a murder mystery, with blame being put on the wrong person. Brigid takes it upon herself to try to fix this injustice, all the while putting herself in harms way.

This was a quick, easy read with a strong woman as the main character, which I enjoyed. The story picked up quickly and kept moving, was easy to follow and entertaining. The twists and turns will keep you guessing until the end!

I enjoyed this historical mystery set in Deadwood in the 1870s. The protagonist, Brigid, was lively and likable and her voice was fairly authentic, although the book itself wasn’t as evocative of its time as I prefer in a historical. It was fairly well researched, but there were several anachronisms that pulled me out of the story and, overall, it had too modern a flavor. It bore more of a resemblance to a period TV mystery than a really first rate historical novel. This is not a bad thing. A good TV show can be a lot of fun, and this book was a lot of fun. As I said, I enjoyed it and would recommend it to all but the most hardcore historical purists

Thanks to NetGalley for providing an ARC copy for my review.

An entertaining and engrossing historical mystery that kept me hooked till the end.
It's a well researched story with a well thought cast of characters and a solid mystery.
The historical background is vivid and the solid mystery kept me guessing.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Thanks NetGalley and Univ. of Minnesota Press!

I had to look up what a streel was before I read this books, but it is also mentioned in the book. A streel is the Irish way of saying a slattern or a harlot.

I had expected this book to be a little more of a murder mystery, but it was entertaining nonetheless. Started kind of slow but picked up one Brigid arrived in Deadwood. I enjoyed Brigid's character - she's a smart and clever independent young lady. This is especially important as it takes place in a time when women were not supposed to be independent or speak their minds.

Overall, a nice read, but not exactly what I had been expecting.

A murder mystery, the Gold Rush, an Irish immigrant. There's a lot to this story but it all works. The female characters are all strong, independent women - and I appreciated that. It's hard, sometimes in historical fiction, to find these characters - often they are written as side characters - stuck in a kitchen.

I hope that Mary Logue continues this series as there are so many more stories to be told.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review this book.

What a strange title I thought but found a "streel" is from the Irish Gaelic "straoill", which means a slattern, a slovenly woman, a harlot.
Brigid Reardon, 15, and her brother Seamus, 16, are sent from their Irish home Galway to live in America. I had never heard of anyone attending their own wake ..........what a great concept in my mind. Escaping the 1880 poverty of Ireland to the big unknown, they are joined by Billy and Paddy, who become close like brothers because of a violent episode on the ship.
The bulk of the story is set in Deadwood, South Dakaota. A rough and ready gold rush town where woman are few (and mainly streels) and men are hard working and hard drinking.
I loved the way Mary Logue made the characters "speak" to us in an Irish accent and words. Irish prayers are translated from Gaelic and shared throughout the book, making it to me, more initimate.
The underlying mystery is one of who killed one of the streels intermingled with affairs of the heart for Brigid. We get to know her as a smart, strong willed and independent young woman. The research undertaken by the author I believe to be excellent. I really got a feel of what life would have been like living in the cold and remote conditions.
A quick read but also one I wanted to pick up at any opportunity.
Thanks to NetGalley, Mary Logue and Univeristy of Minnesota Press for my copy.

Brigid Reardon comes to America with her brother to escape hardship and tragedy in Ireland. She finds work in the east while her brother Seamus goes west to find opportunity. Brigid eventually joins her brother who has staked a gold claim in the Dakota Territory. Soon after arriving there is a murder and Brigid must find the culprit to save her brother who has been accused of the crime. The book has a murder mystery at its center, but the story is more about the experience of Irish immigrants in the late 19th century. Brigid's history is detailed from her time in Ireland and through several years working in America, before she even goes out west and deals with the aftermath of the murder. Everything is seen from her point of view which gives the reader a good sense of time and place. I did find the other characters to be very thinly drawn. For that reason, I couldn't get into the mystery or find it too involving. The story did work as a character study of a young Irish immigrant, so I can recommend it for that.

In 1877, when Brigid is fifteen and her brother Seamus, sixteen, they are sent from Galway to America. Eighteen months later Brigid joins Seamus in Deadwood via St. Paul, Minnesota, and the home of the Hunts as a servant. In Deadwood Seamus and his two friends, Billy and Padraic are hoping to sell their gold mine for good money. But on the day after her arrival Brigid discovers a dead female outside their home. Brigid is determined to clear Seamus of the accusation of murder.
Though an enjoyable story I was hoping for more of a murder mystery.

