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haemelle's review against another edition
3.0
You know that one game ad where the player slowly uncovers family secrets as they unlock new levels and remodel the mansion they inherited? Reading 'Buried in a Bog' felt somewhat reminiscent of that. Rather than a sleuthing main character commonly written in cozy mysteries, Maura stumbles into chaos and crime just as she arrives in Ireland after losing everything back in America. The mystery aspect of the story is quite literal in coincidences, but I still enjoyed the coziness of the featured settings and learning Maura's heritage and extensive family history previously unknown to her.
peacefrog's review against another edition
informative
lighthearted
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
giggle4amy's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
qu33nofbookz's review against another edition
2.0
The reason this book got 2 stars and not 1 star was the wonderful descriptions of the landscape and life of the people in small villages. The side characters were much better then the main character. Maura Donovan is bitter, bitchy, rude and so negative it's a wonder she hasn't offed herself. Also this book is so repetitive it literally could have been half the number of pages if we didn't have to hear the main character repeat Maura Donovan from Boston, or oh you'll be the American every time we see a new character. Also Maura decides that if nothing is like the way she thinks of things, or in this case the way us pesky American's do every thing then that person must be wrong and must want something better or can improve somehow. The time setting of the book puzzles me as well. Most of the time is sounds as if it's happening in the here and now or maybe a couple of years ago. But at many times it seems to slide back and it seems as if the time setting were a couple of decades ago. This book is also a drama or almost soap opera not a mystery. The "mystery" isn't mentioned much and the main character doesn't solve it, it just kinda works it self out on it's own. Not very suspenseful either. I will not be reading the next book as it looks like it's more of the same.
mjbrown77's review against another edition
4.0
cozy, atmospheric, and fun to read. every time i opened the book i felt like i was looking out over rolling green hills in ireland.
kimkelly80's review against another edition
1.0
The main character complains the whole book. She even goes off on a rant about people wanting “free things” from the government. Yet the character is handed EVERYTHING and complains when whatever she gets isn’t clean enough or modern enough or is “weirdly” (Irish food, housing, etc)
muhrrynn's review against another edition
2.0
I wanted to like this book. I did. So it's unfortunate that I don't. I enjoyed the writing style and the setting, and there is skill in the design of the mystery, but that wasn't enough to keep my mind from wandering. To clarify, there is a murder - two, in fact - and there is a mystery, but this doesn't play out like your typical murder mystery. That, in itself, felt like it should elevate my opinion, but no. This is the second Sheila Connolly book I've tried, and while I do think characters need room to grow, especially the main character, I also need to like them a bit to feel invested. I didn't get that with Maura's abrasive and judgemental snark. There is also something formulaic in the two books I've read, where the MC's backstory portrays them as hard-done-by then a series of serendipitous events and genealogical revelations hands them all they need. I will likely try again with the second in this series because I did like Mrs. Nolan, but overall this installation left me feeling flat.
literary__escapism's review against another edition
5.0
In the first book in the County Cork Mysteries, Maura Donovan heads to Ireland to discover her roots, after the death of her Irish grandmother. With nothing in Boston to hold her down, she heads to the small village of Leap. Within days Maura strikes up a friendship with her Gran's close friend, Bridget Nolan, and agrees to hang around and work at the Sullivan's Pub. When a body is discovered in the bog, Maura believes she may know who the body is and becomes involved.
I LOVE Irish/English mysteries. The bookstores are flooded with American mysteries (which I love as well) but new series set in a Irish or English village are such a novelty and I can't get enough of them.
Right from the acknowledgements I loved Buried in a Bog. Sheila Connolly details her research for this book, including taking lessons in the Irish language and her interest in genealogy. Her research has paid off because she has included irish words and phrases within the story, and this provided a real credibility to the story.
I loved Maura. She is a little lost in life, with her father dying when she was young and her mother abandoning her, and I enjoyed reading about how she discovers family in Leap.
With a great mystery surrounding the body in the bog that has been there for a very long time and colourful locals, Buried in a Bog is my very favorite debut of 2013 (so far!). It's got everything and I hope its the start of a great new, long series.
I LOVE Irish/English mysteries. The bookstores are flooded with American mysteries (which I love as well) but new series set in a Irish or English village are such a novelty and I can't get enough of them.
Right from the acknowledgements I loved Buried in a Bog. Sheila Connolly details her research for this book, including taking lessons in the Irish language and her interest in genealogy. Her research has paid off because she has included irish words and phrases within the story, and this provided a real credibility to the story.
I loved Maura. She is a little lost in life, with her father dying when she was young and her mother abandoning her, and I enjoyed reading about how she discovers family in Leap.
With a great mystery surrounding the body in the bog that has been there for a very long time and colourful locals, Buried in a Bog is my very favorite debut of 2013 (so far!). It's got everything and I hope its the start of a great new, long series.