Murder at an Irish Bakery

Barbara’s rating: 4.5 of 5 Stars

This is the ninth book in the series and they are still fresh, interesting, and delightful reads. The author, through the characters, shares her love of Ireland with us – its quaint population and its green fields. The O’Sullivan Six has grown from a set of struggling orphans into a robust, confident set of siblings who are always 100% behind each other, yet pursue their separate interests as well. You do not have to have read the previous books in the series to enjoy this one, but – goodness – you are missing so much if you don’t read them.

Garda Siobhan O’Sullivan and DS Macdara Flannery have been married for almost a year and their love has only grown during that time. As luck (fate) would show more have it, Macdara is off in Dublin for business meetings, leaving Siobhan in charge at Kilbane. That certainly isn’t a problem because the town is normally quiet and peaceful. What more could Siobhan ask for than leading the security at a celebrity baking contest being held at Kilbane’s best bakery – Pie Pie Love? Siobhan is so excited – she’s addicted to sweets (as is Macdara) and she’ll be sampling the baked goods all week. Ah! Life is sweet!

Of course, things go wrong on the very first morning when an ‘anti-sugar’ protester shows up outside the bakery – with a bullhorn. Cameras are everywhere, so Siobhan wants to handle the situation with quiet dignity, but the protestor isn’t having any of that! When he ends up dead within a few minutes of arriving, things don’t seem to be going too well for the contest. Was the young man allergic to something? Did he have some sort of fatal medical condition? They won’t know until after the medical examiner does her job, and until then, they have to treat it as a suspicious death. Drat! That will certainly throw the contestants into a tizzy.

Yet the show must go on with six contestants, a director, a cameraman, and two hosts. With banter and jibes among the hosts and contestants, the contest gets underway – until one of the contestants ends up dead as well. Accident? Could be? Maybe not. You’ll just have to read the book to find all of the twists and turns this case takes.

I thoroughly enjoyed this excellently paced mystery with an antagonist who seems to always be one step ahead. Macdara and Siobhan certainly have their work cut out for them because nobody seems to have a motive for murder.

If you love a good mystery, witty banter among the protagonists, wonderful secondary characters, and a tad of romance, then this book is definitely for you. I recommend it – I’d buy it for a friend – and I’d read it again. Should you choose to read it, I hope you will enjoy it as much as I did. I can hardly wait for the next one.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. show less

I really enjoyed reading this book. I’m not a cozy mystery fan and didn’t expect it to be of interest to me. I thought, however, a free book is a free book. Well, I quickly became a fan of this book: who can resist a small, quirky Irish village where murder has to contend with scrumptious desserts?

One aspect of Carlene O’Connor’s writing that I appreciated was how she peppered the right amount of backstory as needed to maintain the flow of the story, and also to give clarity to relationships, the character’s lives, village history and eccentricities. Since I was starting with book nine of the series, this was welcomed.

The basic premise is a baking contest in Kilbane in county Cork, Ireland. The elusive and famous baker Aoife show more McBride will be going head-to-head against five other bakers at Pie Pie Love, a non-working flour mill. The owner—Fia O’Farrell--is hoping that this event will help her raise the funds necessary to bring the mill back to working order. But more than tea is brewing as one of the contestants is murdered unnoticed—even by the Garda (Irish police). Will Siobahan—now a member of the Garda--be able to find the culprit and thwart any other murders? More importantly, will she also be able to sample the pies, pastries, and cakes?

I highly recommend you give this book a try. This is a warm, humorous, and pretty good whodunit which may have you baking as you read so just like the characters, you get to partake of the aroma and pleasure of treating yourself.

I would like to thank LibraryThing, and Kensington Publishing Corp for the opportunity to read and review this book. show less

A television bake-off show has come to Kilbane and Sioban is thrilled to be assigned to the production and eagerly thinking of sampling the pastries. A protestor is ruining the rehearsal by shouting “sugar kills.” The famous cookbook author rushes out to help and insists on powdering his shiny face for the camera. He’s the first victim. Next murder victim is the cookbook author. Our happy newlywed couple solve the case while smooching, admiring each other and working together.

Garda Siobhan O'Sullivan is elated when she is tasked with security for a televised baking show. She's hoping to nab free samples and see just how the professionals do it. When it's announced that one of the contestants is a celebrity cook who has published books and is about to write a memoir, the grounds are full of onlookers who want to meet the woman.

