Death on Clare Island: A Star O'Brien Mystery Paperback – Import, 2 February 2019

I loved this book because it was easy to read and kept my interest from beginning to end. It stuck to clues without any of the messy stuff. The characters seemed quite real. I thought there could have been a little more done in the Lucia.

…to the series. A mysterious death that’s labeled the accidental end of a drug addict. A sister who believes her brother didn’t use drugs, and a young American woman with a knack for ferreting out information who’s in Ireland searching for her long lost mother. When Star O’Brien agrees to search for the truth about a young artist’s death, she puts herself in more danger than she realizes. The story has many twists and turns and I found myself suspecting many and unable to discover the real killer until the end. Well crafted, with a satisfying end to the villain and the mystery of Star’s mother leading readers on to the next book in the series. Recommended for those who like a good cozy mystery.

This book starts out interesting but has an ending designed to compel you to read the next book. I hope the next book in the series wraps things up better. I’m not sure if the author know where she is going with this story.

As thrillers go -- this one is very good. Star, the detective, is a living character, very warm and real. The Irish setting is well defined with lots of detail. A good page turner that kept me interested and engrossed the whole time. Highly recommended!

I love Star O'Brien. For a writer to get me so invested in a character so quickly, that I need to get to know more, to follow them as far as they go, is a great achievement.Reading this first novel from Martha Geaney, it's so well written and put together you'd think this was her sixth book. She has a great sense of when to use the most effective writing: prose, dialog, internal thought, descriptions et al are all colorful and fit just right.Not only is this an easy read with excellent pacing, but it's also full of a variety of well fleshed out characters (or should I say suspects). Central, of course, is Star O'Brien, a woman who is hesitant to label herself as a private investigator. She may doubt her abilities, but I do not. A lot of her drive (and self-doubt) comes from her past when her mother disappeared and the answer she was given by the police was far from satisfactory. It's this suspicion of authority and the drive to find the truth that propels her through the mystery that washes up at her feet on Clare Island. Star is a beacon of light in the darkness to those that are forgotten, lost, or otherwise dismissed.The Ireland setting makes this book stand out as well. I was constantly weighing all the suspects time and time again and found the ending to be very satisfying. There's still much to discover and explore with Star and I can't wait for more.