Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and publisher for an advanced copy to honestly review.

No Comfort for the Dead: An Irish Library Mystery by R.P. O'Donnell is a debut novel that blends elements of mystery and Irish charm, set in the picturesque village of Castlefreke, West Cork, Ireland. The story follows Emma Daly, a librarian who returns to her hometown after a scandalous incident in the city, only to find her peaceful life disrupted by a local murder. As the wealthiest resident of the village is killed and a local man is implicated, Emma becomes involved in uncovering the truth, working alongside the village's residents to solve the crime.

O'Donnell effectively creates a strong sense of place, with the scenic Irish village playing a key role in the narrative. The mystery is engaging, as Emma seeks to navigate the complexities of village life while unraveling the secrets surrounding the murder. The plot unfolds slowly, with plenty of red herrings and misdirection, allowing for the gradual buildup of tension.

While the novel's pacing may be considered slower at times, the rich, atmospheric setting helps maintain interest, especially for those who enjoy mysteries with a strong sense of location. However, some readers may find the characters somewhat underdeveloped, with Emma’s personal life and motivations not always fully explored. The twists, while intriguing, might not be as shocking or innovative as some mystery fans may expect.

Overall, No Comfort for the Dead is a solid entry into the Irish mystery genre, with its atmospheric setting and engaging crime plot. It may appeal particularly to readers who enjoy slower-paced mysteries with a focus on local community dynamics and village life. While it doesn't break new ground in terms of suspense or character depth, O'Donnell’s debut offers a decent, if somewhat familiar, mystery experience.

No Comfort For The Dead is an Irish library mystery by RP O’Donnell, Emma is working at the village library despite having big dreams of being an investigative detective in the Garda, but unfortunately do to some thing in her past she has come home to lick her wounds. She now lives with her dad Sam and works at the library. while out for a walk to clear her head and avoid the same discussion with her dad about starting her life again in the big city she hears gunshots. despite being the only witness all she saw was a man in the shadows that ran into the woods when she finally went to investigate the house she saw a priest who eerily look like her ex high school boyfriend Charlie and the dead homeowner Mr. Hollis. The local Garda demean and question her every statement and even bully her about her past with the police department. Although, they say it was a robbery Emma knows better. This is why when Jimmy Thornton asked her to investigate the case at first she doesn’t want to do it but knows if she don’t then no one will. so is not to give anything away there is a lot I left out of the summary but just know there are a lot of good twist and turns in this book and for the most part I really liked the story I just felt there was way too much backstory for everyone involved and that could totally be just a me thing. I want to make it clear I will still read the next book in the series and hope that this first book was just a getting to know everyone book an in the next it will be focused mainly on the mystery because it was really a great awesome mystery. I don’t know if I would call it a cozy mystery because they had some really risqué moments between her and her high school boyfriend. nothing detailed but enough that I felt the need to mention it. I still recommend this book especially if you like great mystery series because if the author focuses on the mystery then the next one should be a great one. #NetGalley, #TheBlindReviewer, #MyHonestReview,#RPO’Donnell, #NoComfortForTheDead,

This is an atmospheric ‘coming home’ mystery set in a small Irish village, whose cast of quirky characters is somewhat small and easy to track. When suspicion points to a most-likely innocent man, a dogged librarian agrees to his family to investigate, and discovers there is more to fine out. It’s well-written, keeps the reader guessing, and an overall intriguing story.

1988 Cork Ireland seemed in a time warp. Attitudes towards women seem feudal but the women in this story know how to get around the old rules. Family feuds carry on for generations and are hidden but not forgotten.

Emma has returned home after her dream of joining the police was thwarted. She now runs the local library and is content at her job. When a local man is murdered, and a man missing for thirty years if at the scene the small town does not seem so charming.

The characters in this story are all special. Hidden attributes and strengths and weaknesses not very apparent but all become relevant when the story progresses. The depiction of small town Ireland is quaint and descriptive.

Emma is a former cop turned librarian in the small, quaint and quiet town of Castlefreke. The town may be quiet, but its inhabitants are loud and enjoy their daily dose of juicy gossip. So, when Emma witnesses the murder of one of the town's not so gracious inhabitants, she knows that something is not quite right because she recognizes on the of injured men and the one she saw flee. Emma soon begins to unravel deep secrets and deadly lies. She will find the killer but it won't be easy.
Thank you Netgalley and Crooked Lane Books for this atmospheric mystery!

Can you go home again? Emma's career in the police flamed out in the wake of an affair and she's back in Castlefreke working as a librarian. It's a quiet life until the murders. She's asked to investigate and,, as these things always go, discovers there's many secrets, lies, and resentments in the small town. I liked Emma.. a woman who stands up for herself and thinks things through, and the mystery was twisty enough to keep me guessing. Thanks to netgalley for the ARC. Good storytelling makes for a good read.

