There was a time when I read every Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple mystery that I could get my hands on, as well as any of the other mysteries that Agatha Christie wrote. Then the day came when I had read every one of them, and my search began for another author whose mysteries would satisfy me as much as hers did. My search ended when I found the Inspector Sheehan mysteries by Brian O’Hare.
The following three short mysteries are well-written and will keep your attention until the very end. The author lets you know when you have seen all the clues that Inspector Sheehan has seen, and you are encouraged to think over these clues and see if you can figure out who the killer is and why the murder was committed before the solution is given.
The mysteries aren’t scary, but they are intriguing, addictive, and comforting. Yeah, I know; it’s weird to say that murder mysteries are comforting, but to me they are.
“Murder at Loftus House”
A group of people is invited to Loftus House to spend the weekend. Some are invited for the pleasure of their company; others are invited to discuss business. During the weekend “festivities,” someone is murdered.
Inspector Sheehan and the police are called in to work their magic and discover who the culprit is. Can you figure out who committed the murder and how it was done before all is revealed?
“Murder at the Roadside Café”
The setting for this one is a quaint café where patrons of all sorts gather to eat their meals. This time, one of the less noticeable patrons is shot dead. And the list of suspects consists of those present in the café.
Which one will turn out to be the murderer?
“Murder at the Care Home”
When a wheelchair-bound old man who once fought with the Nazis is found at the bottom of a gully, it is discovered that he was pushed over on purpose. But he is in a nursing home. Which of the other residents hated him enough to kill him?
I received copies of all three mysteries free of charge in exchange for an honest review. If you would like to purchase any or all of the above Inspector Sheehan mysteries, I’ve provided Amazon links for them below.
Amazon Links:
Murder at Loftus House
Murder at the Roadside Café
Murder at the Care Home
Recommended Articles:
The 11:05 Murders – a Review
The Doom Murders – a Review
Favorite Sentences:
And the pallid man was lying face down on his table, blood running from a gunshot wound to the side of his head.
“Goodness, you look really great. . .and it’s all natural.”
“These old country houses. You never know what evil resides in them.”
He did not have the Nazi contempt for the treasures of the enemy, and he had been shocked to the very core of his being when he and his colleagues had been ordered to plant explosives in many of Paris’s most significant monuments.
New Words Learned:
abstruse – difficult to understand; obscure
anathema – a detested person or thing
mitigate – make less severe, serious, or painful
pulchritude – beauty
About the Author:
Brian O’Hare, MA, Ph.D., is a retired assistant director of a large regional college of further and higher education. He is married, and he has three children, ten grandchildren, and one great-grandchild. He plays golf three times a week off a ten handicap and does a lot of voluntary work. Any writing he has previously done was academic…very much restricted to a very specific readership. Several articles in educational journals were followed by a number of book-length reports for the Dept. of Education and the University of Ulster.
Hi Lisa,
I was under the impression that I had already left a comment but it seems to have disappeared. What I said was that despite the hugely complimentary nature of your review, I feel like running away and hiding. I am not sure that my work can live up to such praise.Still, I thank you for your wonderfully encouraging words. It was gratifying,indeed, to read them. I dare to hope you will read my next book when it comes out – The Coven Murders. It is still a mystery that Sheehan need to solve but it also has an element of the paranormal …dual genre. I suppose it could be called an occult mystery. Unfortunately there have been some problems experienced by the publishers and it will be the New Year before the book is published
So you know, I only give praise and compliments when deserved. 🙂
I look forward to reading The Coven Murders when it comes out. A bit of the paranormal added to the mystery in your stories could only make them better.
Thanks, Lisa. We’ll see.