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How to Fake an Irish Wake: A Humorous Mystery Set in Ireland (A Mags and Biddy Genealogy Mystery Book 1) Kindle Edition

by Eliza Watson (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 1,049 ratings
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From USA Today bestselling author and genealogist Eliza Watson!

It’s been a rough year for 26-year-old Mags Murray. First she learns that her dad isn’t her biological father, a secret her mother took to her grave three years earlier. Then her beloved Irish grandmother passes away at Christmas while Mags is visiting her from the States. Now Mags must host her grandmother’s wake and sell her cottage. A cottage filled with cherished memories. A cottage Mags inherited but her odd jobs won’t enable her to keep.

Shortly after the funeral, a young man, Finn O’Brien, arrives at the cottage with an old photograph. Finn believes the boys in the photo are a clue to his father’s identity. Mags can sympathize with him, and because she often helped her genealogist grandmother uncover skeletons in people’s closets, including hers, she agrees to assist Finn.

But searching for Finn’s father stirs up trouble. Finn is in a near-fatal car crash that wasn’t an accident. So Mags and her childhood friend Biddy McCarthy investigate why someone wants to prevent Finn from finding his father. Questioning the quirky locals proves a wee bit difficult as several of the suspects were victims of Mags and Biddy’s childhood shenanigans.

It might take a fake Irish wake to reveal Finn’s father and the would-be murderer. But what if the two turn out to be the same person?

**Genealogy research tips included!**
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Previous page
  1. Book 1 of 6
    A Mags and Biddy Genealogy Mystery
  2. Print length
    238 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  5. Publication date
    October 19, 2020
  6. File size
    1844 KB
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
    Enabled
  9. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
  10. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Eliza Watson is a USA Today bestselling author and genealogist. Her genealogy adventures have inspired two fiction series set in Ireland, Scotland, and England and a nonfiction book, Genealogy Tips & Quips. Eliza has researched hundreds of ancestry lines in these countries. She has contributed articles to several prestigious publications, including Family Tree Magazine, a featured cover story in Crossroads (Utah Genealogical Association), and a three-part series in The Septs (Irish Genealogical Society International). She earned a Certificate in Genealogical Research from Boston University and has solved dozens of unknown parentage cases. When time permits, Eliza enjoys conducting author and ancestry presentations at cultural events.

Eliza fulfilled her dream of owning a home in Ireland when she and her husband bought a renovated 1887 schoolhouse in her Coffey ancestors' town in 2013. When she isn't tracing her ancestry roots through Ireland or Scotland, she's at home working on her next novel or article, bouncing ideas off her husband, Mark, and her cats, Frankie and Sammy.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B08FVTVWK9
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Elizabeth Watson (October 19, 2020)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ October 19, 2020
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 1844 KB
  • Simultaneous device usage ‏ : ‎ Unlimited
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 238 pages
  • Page numbers source ISBN ‏ : ‎ 1950786048
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 1,049 ratings

About the author

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Eliza Watson

Eliza Watson

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Eliza Watson is a USA Today bestselling author and genealogist. Her genealogy adventures have inspired two fiction series set in Ireland, Scotland, and England and a nonfiction book, Genealogy Tips & Quips. Eliza has researched hundreds of ancestry lines in these countries. She has contributed articles to several prestigious publications, including Family Tree Magazine, a three-part series in Irish Roots, and a featured cover story in the Utah Genealogical Association's journal, Crossroads. She earned a Certificate in Genealogical Research from Boston University and has solved dozens of unknown parentage cases. When time permits, Eliza enjoys conducting author and ancestry presentations at cultural events.

Eliza fulfilled her dream of owning a home in Ireland when she and her husband bought a renovated 1887 schoolhouse in her Coffey ancestors' town in 2013. When she isn't tracing her ancestry roots through Ireland or Scotland, she's at home working on her next novel or article, bouncing ideas off her husband, Mark, and her cats, Frankie and Sammy.

Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
4.3 out of 5
1,049 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Nurse1950
5.0 out of 5 stars loved it
Reviewed in the United States on March 31, 2024
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What an interesting bunch of characters and a great plot. Lots of twists and turns right up to the end.
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C. Trussell
4.0 out of 5 stars An Irish lad searches for his dad.
Reviewed in the United States on August 1, 2023
Verified Purchase
Mags is just finishing her own grandmother’s wake when a stranger, Finn, appears with a photo in hand. One of the lads in it is his father, a stranger to him who is apparently unaware he even has a son. When Finn is injured in a car accident, Mags becomes involved in his search for his father. Her best friend Biddy helps in whatever way she can, but it is Mags who uses her genealogy prowess to try to search for both Finn’s father and her own. There are no deaths involved in this search, although there is a fake wake. Not so much humor here as just a light-hearted mystery.
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Julie Trout
5.0 out of 5 stars Read it in one night!
Reviewed in the United States on March 10, 2023
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Thoroughly enjoyed this story and the characters in it. Mags reminds me of myself in the way she describes her love of history from such an early age. Light on genealogy but full of fun and shenanigans. I also learned some new Irish slang, LOL. No problem keeping track of characters but, I am a genealogist--it's what I do! Book was also refreshingly void of errors; there were some but nothing like some other ebooks that I have read in this genre.
One person found this helpful
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Kindle Customer
3.0 out of 5 stars 3.5 stars
Reviewed in the United States on March 7, 2022
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This was a first time read for me with this author. The book was ok but was a hard one to continue with. The characters are all well fleshed out and there were a few good laughs but it was a real slow read. Not sure if I will read the next one or not.
3 people found this helpful
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Becky Muth
5.0 out of 5 stars Mystery in a Family Tree
Reviewed in the United States on November 27, 2020
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DNA tests are all the rage, and while my own didn't reveal any surprises, I'm always happy to read about the ones that do. Even if they're in a book. But especially if it's a book by this author!