No Comfort for the Dead is beautifully written with believable characters and an interesting plot where greed, deceit, prejudice play a big part. Emma is an ex-police officer who faced a major relationship problem and was fired from the force. She then returns to the small village where she was raised, Castlefreke, to live with her father where she becomes responsible for the library and does an outstanding job. Things start to fall apart when an elder, who is not appreciated by the village folks, is found dead and Colm, a long missing member of the community is found shot near the dead man. Emma is asked by Colm's family to investigate the murder as the police seems only interested in convicting Colm. She'll relentlessly search for the truth and for the culprit, and in doing so she'll find unexpected friends, will meet again her long lost boyfriend, and will learn to leave her past behind. Really entertaining!
I thank the author, their publisher, and NetGalley for this ARC.

Thank you Crooked Lane Books and Netgalley for this arc.

CW - misogyny, homophobia


Castlefreke is one of those small towns where everyone knows your business and has an opinion about it. It's also dying due to a new highway that bypasses it as well as the fact that many of its young people leave for big cities where there are more choices, more options, just more.


Emma had also left with big dreams which came crashing down which are only hinted at many times until the end. But Emma's made peace with that, sort of, and has found her place as the librarian for what had before been mainly a little used town center. It's her hard work which has turned it into a well used third space for the village. Her propensity to take long, late evening walks puts her in the right place to hear a murder take place and possibly see whodunnit. Entering the building she finds one dead man and one injured priest. Racing to the pub, she tells the barkeeper and the town doctor about it but strangely doesn't emphasize to the doctor for a while that the priest might need help for his feckin' gunshot wound.


Adam, the doctor, knows the priest who is actually his long lost brother Colm. As Colm is discovered with a gun in his hand, the very one that was used to shoot the other man, Colm is placed under guard at the small local hospital. Everyone is interviewed but Emma is frustrated by the fact that one garda is so new as to not really know what to do or what questions to ask and the other is an arsehole who has obviously already made up his mind. As the arsehole has been an arsehole for a long time, I'm not sure why Emma was surprised.


Soon Adam and Colm's parents are informed that he's in hospital but due to the fact that 30 years ago, Colm hauled off and left home with no further word since (never explained to my satisfaction), they are reluctant to go see him. Two new characters, the slimy local solicitor and his secretary, are introduced and a new twist to the plot is added. Soon the town is busy speculating about Colm's guilt (assumed) while Emma and two others begin to try and figure out who the real killer is since Emma realizes that the gardai won't do shit about it. A few mystery characters pop up and Charley, Emma's old flame arrives home.


I have to say that for someone who seemed destined for a top job as a female garda, Emma blunders around a lot during this investigation. Mary - the secretary who loathes her solicitor boss as much as everyone else does - does a much better job. As the book is not just a murder mystery but also an in depth dive into small town Irish life, a lot of time is spent on other things than trying to find the real killer. This includes great, big lumps of exposition for Emma, Colm, and Charley as well as background info on all the other characters. This does disguise the fact that a hint about the killer's identity is provided but that's the only hint and good luck to readers who want to play along and solve the mystery along with Emma and Mary.


The reason behind the killing as well as some other odd facts that come to light actually makes a lot of sense. I did enjoy some of the characters and little tidbits about Castlefreke. But frankly the last quarter of the book becomes a mish-mash of info dumps. There is a big turn-about for one character that I found hard to believe and the take-down of the killer is a let down. I think that there are future books planned for this series but I doubt I will investigate them. C-

This historical mystery set in West Cork, Ireland, in 1988 stars a librarian who has come back to her hometown in disgrace. Emma Daly breezed through university and was building a career with the police until an affair with an older officer caused her to be fired and blackballed. She heads home to lick her wounds and winds up running the local library.

When the owner of the Big House is found murdered and the main suspect is a local who left town thirty years earlier, Emma is asked by the man's family to look into the case. Emma's devotion to Sherlock Holmes has fueled her love of mystery but this one is tough. She has no authority and the local police are less than welcoming.

She soon learns that there is more to the crime than a simple burglary gone wrong which is the police's viewpoint. She is assisted in her investigation by a local widow who has been isolated and overlooked most of her life and her former boyfriend who has come back to Castlefreke under mysterious circumstances.

The story sounds straightforward. However, the execution was marred in my opinion by being too "literary" and too introspective. I found myself skimming a lot as I tried to follow the mystery and avoid the social commentary, the characters all falling apart, and the whole issue of dying Irish villages struggling to hold on.

