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    Scandal in Skibbereen
    Scandal in Skibbereen
    Scandal in Skibbereen
    Audiobook8 hours

    Scandal in Skibbereen

    Written by Sheila Connolly

    Narrated by Amy Rubinate

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    Bostonian Maura is beginning to feel settled in her new Irish home, just in time for summer tourist season to bring fresh business to her pub. But the first traveler to arrive is thirsty for more than just a pint of Guinness. Althea Melville is hot on the trail of a long-lost Van Dyck painting.

    Maura agrees to help Althea meet with the residents at the local manor house, the most likely location of the missing art. But when the manor's gardener is found murdered, Maura wonders what Althea's real motives are. Now, to solve the secret of the lost portrait and catch a killer, Maura will have to practice her Irish gift of gab and hunt down some local history-before someone else is out of the picture . . .
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherTantor Media, Inc
    Release dateFeb 4, 2014
    ISBN9781452689180
    Scandal in Skibbereen
    Author

    Sheila Connolly

    SHEILA CONNOLLY (1950-2020) published over thirty mysteries, including several New York Times bestsellers. Her series include the Orchard Mysteries, the Museum Mysteries, The County Cork Mysteries, and the Victorian Village Mysteries. She was a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution and the Society of Mayflower Descendants.

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    Reviews for Scandal in Skibbereen

