Member Reviews
This is the second book in the Dublin Driver series featuring Megan Malone, an American who has exercised her dual citizenship and moved to Ireland after serving twenty years in the military as a medic. She is employed by a high end limousine service and is one of the top drivers because she can communicate easily with both Irish and American clients. Her attraction to the job is, as she explains it, because she is nosy and loves to hear all the gossip and information she gets as a result of driving these people around.
Although it is the second in the series, this book stands alone quite well. There is no need to have read the first book, as there is little overlap in terms of on-going stories between Megan and secondary characters. Those who do appear for a second time, like Detective Paul Bourke, have sufficient information for the reader to understand his relationship with Megan and that it began with a previous investigation that was chronicled in the first book.
In this novel, Megan has been assigned the Walshes, a golfing couple. He is an Irish superstar who is trying to make a comeback and is well known for his charismatic, Irish charm. She is an up and coming young golfer, his third wife and considerably his junior. Other characters involved are the Walshes’ best friend Lou MacDonald, the first victim, his daughter, Mr. Walsh’s caddy, and various people who work Megan’s limousine company. Because some of these names are typical Irish names and spellings, Murphy has included a pronunciation guide at the beginning of the book which is quite helpful.
The first day of driving the Walshes, Megan takes them to the golf course for Mr. Walsh to play an exhibition round. In the middle of his exhibition, the golfer and his gallery spot a body in a water hazard. Megan, aided by Mr. Walsh, pulls the body out and they discover it is his good friend, Lou MacDonald who has been murdered by some sort of blow to his head.
As the story unfolds, Megan begins to see Mr. Walsh is a smooth, charming man who is singularly focused on winning the golf tournament. As his caddy explains, he is totally committed to golfing, and indeed has his best games when the world around him is in chaos. Mrs. Walsh is also in a tournament at a sister golf club since the club where Mr. Walsh’s tournament is being held doesn’t allow women members. This is a minor point in the book, as it gives Megan an opportunity to express some equal opportunity thoughts she has
As the investigation unfolds, things get more complicated with the discovery that MacDonald’s daughter had an affair with Walsh that ended only when he married Heather. The daughter has pent-up resentment toward Walsh and his wife, but she is focused on her job as an environmentalist locked in a clash with an entrepreneur who wants to develop an area of the island where the golf clubs are located. Megan winds up beriending both Mrs. Walsh and Ms. MacDonald which leads to greater understanding between the two women.
The writing has enough Irish idioms to help the reader experience Dublin and surrounds in their mind while not being intrusive. If you are a reader who “hears” the conversation in your head while reading the book, it’s easy to hear the Irish accents that are speaking. The story has some excellent twists and turns and the reveal of the murderer has enough tension to pick up the reader’s pace. There are plenty of clues and the final solution is one that is totally satisfying and brings the book to a logical close. This is an excellent series that is enjoyable in every way.
My thanks to Kensington Books and NetGalley for an Advance Digital Read copy of this novel. The opinions expressed here are entirely my own.
Death on the Green is the second book in The Dublin Driver mysteries Megan Malone has settled in to life in Dublin when she finds herself involved in another murder mystery. Even though I loved the Ireland setting I am beginning to think that this series isn’t for me. I don’t know exactly what made the book for me fall flat, but something in this one fell flat. But I think other readers will love it.
Awesome! I love Ireland and cozy mysteries, so I figured I could not go wrong with this book. I was right. Such a lovely book! I am not a golf fan, but I did not mind this book being about golf players. The protagonist, amateur sleuth, Megan Malone is fabulous! She’s an American living in Dublin, used to work for the army, and is now a limo driver. I love the driver aspect, quite original. Megan’s dogs are also lovely.
The great thing about cozies is that even though there’s also a murder or two, the atmosphere is warm, and the surroundings are a bit like in between real life and a great cartoon, at least in my head. What matters on top of that is likeable and repulsing people. Throw in a bit of a mystery, and you’ve got yourself a solid story. The book had all these core ingredients.
I will most definitely read more by Catie Murphy. After finishing the book I had a smile on my face. I recommend this book to people who enjoy good cozy mysteries. I received an advance reader copy through NetGalley in an exchange for an honest review.
This is a cozy mystery by a new to me author.
An American in Ireland is employed as a driver for a wealthy golfer. A dead body is found on the golf course. There are a lot of clues in the story. This novel is a look at a slice of life in Ireland.
The characters are likable.