Fans of that sort of wandering, introspective story will enjoy this one. I like a more straight forward story with characters who are less stuck in their own heads.

No comfort for the dead was a very “traditional” mystery book. I devoured it in a weekend.i personally loved the characters. I do feel like maybe the author introduced too many characters at once, as it was very confusing for a couple chapters. Overall I feel like this deserves a3.5 star as the plot really drew me in, and kept me there. It was really the dry writing that threw it off for me

Emma was once a cadet at the Irish Garda Academy, before an incident sent running for the safety of home. But the fact is, she was really good at being a policewoman and detective, so no surprise when she gets asked to looks into the death of a local man, when her ex's family is involved. But the case has more questions than answers and as she starts to look to the past to see if it played into the possible murder, she realizes she's gotten into a twisted case. It's a cozy, with a touch of police procedural and chick lit thrown in! An interesting debut for this new series, I'll be looking forward to the next book!

This is my first book crush of the new year. Set in the late 80’s, tiny Castlefreke in County Cork, Ireland, is experiencing a shrinkage as jobs and humans flee for bigger towns and jobs. It’s the story of Emma, the town librarian, who has returned home after her dream career in the Garda didn’t work out. She’s living with her dad, Sam, who is gently urging her to move on. After just such a nag at dinner, Emma takes off and ends up at the “Big House” in town where she hears shots, sees a man fleeing, and sees the reclusive owner dead and another unknown man injured. She takes off to the town doctor where help is summoned.

So far, so cozy. What makes one book sing a little more than another book? There are many factors, one being prose. O’Donnell writes with a loveliness that’s both sturdy and delicate. He frames the story with a huge storm named Ophelia – who leaves a wake of destruction – and sightings of foxes and bats throughout. Foxes can symbolize many things, but one is “wild loveliness” and another is “mischief”, both of which apply here. Bats can be seen as a symbol of change and rebirth, an apt symbolism for the story in the book. There is indeed a feeling of change coming toward tiny Castlefreke, coming like a freight train, and Ophelia and the murder in the Big House is the kick off.

Symbolism is all well and good, but another element that makes a book sing is character, and O’Donnell appears to understand character and to be able to portray it masterfully. Emma is a person who loves her library but is regretting not only her change in career, but the absence of her long ago boyfriend, Charley. When the identity of the other man who was shot is revealed, his appearance brings Charley back to town. We are with Emma as she travels back through childhood to young adulthood and through the relationships she’s had with her Dad and with Charley, but also to other central characters in the story.

When the injured man’s father asks Emma to use the skills she’s learned in the Garda to investigate and clear his son, Emma steps up. She tries to be guided by Sherlock Holmes but she realizes the details she notices are not as tricky as Sherlock’s. What works for her is knowing everyone in town, including the somewhat skeezy police sergeant Noonan and the local lawyer who seems to operate not on quite the right side of the law. It’s when Emma teams up with the lawyer’s secretary, the lonely yet observant and quietly funny Mary, that the investigation takes off.

There is another pretty heartbreaking death and a bit of danger for Emma, but she’s surrounded by community and loved ones, and that gives her investigation a boost. I never worried that things wouldn’t be set to rights – a cozy/traditional element – but the sensitive writing, character detail and lovely setting for this novel make it a complete standout. I read it with a lump in my throat. This is a spectacular debut.

“No Comfort for the Dead” is a gripping mystery that will appeal to fans of Dervla McTiernan and Carlene O’Connor. O’Donnell’s ability to create a vivid setting and compelling characters makes this novel a standout in the genre. Emma Daly’s journey from librarian to detective is enjoyable, believable and inspiring, making this a must-read for anyone who enjoys a good whodunit with a touch of heart.

I found No Comfort For the Dead to be an enjoyable traditional mystery that I read in a weekend. It takes place in a very small Irish town with a large cast of characters. I’m not sure if this book is the start of a series but I felt as if the author introduced so many characters with that intention in mind. If so I would happily read the next installment.

No Comfort for the Dead is a mystery which takes place in 1988 that provides a grand physical description of the village Castlefreke where a wealthy man is killed, another younger man returns to the village to be badly injured, and a third person who shadowed the murder is yet unidentified. Emma Daly, who hoped to be a detective in the Gardai but returned home feeling a failure, decides that she will try her detective skills to find the killer.

When Emma returned home, she became a librarian and by all accounts, has renovated the library and made it a warm, lovely place where people gather. Some of the older people read the newspaper in the fold of the library, and others drop by for gossip and the friendship of Emma and Maeve, her assistant. We also eventually meet Emma's father, Sam, and her grandparents, Frances and Jimmy. At the same time, her boyfriend from the past, Charley, returns, and their relationship smolders.