    4/5

    104 ratings14 reviews

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    • 4/5
      Sullivan’s Pub is the unofficial community center of the tiny village of Leap in County Cork. A brash American woman makes the pub her last stop on a whirlwind Irish tour. Althea Melville tells pub owner (and fellow American) Maura Donovan she is looking for a Van Dyck painting that may be worth millions of dollars. Although Maura is annoyed by Althea’s fast-paced New-York style and lack of manners, the idea of finding a long-lost piece of art in her neighborhood is too intriguing go pass up. After much discussion, Althea sets her sights on Mycroft House, the area’s largest manor home, as the possible location of the centuries-old masterpiece. The Townsend clan has lived in Mycroft House, now a crumbling heap, for many generations. Nonagenarian Eveline Townsend is now the sole occupant – assisted by three live-in servants: Florence and Thomas O’Brien, and Seamus Daly, the gardener. Eveline’s nephew Harry Townsend takes care of the finances and watches over the home, but he lives in Dublin. Just after Althea gets Maura’s agreement to help in the hunt, the local policeman stops in to tell Maura that Seamus Daly has been murdered, found just outside Mycroft House with his head bashed in by a shovel. Seamus was a little “slow” and had a sweet personality so everyone wonders why he would have been the victim of such a vicious crime. As police look for a murderer, Althea, Maura team up with a local artist, Gillian, to find out if the missing VanDyck is at Mycroft House. That means gaining the confidence of Harry Townsend so he’ll help with their search. With the protective O’Brien’s making access to Eveline almost impossible, Handsome Harry is the key. Scandal in Skibbereen is a great second book in this series by veteran mystery writer Sheila Connolly. Maura is a likeable and complex heroine, South-Boston feisty outside but soft as a marshmallow inside. The secondary characters are wonderful, especially the staff and regulars at Sullivan’s Pub. The writing is polished, the plotting smooth.
    • 5/5
      I am loving this series. Great mysteries without the blood and gore. :)
    • 5/5
      Great author! Great story. Great narration. Going to see if there is another book....
    • 4/5
      I really do enjoy this series. It's set in Ireland in a small town in County Cork. Moira is a young 20-something American who inherited an Irish pub from a dear friend of her grandmothers's. After her grandmother has died, Moira decided that staying in Boston wasn't going to help her get on with her life, so she left for Ireland to see the pub she had inherited in the hopes of selling it. Once there, she decides that she loves Sullivan's Pub and the people in the town, and there she has stayed for a few months. Moira is a vey likeable protagonist - no nonsense, sensible and warm. The people in the village like her and she quickly fits in to village life. In this second book Moira meets a young American woman who happens to walk into her pub, and then the adventure begins. Althea is trying to track down a possible original Van Dyke painting that she has heard about in New York. Althea is an art historian, and is hoping to find this painting in order to further her career at the gallery where she works. Moira connects her with some of the locals, and Moira, Althea and Gillian, a local painter, are on the hunt. Of course, other people are also interested, and before long a dead body is found on the grounds of the estate where the painting might be. The book moves along quickly from there. I listened to this as an audiobook, and the narrator, Amy Rubinate, does a wonderful job of reading this little gem. For fans of cozy mysteries set in cozy villages in the UK, this series would be worth checking out.
    • 2/5
      With the second of this series done, I'm thinking it's just not for me. I found this installation's narrative slow and repetitive, and I still don't like the main character. It's possible the slowness is yet another way to hammer on the message of "everything is slower in Ireland," but if that's so I feel it does a disservice to the country. I also find it off-putting that nearly every character over 70 is portrayed as frail and in need of frequent naps. I work with multiple people who are nearing 100, and their stamina and drive is more like the 50-year-old characters in these books.
    • 4/5
      In my review of the first book of the County Cork series, I mentioned it was refreshing to have Maura Donovan become a sleuth so seamlessly within the storyline and still work at her new job. Many of the amateur sleuths in cozy mysteries that are either a business owner or employee at a local business in the town/city setting of the story never seem to be actually working at their business or job. Well, that comment can now only apply to the first novel in the series. Maura spends more time helping a fellow American from New York than she does taking care of her business this time around. There does seem to be an opening in future novels in the series for Maura to become a mentor to 16-year old employee Rose but this time around Rose is the mentor for a little fashion advice before Maura has a dinner date. In fact, I'm wondering if Rose will become the cook if Maura decides to offer a limited menu later in the series.I've always wanted to visit Ireland and this novel allows one to learn a little about Irish history, hear about the local scenery, and of course hear a few stories of yesteryear. I look forward to reading more of the series especially to learn if any of my own predictions will come true.
    • 4/5
      American museum employee follows the trail of a missing master piece by Van Dyck to Leaf in County Cork. Death follows.
    • 3/5
      I was disappointed in the 2nd book in these series. The mystery was thin, romance weak, and kind of stretched out. Maura, now owns the bar, and an obnoxious American comes to Leap looking for a Van Dyck painting and Maura agrees to help her locate it. Meanwhile, the local garda Sean asks Maura on a date and she spends the time asking him about the latest murder while feeling "he's a nice guy." The who-dunnit was pretty obvious.
    • 4/5
      In this second installment, Maura is running the pub she inherited in Leap, Ireland. A rather brash woman from New York named Althea visits Leap seeking a Van Dyck painting she believes is in the manor house. In the meantime, the gardener turns up dead. Maura and her friend Gillian, a local painter, agree to help Althea in her inquiries while Officer Sean of the guardi and his superior tackle the investigation into the murders. Of course, Maura supplies useful information from time to time. It's a fun visit to Ireland, even if the plot is a bit implausible.
    • 4/5
      I was not familiar with the author, Shelia Connolly, but thought the series title and location was interesting. I had traveled in County Cork a bit and I always like to read titles with a good 'sense of place'. It was obvious from Shelia's notes and the descriptions in her book that she had done some research and traveling before she began her mystery series, a County Cork mystery.I read both mysteries in her series, Buried in a bog and Scandal in Skibereen. I did enjoy the characters and the descriptions of various people and places in Cork. I liked the interweaving of genealogy and family histories into the plot. The plot seemed a bit 'light' at first, but did fit the characters and place and family history theme. I finished both mysteries hoping for more to be written.The series also renewed my interest in genealogy and another trip to Ireland!
    • 5/5
      This "2nd in a series" is just as much fun to read as the 1st one! Maura is adjusting to her new life in Leap, Ireland as a pub owner. She is learning more about her past and about Ireland in general. When a young (annoying) American woman comes into the pub looking for a painting that she thinks is an unknown Van Dyke, Maura agrees to help her. Led toward a local "manor" house, Maura and a new friend, Gillian, work to try and find out if the painting exists and if it is in County Cork. When a gardener at the estate is killed, Maura and Gillian go to work to discover if the American is involved.I really like this series and plan on reading more, as soon as they are available.
    • 5/5
      In Connolly’s mystery novel, Maura Donovan is the new owner of Sullivan’s Pub in County Cork, Ireland. As the summer tourists begin to arrive, Maura starts to feel more settled in her new home. Among the first arrivals to the area is a New Yorker, Althea Melville, in search of a rare painting by Van Dyck that she believes is in the area. Althea incorporates Maura’s help to locate the local family about the painting. But when a local gardener is found murdered, Maura begins to wonder if there is more to Althea than meets the eye. Determined to find a killer before he strikes again, Maura mingles with the locals while delving into the history of the area she now calls home.This is the second installment in a wonderful new series that is a witty and engaging blend of history and mystery with sharp new sleuth.
    • 4/5
      Sheila Connolly scores once again with her second mystery set in County Cork, Ireland. She is adept at adding just enough local history and flavor to make her setting shine without making it confusing to those unfamiliar with the Auld Sod. The book would be worth reading for the setting alone, but wait-- there's more!Add to the sparkling setting a complex mystery. I always love mysteries about long-lost masterpieces, so Connolly had me at Van Dyck. However, there are also people and motives galore, and it takes time to sort through them all. Fortunately Maura runs a pub, and while she pulls pints and clears tables, she can learn all sorts of things about the area and its people. Setting and plot are all well and good, but no cozy is worth its salt unless it has a good, solid cast of characters. Scandal in Skibbereen delivers the goods in this respect, too. Maura Donovan is a strong, intelligent woman who-- whether she likes it or not-- is a natural born leader and authority figure. She's only been in Ireland for three months, but her friends, co-workers, and those who come into the pub want her included on anything that's being planned. Part of the reason for that is that she's willing to learn about the local people and their history. She's not the type of person to wade in and insist, "We never did it this way in Boston!" She's also learned that family means a great deal in this area. There are people who remember her grandmother and other family members who used to live there, and that carries weight in the community.In stark contrast to Maura is fresh-from-the-Big-Apple Althea Melville. If it's not done the way it is in New York City, Althea doesn't like it. Althea also has no concept of personal space, dressing appropriately... or even of being polite. I would imagine most townspeople wanted this abrasive woman to be paired with their new pub owner in hopes that Maura might rub off on her.Maura and Althea aren't the only characters to enjoy in this book, however. Maura even has a bit of a love interest in this book, and it's fun to watch her deal with it. From Maura to the man and his daughter who work in the pub, to her grandmother's friend, to the old man who practically lives at the pub, all the way to those in residence at Mycroft House, there are plenty of characters to savor along with the setting and the mystery.The only thing left for me to say is, "Bring on book three!"
    • 4/5
      Taking place only three months after Maura has decided to make a go of the pub she inherited, she still seems a bit of an outsider, while learning the ways of Sullivan's Pub in Leap. When a New Yorker arrives with a tale of a possible Van Dyck painting housed in a nearby manor, Maura tries to help her fellow countryman. After a groundskeeper is found dead at the Townsend estate, Maura isn't so sure of Althea's motives and continues to use her new found friendships to help Althea. Once again, the descriptions of village life and its' residents are what drew me back to the series.