This is the second in the Dublin Driver Series. Megan Malone is a US and Irish citizen (from her Grandfather) and is a driver of tourists around Ireland for Leprechaun Limousine Service. Her latest set of clients are two professional golfers, Martin and Heather Walsh, and she is walking the green with Martin when they discover the body of Martin’s best friend Lou MacDonald floating in the water hazard. Megan who is a former Army medic jumps into the pond and tries to pull him out and save him but he is already dead. She immediately calls Detective Paul Bourke to come as she suspects this was not an accident. Bourke of course tells Megan to not get involved. Both Lou and Martin were to participate in a tournament the next day to determine the wild card spot on the Ryder Cup European team. Martin still enters the tournament and before he is to tee off Lou’s daughter Saoirse accuses him of being responsible for her Father’s death but Martin has a solid alibi as even Megan was on the golf course with him when Lou died. I did enjoy this mystery and story and I like Megan but there some things that I was not crazy about. The whole thing with the wealthy client and having Megan where a gold costume seems out of character for her. Megan is a strong woman and independent this seems out of character for her. It was humorous but just seemed a little off. Still enjoyed the overall story and the way Megan is with people especially Heather and how she handles tough situations. Looking forward to the next installment.
Death on the Green is an entertaining and well written cozy mystery. Great plot and character development. Mystery fans will love this book. I received an advance ebook from the publisher and this is my unbiased review.
3.75 stars
This second entry in the Dublin Driver mystery is a fun read. Former Army medic Megan Malone has relocated to Dublin after her retirement from the military. She is a limo driver for Leprechaun Limousine Service, owned by a crusty but fair female boss, who also happens to be Megan's landlady.
Megan is a great character, 40ish, professional and competent and also empathetic. She has made friends in Ireland and generally gets along with most folks. Her big character flaw, common to cozy heroines, is a truly insatiable curiosity. And, also a staple in cozies, Megan seems to run across more dead bodies than your average person -- in this book, she finds two and literally trips over one.
Her current clients are a famous pro golfer and his second wife, who is also a pro golfer. We find out that this is a pretty small world and there are lots of old issues, professional jealousy, and relationship secrets amongst the golfing clan.
Megan is a nice person, though tough and outspoken, and she (somewhat unbelievably) winds up with two different friends/relatives of one of the murder victims staying at her apartment during the course of the book. She is constantly nudging the investigating garda to spill more details or allow her to become more involved.
This is a quick and entertaining read and I look forward to more of Megan's adventures. Thanks to the publisher and to Net Galley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.
Thank you to Netgalley for an ARC of this book in return for an honest review.
This was a fun read. The author did a great job of describing the location, the accent, the interactions, slang and characters. I loved listening to the banter between Megan, the main character and her friends. Megan, a retired Army Veteran has relocated to Ireland and is working as a driver for a limo service in Dublin. This is the second in the series, and I feel like I should have read the first one prior to this one because I would have had a much better understanding of the characters and their relationships. Megan is driving Martin and Heather Walsh, who are both famous golfers. I am not really a golfing fan, so some of the details were lost on me, but the author did not drone on about different putters or drivers (extent of my golfing knowledge), but instead focused mostly on the dynamics of the game.
Martin's dear friend, Lou is found dead in a pond. Martin seems to have a motive, but Megan knows he also has an alibi. She seems like one of those people who is just able to get information out of others without really trying, people just like talking to her. She starts gathering clues and just becomes even more confused with everything that unfolds. I think my favorite thing about Megan was her big heart and want to make people feel included. She wants to help everyone, which I appreciate. I will definitely be looking for the next book in this series.
Through NetGalley, I received a free copy of DEATH ON THE GREEN (Book 2 of the Dublin Driver Mysteries) by Catie Murphy in exchange for an honest review. American Army veteran Megan Malone continues to drive for Dublin’s Leprechaun Limousine Service. This time, she’s driving for the golfing Walshes. Both Irishman Martin Walsh and his American wife are in the area for tournaments. Martin seems happy to include Megan in his entourage and invites her to follow him on a practice round. Martin’s practice ends suddenly when they encounter his best friend’s dead body floating in a water hazard. Lou MacDonald was humorous and kind, and everyone loved him. As Megan learns more about Martin, she discovers Martin and Lou were rivals as well as friends and begins to wonder if friendly rivalry turned deadly. However, Megan, herself, is Martin’s alibi. If it was Martin, how did he do it; if it wasn’t Martin, who had motive to murder such a lovely man? Megan, incurably curious, is determined to learn the truth.
