The O'Brien: The Untold Story

A Ballysea Mystery

Fiction - Mystery - General
170 Pages
Reviewed on 11/16/2016
Buy on Amazon

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    Book Review

Reviewed by Emily-Jane Hills Orford for Readers' Favorite

Cat and The O’Brien are inseparable. Cat, a writer, now lives with her special dog in Ireland. The O’Brien hadn’t always been with Cat. In fact, his sudden appearance in her life was something of a mystery until Jeff, Cat’s lawyer friend, stumbled on a story of a young girl, Molly, who lived in an orphanage and hadn’t spoken in years, not since her mother had been murdered right before her eyes. The family dog just seemed to disappear, but Jeff was sure that The O’Brien was Molly’s dog. And the mystery thickens when Jeff helps Cat adopt Molly and bring her to Ireland where, once reunited with her dog, she speaks for the first time since the night of her mother’s murder. The news of a young girl suddenly talking again makes international headlines and her mother’s murderer now seeks a way to silence her for good.

Frances Powell’s mystery novel, The O’Brien: The Untold Story: A Ballysea Mystery, takes the reader on an adventure that spans the ocean from America to Ireland. A good dog story, a compassionate adoption/rescue story, the mystery itself takes time to unravel. There is some confusion at the beginning as the characters are introduced and some of the back story is supplied. The novel is obviously one of a series and not one that stands well on its own. Perhaps reading the previous novel in the series would help alleviate the initial confusion. But once the story gets going, the plot is very enticing and thrilling right to the end. A good read.