As Emma does her amateur but incisive detective work, there is another murder, and the village is unsettled. Finally as a sine qua non, there is an absolutely delightful and thoroughly humorous scene in the local pub which balances the investigation into the two murders. Often, such scenes are maudlin or repetitious; frankly, I found this wonderfully funny and a great addition to the plot.

O'Donnell manages to introduce many of the village characters with clarity and without the confusion that may sometimes accompany a number of characters, and he keeps the plot "thickening" with skill. No Comfort for the Dead is a satisfying read, indeed.

A bit of a stretch in believability but an overall passed the time just fine read

Thanks to Netgalley for the free copy in exchange for an honest review

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this eARC.

In “No Comfort for the Dead,” R.P. O’Donnell crafts a compelling mystery set against the picturesque yet secretive backdrop of West Cork, Ireland. The novel follows Emma Daly, a small-town librarian with a past marred by scandal, who finds herself thrust into the role of amateur sleuth after witnessing a murder.

The story is set in 1988 in the quaint village of Castlefreke, where everyone knows everyone, and secrets are hard to keep. Emma, seeking solace from her troubled past, returns to her hometown only to be confronted with a murder that shakes the community. The victim, the wealthiest man in town, leaves behind a trail of suspicion that points to Colm, the enigmatic son of a local family. However, Emma’s keen observation skills reveal a third man fleeing the scene, a detail the local police dismiss.

Emma Daly is a well-rounded protagonist whose determination and intelligence drive the narrative forward. Her partnership with Charley, her high school sweetheart, and Mary, a lawyer’s secretary, adds depth to the investigation. The supporting characters, from the stubborn widow to the elderly hypochondriac, enrich the story with their unique quirks and perspectives.

O’Donnell’s writing is both evocative and engaging, capturing the essence of small-town life while weaving a complex web of intrigue. Themes of justice, redemption, and the power of community are explored as Emma navigates the challenges of clearing Colm’s name. The novel’s pacing is well-balanced, with suspenseful moments that keeps readers captivated.

“No Comfort for the Dead” is a gripping mystery that will appeal to fans of Dervla McTiernan and Carlene O’Connor. O’Donnell’s ability to create a vivid setting and compelling characters makes this novel a standout in the genre. Emma Daly’s journey from librarian to detective is enjoyable, believable and inspiring, making this a must-read for anyone who enjoys a good whodunit with a touch of heart.

No Comfort for the Dead is captivating read that is well written with a cast of characters you wont forget soon.

The village of Castlefreke is one of those characters and R.P. O'Donnell has brought the village to life.

I felt I was sitting in the pub with the villagers and I too wanted to help solve who really murdered the wealthiest and not the nicest man in town.

Emma the small town librarian (how I would love to visit that library) witnessed the murder and knows they have the wrong man in custody.

She is determined to get to the bottom of what is happening in Castlefreke.

Not all is happy in the village: there is an underlying current of something or someone sinister that is out to create havoc.

I for one cant wait to return to Castlefreke for the next book and all that follow and I will be one of the first in line.

Thanks to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for the privilege of reading and reviewing No Comfort for the Dead.

I gave up pretty early on just because my mind was not in the right place for this book. It actually seems pretty cool but was not my jam, which makes me sad because it seemingly *is* my jam. I don’t know how to explain it, maybe read it and you’ll understand. I love the cover! The plot seems really interesting! My mind just could not stay focused during this story for some strange reason. Maybe I need to read it on a rainy night with a cup of something hot when I have no other real concerns to distract me…

I received an advanced copy from NetGalley in exchange for a review and opinions are my own.

This is an interesting take on a quaint Irish village cozy mystery. Mostly, it's different because the village isn't as quint as some others in similar books. This village does have the requisite pub and that small-town, everybody knows everybody's business vibe; but also is overshadowed by a more sinister air. It turns the normal small village feel in such a way that I think this would appeal to cozy fans but also to those who prefer their mysteries with more suspense.

The characters here are mostly warm and likable, and I would love to see more of them in future books. It would be great to get a better picture of some of their back stories, as I did find those a bit weak, but I think that could be elaborated on if this book is the beginning of a series which it definitely feels like it could be.

The one place this book fell apart a little was in the mystery itself. I enjoyed the investigative portions and the clues, but the ending wasn't so satisfying. Although I learned who the killer was, I was still vague on the motive. There is an explanation; it's not like the author didn't have it thought out. I just didn't understand how it all fit. Hopefully, other readers will and can shed some light on it for me.

Overall, I would recommend this book to mystery fans and to those who enjoy books set in Ireland. I think this series will improve with time, and I'm excited to see where the author goes with it.