From the very first page, I was cheering that everyone would have a happy ending. Although it looked like things could go either way for a bit, everything turned out okay in the end, as it does in a cozy mystery--another reason why I love them.

One of the things I loved best about this book was the accuracy of genealogy-related descriptions. It added to the immersion and allowed me to escape 2020 to follow along with characters in Ireland, one of my all-time favorite places. That the main character was American made it all that more real to me.

Love, love, LOVED this book! I wish I could give it 5k stars. Can't wait to read more adventures with these characters who feel like friends.
11 people found this helpful
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Jannett
4.0 out of 5 stars How to fake an Irish Wake
Reviewed in the United States on December 31, 2022
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This story is really cute. Its light hearted and a good read. When they plan the wake nothing goes as planned. But you have to read it to find out what happens.
2 people found this helpful
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Charlotte R. Mitchell
5.0 out of 5 stars Genealogical Mystery, Not a Gory Story
Reviewed in the United States on October 13, 2023
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I really enjoyed reading this book. The last three books I have read dealt with DNA testing to find one's parents, and this one also included genealogical research. Both topics are fascinating for me.
Mags and Biddy have a long friendship beginning in childhood, and I can certainly appreciate that also. The author reveals both their good qualities and those not so good. The women aren't perfect, but their friendship continues.
The fact that the story takes place in Ireland and involves a woman from Chicago adds to my enjoyment.
I found only one or two typos, and they were minor.
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Pamela Devereux
4.0 out of 5 stars Searching for family
Reviewed in the United States on November 5, 2021
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This was a fun book to read. It all started with a funeral for Mags grandma and ended with a fake Irish wake. In between there was a mystery to solve. Who is Finn's dad? He had an old photo with a phone number on the back. So Mags and her best friend Biddy decided to go in search. From an old teacher to some of the boys in the photo. It seems the best advice was given by Biddy's dad. Just ask. Any dad would want to know. So that was the plan. Also, they needed to catch the person who tried to run Finn off the road and knock Mags out. Nothing turned out as plan but still mission was accomplished. I look forward to reading more stories about Mags and Biddy.
2 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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Marie Andree Gignac
5.0 out of 5 stars Very funny
Reviewed in Canada on November 21, 2022
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Loved the plot.Never new a wake so funny.Not the way my Irish grandmother described it to me.HaHa
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Good read
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 8, 2023
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Really enjoyed this book good story.
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Krupa C.
3.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable
Reviewed in India on March 12, 2023
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I enjoyed the chemistry between Mags and Biddy, and some scenes really had me laughing out loud. A few portions felt repetitive, and a few felt confusing enough to wish for pen and paper to make my own notes as the mystery progressed.

Talking of the mystery, it was interestingly written. A lot of the "suspects" seemed plausible, so the final answer was somewhat exciting. All the questions that the reader may have do get answered, but sometimes the answers looked a bit weak or unconvincing to me. The actual idea of holding a wake felt harebrained to me, hence the 3 stars.

I learnt a little bit of the Irish culture and traditions too, so that was a bonus. The book had hardly any proofreading errors, so that's grand ;)

I might check out more in the series, but only if it is available on Kindle Unlimited.
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Marlies Roeland
5.0 out of 5 stars Simpel gezegd: Geweldig!!!
Reviewed in the Netherlands on March 9, 2022
Verified Purchase
Heerlijk om te lezen, een niet weg te leggen boek! Sowieso een hobby waarover ik nooit eerder heb gelezen in een boek. Idem voor het verhaal zelf én de setting in Ierland. Vind de taal zo ontzettend leuk om te horen. Ik probeerde zelfs af en toe de zinnen in mijn hoofd met de Ierse klank te zeggen.
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Sheryn Partington
5.0 out of 5 stars The angst of ancestry
Reviewed in Australia on September 13, 2023
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Thoroughly enjoyed How To Fake An Irish Wake a cosy read with a slice of intrigue definitely worth the 5 stars
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