It doesn't take long before Maura feels at home in a small village in County Cork, Ireland. After growing up in South Boston without a lot of money, she was surprised when her Gran asked her to visit Ireland with their last bit of money. She ends up getting more than she bargained for on a lot of counts: a murder mystery, and interesting people who knew her Gran with stories to share.

Connolly does a nice job of bringing the people and the landscape of the village to life. Maura soon finds herself a part of the community with a place to stay, a car to drive and a job pulling beers at the local pub. She's making friends and finds herself over her head in a mystery that involves a body in a bog and more contemporary mischief.

Connolly's personal history with Ireland and love of the land comes alive. Make sure to read the acknowledgements section to find out more. Connolly's knowledge and passion for Ireland make this story almost more one of self- discovery than of mystery. That said, I did have some quibbles with this new series starter. While Connolly flourishes with setting, the mystery is less engaging and practically nonexistent. Also, it takes a long time for anything to happen mystery wise.

The story has a strong cast of secondary characters including Maura's landlord, Bridget Nolan, Mick, and Rose, who looks to Maura as a big sister. I was charmed by the setting, and it made me want to visit Ireland, so I kept reading. Hopefully future books in this series won't need any more set-up, so the murders can start sooner. If you're looking for an interesting book set in Ireland, BURIED IN A BOG might work for you. But if you're looking for a strong cozy mystery, pass this one by.

Book Summary

National bestselling and Agatha Award-nominated author Sheila Connolly introduces a brand-new series set in a small village in County Cork, Ireland, where buried secrets are about to rise to the surface...

Honoring the wish of her late grandmother, Maura Donovan visits the small Irish village where her Gran was born—though she never expected to get bogged down in a murder mystery. Nor had she planned to take a job in one of the local pubs, but she finds herself excited to get to know the people who knew her Gran.  

In the pub, she’s swamped with drink orders as everyone in town gathers to talk about the recent discovery of a nearly one-hundred-year-old body in a nearby bog. When Maura realizes she may know something about the dead man—and that the body’s connected to another, more recent, death—she fears she’s about to become mired in a homicide investigation. After she discovers the death is connected to another from almost a century earlier, Maura has a sinking feeling she may really be getting in over her head...

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