But there's a disturbance in the form of a young man who uses his bullhorn to disrupt the proceedings -- which haven't even begun yet. While the owner of Pie Pie Love (where the contest is being held in an old flour mill) asks her to get rid of him, she does her best. But it's not long before there's a tragic occurrence which changes the rules.

Now she and her fellow Garda, including her show more husband Macdara Flannery, are investigating more than baking gone wrong. It's murder. And they need to find a killer before anyone else is found dead in the mix...

This is the ninth book in the series, and I swear that they keep getting better. Of course, we have the O'Sullivan family members (all six of them) and watch their changes, as we have throughout the series. But this time, it's Siobhan's game, and she's on top of it. Her mind churns even as she samples devilish delights, and Flannery is willing to allow her to take the lead while he searches for facts.

It's obvious that one of the players is a killer; but is it one of the bakers, the owner of the bakery, or even the cameraman or his boss? With things happening around them, it appears that the killer is always one or two steps ahead, and they need to find out why. Watching Siobhan is the best part of the book, as I love how her mind thinks. She mentally theorizes, then uses that to sort fact from fiction.

Although I discovered the killer before her, it's probably because (and I have mentioned this enough to be ad nauseum) I read a lot of mysteries. I look for clues. It makes me enjoy the book more. But finding the killer was enough to make the entire book worthwhile. It was rather sad in itself, but worth the journey. And at the ending, all was as it should be (as of course we knew it would).

Journey to Ireland with Siobhan and the rest of the crew, and you will not regret it. It seems such a lovely place that I would like to visit it someday. Highly recommended.

I received an advance copy from the publisher and NetGalley but this in no way influenced my review. show less

This ninth in series book is an interesting closed room cozy mystery with all the frustration and twists such stories entail. The story centers around a baking competition in a small Irish village. Our clever and most intuitive protagonist, Siobhán O'Sullivan, a member of the Garda Síochána (Irish Police), is assigned to keep an eye on the proceedings as there has been a bit of a protest on premises. After a couple of odd deaths, it isn't long before Siobhán's beloved Macdara, Detective Sergeant Flannery to the general populace, is brought in on the case. Two heads are better than one and perhaps together they can catch the perpetrator before another life is lost.

Even though the books can stand on their own, the personal stories show more which unfold around the various mysteries is well worth reading them in their order. As cozy mysteries go, this is one of the most enjoyable series for its charm, wit and warmth. The delectable sweets are a wonderful draw as well. show less

Murder at an Irish Bakery by Carlene O’Connor takes us to Kilbane, Ireland where a baking competition is being filmed in the old flour mill that houses the local bakery. Garda Siobhan O’Sullivan, who has a legendary sweet tooth, is thrilled that she is one of the officers handling crowd control. At the end of the first timed bake, the curtains are pulled back and a legendary chef is dead. Siobhan and her colleague sift through the suspects and clues. Can they serve up the killer by the end of the contest? Murder at an Irish Bakery is the ninth An Irish Village Mystery. It is best if you have read the first book in the series before embarking on this one. There are a number of characters (Siobhan has a large family) and it can be show more challenging to keep them all straight. The story is well-written with a developed main character. I did find the pacing to be lethargic. The repetition and detailed descriptions aided in the sluggish pacing. The mystery was entertaining. I enjoyed solving this whodunit. I liked that the author was creative. She really thought out of the box with this mystery. I appreciated the solid wrap up at the end during the interesting reveal. It appeared that Siobhan and Macdara spent more time yearning for baked goods than solving the crime. It was funny at first, but it does become tiresome after the tenth time. If you like pastries, you will enjoy all the luscious descriptions (there are so many of them). There is humor sprinkled throughout the story. Siobhan has a large, loving family. She has done a wonderful job raising her siblings. You can also tell that Siobhan loves her husband and is happily married. I liked the heartwarming family scene at the end. Murder at an Irish Bakery is a Celtic cozy with competitive contestants, a bevy of baked goods, a departed protestor, an anonymous supporter, a butchered baker, a happy husband, and special siblings. show less

Another fun installment in the Irish Village Mystery series. I love the O'Sullivan clan and how they have accepted all of the changes in their lives (Siobhan's marriage, the move to the farm, the new restaurant, etc.).

I love Siobhan and Macdara's work and home relationships, they always take the time to listen to each other. I was able to guess who the killer was about halfway through this book but I didn't mind because I needed to find out if I was correct about the motive.

As always, I am looking forward to the next book in the series, Murder at an Irish Chipper.