Murphy's Law: A Molly Murphy Mystery (Molly Murphy Mysteries, 1)

My entire adult life has been Murphy's Law! If something CAN go wrong, it WILL go wrong!! Seems Molly's life is the same! This isn't my first Rhys Bowen book, but it IS my first Molly Murphy book! It won't be my last, either! I love her spunkiness & her stick-to-it-ive-ness! I can feel for her coming to a new country! At least she speaks a variation of English! I knew about 3 words of German when I moved there!! I don't like NYC myself, I'm a country girl, but I love reading about it's early days! This book has the history of a new & burgeoning city, & the immigrants who made it so great, plus there's the entertainment factor. If you love mysteries, even copies you'll love Molly!

I really enjoy the Murphy' Law because it is fun to follow Molly along her trip. She has had some interesting things happen to her, she leaves Ireland and she fnds a way to get to come to the states. Molly starts out in the right place at the right time, but she is going to bring two children with her that are not hers. Molly must travel in the bottom of the ship because she is not rich. While traveling along she has bad experiences, Molly tries hard to keep herself and the two children safe. Molly must keep a secret all through her travels even know she meets a young boy who be friends her. They encounter a not so friendly man on the ship who likes to cause problems. Molly tries hard to stay away from the man. They arrive in Ellis Island and must to through the proper channels to be let into the states. During this time something bad happens and Molly is questioned by the police.

She finally is allowed into the States and she must live with some people she does not like staying with. She is questioned by the police several times and so she decides she needs to solve the problem herself. Molly is trying to find a job and at the same time solve the murder.

I have read many of Rhys Bowen's other books, including the Her Royal Spyness series and most of her stand-alone novels. I have found all of them well-written and enjoyable. This is my first taste of the Molly Murphy series, and it does not disappoint! I started it last night and had trouble putting it down. I finished it this morning. Molly is a likeable character, strong-willed and maybe a little too daring. She manages to get herself into, and out of, some very precarious situations. I am enjoying learning more about the time period, as well as the Irish immigrants who came to NYC and found opportunities they wouldn't have found in Ireland. The only issue is that now I have 18 more to read, with another one about to be released!

I had various reasons to read this. First of all, I had lots of time on my hands due to Chinese New Year and wanted to read something quick and entertaining between some bigger projects. Then, I have always been reading and watching lots of Irish stuff, such as recently Boardwalk Empire or Hugo Hamilton's memories. Then, the book's title is suggesting something that the book doesn't quite deliver: the link to what is generally known as 'Murphy's Law' is not a strong one. In fact, the book's heroine benefits from some lucky coincidences that are quite the opposite of what the 'law' would suggest. Finally, a friend had recommended it. In this case, I am not fully with him (while other recommendations from him have worked well for me). The story: a young, self-confident Irish woman in the year 1901 (the 'old queen' has just died, to dancing in the streets of Dublin) tells us how she had to run from home. She manages to get to New York, where a murder on Ellis Island, among her shipmates, causes some problems for her, considering that she is an illegal under false identity. Active person that she is, she takes the initiative and helps the police solving the mystery. In the process she has a romantic entanglement with the police captain and learns all about Tammany corruption. The story has strong phases: the humiliations of the Atlantic crossing and Ellis Island, the misery of living conditions in the slums of New York... The mystery itself is rather lame though, and the flirt with the captain classifies the book as chick lit, in my eyes. Three stars and a half.

I was immediately swept up in the story and the characters. A well paced plot. Kept it, for me, a page turner. Actually listened to it on my kindle. And kept listening. I’ve read a few other Rhys Bowen books. Always learned something new about the time period in which she set her stories. Her main characters always had a streak of integrity which motivated them to do good things.

Misrepresented story length bad, adding almost 40 pages to the actual length of the story for ads and future story excerpts amounts to poor marketing as far as I am concerned. Extra pages for non related items should not be counted. I buy books on content and length and don't appreciate being lied to. There are excellent short stories out there and they should be advertised as such. While this book couldn't be counted as a short story, I really expected the extra pages advertised could have been used to develop the story being purchased. Also, for anyone who cares, Whispersync doesn't work with this book. I tried it over three different devices and still had to listen using text-to-speach.