Review copy was received from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
The Drowning Sea by Sarah Stewart Taylor Narrator: Aoife McMahon
Series: Maggie D'Arcy #3
Published by MacMillan Audio, Minotaur Books on June 21, 2022
Genres: Mystery
Pages: 352
Length: 13 hours, 30 minutes
Format: Audiobook, eARC
Source: NetGalley
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Amazon, Audible, Libro.fm, Barnes & Noble, Apple
For the first time in her adult life, former Long Island homicide detective Maggie D’arcy is unemployed. No cases to focus on, no leads to investigate, just a whole summer on a remote West Cork peninsula with her teenage daughter Lilly and her boyfriend, Conor and his son. The plan is to prepare Lilly for a move to Ireland. But their calm vacation takes a dangerous turn when human remains wash up below the steep cliffs of Ross Head.
When construction worker Lukas Adamik disappeared months ago, everyone assumed he had gone home to Poland. Now that his body has been found, the guards, including Maggie's friends Roly Byrne and Katya Grzeskiewicz, seem to think he threw himself from the cliffs. But as Maggie gets to know the residents of the nearby village and learns about the history of the peninsula and its abandoned Anglo Irish manor house, once home to a famous Irish painter who died under mysterious circumstances, she starts to think there's something else going on. Something deadly. And when Lilly starts dating one of the dead man's friends, Maggie grows worried about her daughter being so close to another investigation and about what the investigation will uncover.
I’ve been enjoying this Maggie D’arcy series as it has layers of plot. Maggie is a homicide detective in NY at the start of the series but she visits Ireland to try to find out what happened to her cousin. Her family has a rich history with Ireland, and runs an Irish bar on Long Island. In the first two books, Maggie works with the Garda in Ireland on cases. She also falls for an Irishman.
In The Drowning Sea, Maggie is planning a move to Ireland. She and her teen daughter, Lilly, go for the summer. But she isn’t sure Lilly will want to move there. Lilly is a bit fragile and she is a teenager.  Maggie also has to decide what she will do for employment if she moves. She wants to be who she is but she will have to retrain to work in the Garda in Ireland. So there are a lot of decisions and planning even though it is a vacation.
But of course, someone turns up dead and Maggie, being a cop, investigates somewhat. Their landlord asks her to look into something that happened in 1973 when the landlord was 10 as she was worried a young woman disappeared. There also was a big drug investigation about 5 years ago and there’s concern it has continued. So there are all sorts of mysteries which don’t get any better as additional people are found dead and others are missing.
I really enjoyed all the mysteries and the personal growth and change for Maggie and her family. Her Irishman, Connor, has some personal issues with his ex-wife happening also.  I can’t wait for more to see how everything turns out for the family plus there are bound to be more cases.
Narration:
Aoife McMahon does an excellent job with the narration and makes me feel as though I am in Ireland. She gives Maggie a great combination of New York and Irish inflections.  She has distinct voices for all the characters appropriately toned for their gender and age. I was able to listen at 1.5x – 1.75x speed.
Listen to a clip:Â HERE
Giveaway:
Enter to win a new print ARC of The Drowning Sea by Sarah Stewart Taylor. US only
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I read all types of books but my favorites are urban fantasy and romantic suspense.I like some romance and some action / adventure / mystery in everything.I like sex in my books but please, only between TWO people.Intimate conversation is equally important to the sex in a book.It lets me see the characters.The other thing I enjoy is humor.
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Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
- 22-COYER
It sounds like a really good story, and I love the pretty cover.
I’m really enjoying this series. It is very well written with layered plots and well-developed characters.
I love the sound of this! Anytime I hear the word “layers” I’m interested because for me, those are the best stories.
Exactly! It’s those layers which give depth and flavor to a story and a writer who can work them together creates an amazing read.
All the mysteries and the Irish setting get my attention.
Me too!
I love that the narration made you feel like you were there!
Narrators can make or break a book, that’s for sure.
I think I should try book one!
I really enjoyed it. They are not a straightforward police procedural, there is a lot happening on the personal side.
Layers… Mm – now that’s a catnip word for me when considering murder mysteries. Thank you your excellent review and I’ll certainly be considering this series when on the hunt for another entertaining whodunit:)).
Layers is THE word of the week and the reality of what it takes to make an amazing book for me.
Sounds like this could be an interesting one – the characters appeal to me, with her being (what sounds like) a single mom of a teenager and a detective. Great reveiw!
Yes she is a single mom and detective. But there’s family drama in the early books and there’s a lot of Irish history related in the books.
I really like the sound of this one. Especially that main characters Maggie. Great review Anne.
Thanks Maureen. I always enjoy strong women, smart women.
I’m listening to this one right now and ordered a hard cover for my shelf since I love this series! What an awesome giveaway though! Glad you enjoyed this installment, too. I was a little worried that there was a change in narrator from the first two, but I love her performance.
Thanks Rachel. The narration definitely adds to the feel. I really enjoy mysteries set in other cultures.
I really want to start this series and I’ve been thinking about trying the audio so I was so glad to see this review. I’m looking forward to listening to this one!
The narrator is excellent and I hope you enjoy it. I do lots of audio because I can multitask.
This sounds delicious! Excellent review, Anne💜 I’m keeping my eye on this series.
I’m enjoying this one. There are lots of different things happening.
This isn’t really my type of read, but it sounds like a series my mom would like, I’ll be sure to share it with her! Great review!
Thanks. I enjoy my mysteries.
I love a murder mystery that has lots of layers so this one sounds like a good fit for me. Glad to hear you’re enjoying the series so much. 🙂
The series is a good fit for me with the murder mystery, the police procedures (of two countries), historical bits, settings of two countries with a family heritage and personal relationships for a start. Characters, plot, setting, it handles a lot of things well.