Book Review: Irish Soda Bread Murder by Carlene O'Connor, Peggy Ehrhart, and Liz Ireland

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Irish Soda Bread Murder   by Carlene O'Connor, Peggy Ehrhart, and Liz Ireland is a collection of three short stories that include Irish Soda Bread Murder by Carlene O'Connor, An Irish Recipe for Murder by Peggy Ehrhart, and Mrs. Claus and the Sinister Soda Bread Man by Liz Ireland. The expected publication date of this book is December 24, 2024, and my overall review of this book is four out of five stars. I'd like to thank NetGalley for the Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) that I received for free in exchange for my honest review. Irish Soda Bread Murder  by Carlene O'Connor opens with Tara Meehan helping her Uncle Johnny and Aunt Rose with a local bake sale and psychic convention with the proceeds going to charity. When Rose's biggest rival shows up and ends up dying from her soda bread, Tara knows she must step in to help clear her aunt and uncle from the suspect list. I enjoyed this story a lot better than the last one I read in the series. The only complaint I hav...
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Book Review: Mary Jane by Jessica Anya Blau

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Mary Jane by Jessica Anya Blau is a coming of age novel taking place in Baltimore, Maryland.

Mary Jane by Jessica Anya Blau is a coming of age novel taking place in Baltimore, Maryland. During the 1970's, fourteen year old Mary Jane is caught in the middle of her family's conservative ideals and the progressive ideals of the Cone family where she is a summer nanny. Mary Jane is a sheltered teen who enjoys cooking with her mother, listening to Broadway Show Tunes, and singing in the church choir. On the first day of work, she is shocked at the mess in the Cone's home and introduces them to home cooked meals and keeping the house clean. In return, Mary Jane gets a front row seat to sex, drugs, and rock & roll.

This novel was the selected for the book club I belong to. Again, this is a novel that I likely wouldn't have chosen to read on my own, but I was glad I did. Mary Jane is the first novel I've read by Jessica Anya Blau, and I was impressed with her storytelling. 

Touching on race, class, and stereotypes, along with drugs and infidelity, it reminded me that there are people who still hold the conservative beliefs that many held in the 1970's. I loved the fact that Mary Jane was exposed to different viewpoints that she normally didn't hear and began to question the world around her, eventually leading to her developing her own opinions. Jessica Anya Blau got the tone and perspective of a teenager perfect in my opinion. Although the story is told from a child's perspective, it is not suitable for young children to read.

Some might find the beginning of the story a bit slow like I did, but as the story developed, I found it to be more interesting and couldn't wait to find out how the tale would unfold. The majority of the characters were likable and most were well developed. I found myself caring what would happen to them, even the ones I didn't particularly like. I wasn't sure if Mary Jane would have an ending I would enjoy, but surprisingly, I was satisfied with how the author wrapped it up.

All in all, I gave Mary Jane by Jessica Anya Blau four out of five stars. I will likely read other novels written by this author, and I would love to see her write a sequel to this book.


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