I liked this book. I recommend it to fans of cozy mysteries featuring murder, chauffeur services, golf, sports celebrities, country clubs, and Ireland.
#DeathontheGreen #NetGalley
This is the first from this series. Megan is a driver for those in town. She is entertaining and likable as an amateur sleuth. Enjoyed the outcome and I didn’t anticipate the ending. Bonus Chapter for next in series!
I really love this series. Who wouldn't want to be able to move to Ireland? Not sure I'd want Megan's job however. Some of the characters are quite interesting (in a good way), others wouldn't want to have to interact with, but do need those in a mystery or it wouldn't be much of one.
Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for my eARC in exchange for an honest review. I hope there are many more of these.
This is the first and the last book I will read by Catie Murphy. The main character was entirely unlikable. I’m just not woke enough to appreciate the LGBT storylines and the story was so painful I could barely wait for it to end. I gave it one star for the descriptions of the locale, but will have PTSD the next time the British Open is at Royal Dublin.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.
A fun mystery--perhaps a bit outlandish for my usual taste, but I appreciated the plotting and the characterization. In fact, I'll need to go back now and read the first book in the series, though this worked fine as a stand-alone book, too. A Dublin setting, a job for the investigator that makes sense as far as bringing her into contact with many kinds of people, and a much-appreciated pronunciation guide at the start of the book. Whee!
Review copy provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
American limo driver Megan Malone swears to her Irish boss it wasn't her fault that she found another body. Naturally Leprechaun Limousine Service owner Orla Keegan doesn't care. It was Megan's job to be driving the professional golfers Martin and Heather Walsh, not finding a body. But the body turns out to be the best friend of Martin, another golfer named Lou McDonald. Although Lou was found in a water hazard, he did not drown and this leaves her pal Detective Paul Bourke searching for a motive. Megan knows there were some competitive feelings between Martin and Lou, but Martin was in view of several hundred people and could not have killed Lou. When Megan discovers animosity between Lou's daughter Saoirse and Martin and outright hatred for Heather, she is not sure where to look for the murderer. An excellent series
This is a tough one to review. I loved the Irish setting, and loved how much I learned about Ireland and it’s language and culture. I loved the humor in how Megan keeps stumbling onto dead bodies, and there were so many scenes that had me laughing. There were so many fun things about it, but some things that irked me as well.
I feel like I still don’t really know Megan and can’t get a handle on who she is. She seems like a strong feminist, but then she wore a sexy outfit so a client could ogle her in it?!? Not okay. I also feel like the author is setting up her and Bourke, but he’s dating her friend and I feel like her character would have better boundaries there.
The Megan/Carmen angle majorly bothered me and could easily have been left out. It was borderline offensive how she behaved in those scenes. I do NOT want to read about women being sexually objectified when I read a fun cozy mystery. The fact that it was a woman treating a woman that way doesn’t make it less offensive.
Overall this was a fun mystery, and the parts I liked make me want to continue this series. I just want to see more consistency in Megan’s actions.
Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.
I fell in love with the first book in this series, and this second book just made that love deeper. Reading this is like visiting old friends in a magical story book setting. The mystery is a beautifully executed whodunit. I cannot wait to read even more.
Thank you NetGalley and Kensington Books for a copy of Death on the Green in exchange for an honest review.
The story starts at the Royal Dublin Golf Club on Bull Island in Ireland. Megan Malone who is a driver for Leprechaun Limousine Service is there with her client - golfer Martin Walsh who is spending 10 days in Dublin with a gold tournament.
Megan finds the body of Lou MacDonald floating in the middle of one of Ireland's trickiest water hazards. With no water in his lungs, he had to have been dead before he went into the water. Megan wants to know what he was even doing out there because he had planned to wait for them in the Clubhouse with his glass of whiskey.
An Garda Síochána Detective Paul Bourke is called by Megan to the golf club. The two are acquainted mainly due to Megan's ability to attract dead bodies.
I recently discovered this author when I read the first book in this series. I enjoyed revisiting Ireland in this series and the fun characters. The mystery was difficult to figure out and I thoroughly enjoyed trying to figure out who the culprit was.
I've enjoyed both books in this series and especially the main character of Megan who has an independent streak in her. Unique twist in that she's an American veteran living in Ireland driving a limbo. Fast paced with plenty of twist and turns to keep it interesting.
Megan works as a limo driver, and finds a body on the golf green. Book starts out great, but slows down a bit in the middle. Still though,enjoyable summer read and one I would recommend.