I’m sure you can tell by the title, Murder She Wrote: Death on the Emerald Isle, that mystery writer Jessica Fletcher is heading to Ireland, with the assistance of Terrie Farley Moran. It’s Northern Ireland, with stops in Belfast and Bushmills. Moran blends mystery, a book festival, and local information in an entertaining mystery.

If Jessica Fletcher wasn’t such a good friend, she wouldn’t have ended up on this trip or involved in a murder investigation. Lorna Winters, the American guest of honor at the Belfast Book Festival, broke her leg, and asked Jessica to take her place with interviews and panels. That would have been just a short business trip, but then a neighbor in Cabot Cove asks a favor that sounds easy. Maeve O’Bannon has four paintings her Irish grandfather gave her parents as wedding presents. As the last of the American O’Bannons, Maeve is sending the paintings home to her O’Bannon cousins is Bushmills. She’s sending them with Jessica.

It’s a typical book festival in Belfast, with a lot of glad-handing and a busy schedule. Then, Jessica is swept off to Bushmills by Owen O’Bannon, one of the younger generation. It’s older cousins who run the family business, a cosmetics company called Marine Magic, Beth Anne, Jane, and Michael. But, Jessica met Michael, a doctor, at the book festival. Insinuations were that there was something a little off about his business practices. And, Owen warns Jessica the senior generation is in the middle of an attempted merger with a French firm, so there will be talk of business when it was originally just a welcome get together. Jessica suspects everything isn’t right with Marine Magic and the merger.

She might have let go of the business interests if she hadn’t discovered Michael’s body when she was bike riding. And, she could tell by a few clues that he was murdered. Now, Jessica doesn’t want to go home without finding answers for her friend Maeve.

Several elements are charming about the latest Murder, She Wrote book. Moran’s characters are well-written, and there are several logical suspects in Michael’s death. She capitalizes on the Irish setting, with a local pub, traditional music, and historic sites. And, there’s a romance between two likable characters. Best of all, for me, what I missed when I closed the book was the characters in the town of Bushmills, including the police officers. Moran even brings a humorous element with the next generation of cousins in the O’Bannon family.

Death on the Emerald Isle is a satisfying book to kick off the new year because release date is January 3.

Terrie Farley Moran’s website is https://terriefarleymoran.com/

Murder She Wrote: Death on the Emerald Isle by Jessica Fletcher & Terrie Farley Moran. Berkley, 2023. ISBN 9780593333686 (hardcover), 288p.

FTC Full Disclosure – I read a galley from NetGalley, with no promise of a positive review.