I received this from Netgalley.com for a review.

"The year is 1880, and of all the places Brigid Reardon and her brother might have dreamed of when escaping Ireland’s potato famine by moving to America, Deadwood, South Dakota, was not one of them. "

Entertaining, pleasant cozy read. I liked main character Bridget, she is smart, strong willed and independent although being quite young.

3☆

3.5 stars
This is a well written, fast paced read. I appreciate the authors approach to how she wrote the female characters. They were all strong women doing their best with the circumstances they were dealt. Brigid was especially inspiring with her take no crap attitude and her ability to hold her own in business meetings with men who clearly did not think she belonged. This was almost a four star read for me but I just couldn't connect to the character interactions. I'm sure that great care was taken to keep the dialogue and actions of the characters true to the time that it is set in but I did find some conversations to be a little rushed and forced. There is also a major plot point that I would have liked to see expanded on. The mystery aspect of the book fell flat for me. The situation and outcome of the situation Brigid gets herself into seemed to get wrapped up too conveniently. Perhaps had this been a longer book more detail could have been added to improve it. I figured out the plot twist pretty early on but that did not take away from my enjoyment of the book. Overall I was pleased with this book and would recommend it to anyone who enjoys westerns or historical fictions in general.

This is not my typical genre but I really enjoyed The Streel. The characters were well-written and I am very fond of the protagonist, Brigid. The story was interesting, and the mystery left me guessing until the end. It was a quick read, fast-paced, a little too fast-paced in some parts, particularly the beginning. Although the bulk of the story takes place in Deadwood, the scenes in Ireland, on the ship to America, and in the Hunts’ household felt very rushed. The writing was a bit simplistic but not bad by any means and once the story reached Deadwood I was captivated the entire time. I finished the entirety of the book in a day. Thank you NetGalley, Mary Logue, and publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Set in the early gold rush days of Deadwood, Dakota, this is the tale of two Irish youngsters sent overseas to make their fortunes, and to reduce the number of mouths to feed at home. Brigid and her brother Seamus have an adventurous crossing, and Brigid takes several drudgery jobs, cleaning for households, before she follows her brother to Dakota and his gold claim. However, intertwined is the son of the household where she last worked, who is to have a profound effect on their fortunes.

An enjoyable tale, painting an interesting picture of pioneer life in a gold rush town, as well as exploring a little why so many Irish fled across the sea.

Thank you to NetGalley and University of Minnesota Press for allowing me access to the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a quick easy read. The story starts out in a most unique way and certainly keeps your interest while leaving Ireland and traveling to the United States. The character development is done well by giving us the background and history of Brigid, Seamus and his 2 friends.
The research of this timeframe was excellent, you really get a feel of what life would have been like immigrating to the US, trying to find employment, the living conditions and difficulties you would possibly encounter. I can’t even imagine taking off on a trip by train and then stagecoach as a young single girl going to a place unknown. I found most of the story believable. I wouldn’t say this was a great book but it was well worth the read.
I was allowed an ARC from University of Minnesota Press and NetGalley for my honest unbiased review. This one earns 4 stars.

Brigid, her brother Seamus, and two friends Billy and Paddy board a ship bound from Ireland to America during the Gold Rush. Brigid finds work as a housemaid for the rich Hunt family in Minnesota while Billy, Paddy, and Seamus find mining work in Deadwood. After an unfortunate family event, Brigid leaves the Hunt family and travels to Deadwood to be with her brother again. Not long after she arrives, her brother is blamed for the death of his fiancee Lily. Seamus flees the town but Brigid, believing her brother’s innocence, stays to uncover the mystery of what really happened to Lily.

I was expecting this to be a really heavy Western routed novel and I’m so glad it wasn’t. Set in the late 19th century, it certainly had a dated atmosphere feel but it really added to the story. Brigid is a great character; independent, smart, and such a strong female character for the time. She is bold and her determination shows throughout the book. I’m sad we don’t really get to know much of her brother but I do enjoy her interaction with Billy and Paddy. One downfall for me was I didn’t realize how young Brigid was through most of the book, she acted very much like an adult. At one point late in the book she celebrates her 17th birthday and she’s already had to experience men throwing themselves at her and an assault scene. I’m sure these experiences were common for women during this time but I wish the author would’ve made an adjustment to that fact. I also really hoped there was more to the mystery than the book played into. I didn’t realize Mary Logue had so many published works and I would love to check out some of her other books in the future.

Thank you to University of Minnesota for providing a free copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.