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bgg616's review against another edition
3.0
Formulaic. A new mom with an often unsympathetic attitude. A book with a lot of chapters in italic from the point of view with a stalker of DS Claire Boyle. I find this format tiring and though occasionally done well, too often not. I could go on and on.
Boyle is a Dublin police officer. There is little in her manner, way of thinking etc. that appealed to me as a reader of crime fiction. The only "local" color was mention of the Spire on O'Connell St., the name of the drop in center for elderly men, Tir naOg (Land of Eternal Youth - as if any respectable elderly man would find this appealing). The victim of the stalker is Liz McCafferky. Her surname is from Mayo and one I'd never come across. So what's she doing in Dublin? An example of the lack of local details and "color".
This reads like someone who followed a "how to write a crime novel" program. Irish crime fiction is a fairly new phenomenon and loads of people are jumping on the bandwagon. It was a 3 for me but the ending was better than I expected so I pushed it up to 3.5.
Boyle is a Dublin police officer. There is little in her manner, way of thinking etc. that appealed to me as a reader of crime fiction. The only "local" color was mention of the Spire on O'Connell St., the name of the drop in center for elderly men, Tir naOg (Land of Eternal Youth - as if any respectable elderly man would find this appealing). The victim of the stalker is Liz McCafferky. Her surname is from Mayo and one I'd never come across. So what's she doing in Dublin? An example of the lack of local details and "color".
This reads like someone who followed a "how to write a crime novel" program. Irish crime fiction is a fairly new phenomenon and loads of people are jumping on the bandwagon. It was a 3 for me but the ending was better than I expected so I pushed it up to 3.5.
sharonleavy's review
4.0
3.5/5 Rounded up to 4
Last year, Sinéad Crowley's [b:Can Anybody Help Me?|21460555|Can Anybody Help Me?|Sinéad Crowley|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1394799822s/21460555.jpg|40776117] was one of my favourite reads. It gave a fresh new voice to the Detective genre in the form of Detective Sergeant Claire Boyle and her no-nonsense professionalism. When it was revealed that her next novel would also feature Detective Sergeant Boyle, I was dubious - would the notoriously difficult second book live up to my expectations?
I needn't have worried. While it didn't grab me instantly in the same way the first book did, it was a solid, engaging read and one I'd be happy to recommend.
We revisit Detective Sergeant Boyle, now mother to a seven month old baby girl, as she investigates a murder linked to Tír na nÓg, a drop-in centre for elderly men who have no other source of interaction or companionship in the community.
Twenty-something Liz McClafferky is the reluctant public face of Tír na nÓg - but with her newfound celebrity status comes some very unwanted attention in the form of some creepy letters from someone who is constantly watching Liz.
When another crime is linked to the centre - Liz needs to come clean about some incidents in her past, and she's not the only one.
Meanwhile, Claire's marriage has become an exercise in score-keeping that will be all too familiar with parents. I remember an argument when our twins were about two months old over one of us claiming to have slept an hour less than the other one. There's no happy families here - interestingly, it's Claire's husband, Matt, who feels trapped. That's usually a role dished out to the female parent in novels, so it was great to get the perspective of a tired husband who just wants to get out of the house for an hour or two. The battle between wanting to be a good parent/spouse and still maintain some shred of independence was realistic and well written.
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a digital ARC.
Last year, Sinéad Crowley's [b:Can Anybody Help Me?|21460555|Can Anybody Help Me?|Sinéad Crowley|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1394799822s/21460555.jpg|40776117] was one of my favourite reads. It gave a fresh new voice to the Detective genre in the form of Detective Sergeant Claire Boyle and her no-nonsense professionalism. When it was revealed that her next novel would also feature Detective Sergeant Boyle, I was dubious - would the notoriously difficult second book live up to my expectations?
I needn't have worried. While it didn't grab me instantly in the same way the first book did, it was a solid, engaging read and one I'd be happy to recommend.
We revisit Detective Sergeant Boyle, now mother to a seven month old baby girl, as she investigates a murder linked to Tír na nÓg, a drop-in centre for elderly men who have no other source of interaction or companionship in the community.
Twenty-something Liz McClafferky is the reluctant public face of Tír na nÓg - but with her newfound celebrity status comes some very unwanted attention in the form of some creepy letters from someone who is constantly watching Liz.
When another crime is linked to the centre - Liz needs to come clean about some incidents in her past, and she's not the only one.
Meanwhile, Claire's marriage has become an exercise in score-keeping that will be all too familiar with parents. I remember an argument when our twins were about two months old over one of us claiming to have slept an hour less than the other one. There's no happy families here - interestingly, it's Claire's husband, Matt, who feels trapped. That's usually a role dished out to the female parent in novels, so it was great to get the perspective of a tired husband who just wants to get out of the house for an hour or two. The battle between wanting to be a good parent/spouse and still maintain some shred of independence was realistic and well written.
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a digital ARC.
weebitsarcastic's review
3.0
3.5 rounded down to 3. Enjoyed it but found it dragged a bit in points. Particularly with Boyles home life. But a good read, looking forward to reading more from Sinéad
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