Customer Reviews

Mulligan Stew (Irish Eyes)

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

"Deb Stover just took flight on wings of magic and landed in Ireland in a pot of Mulligan Stew hot enough to singe your eyebrows off with her extraordinary characters that jump off the pages into your heart. This book has everything necessary to keep you flipping the pages because from the moment you meet Bridget and Riley you know there are other forces at work to bring them together to break the curse on the Black Castle that has stood vacant for l00 years. I highly recommend this book. Keep in mind it's quite sensual too."

Suzanne Coleburn, Reader To Reader Reviews

I love stories with castles in them! Add magic to the castle, and I'm hooked. And the castle in Deb's story seemed like a real *character* to me - it even talked! The descriptions of Ireland were so well-done that I could almost smell the sea. STEW moved quickly, too, and as I was reading I had a difficult time trying to find a "good place" to stop. You know how sometimes you get to parts in a book where you know you can stop reading for a while and not feel too anxious about what happens next? Well, not so with STEW. The setting, characters, humor, plot, dialogue, *very* hot love scenes -- everything meshed so wonderfully! I also loved the "Deep South meets Ireland" theme. Bridget's southernisms mixed with Riley's Irish words . . . That was fun, refreshing, and different. Honestly, this book had everything I love. I can't wait for Deb's next one!

For twenty-eight year old Bridget Colleen Mulligan, the best and worst day of her life was the day of Granny Frye's funeral. She and her six-year-old son, Jacob, were the last of the family line. They lived in Tennessee. The bank would take Granny's trailer at the end of the month and they would be homeless. It was made worse when Bridget's employer/lawyer informed her that her husband Culley had not abandoned her all those years ago. In fact, he was dead. Only recently had Culley's mother, in Ireland, found out Culley had married just before he died. Fiona Mulligan begged Bridget to come to Ireland, so she could hold in her arms the grandson she had not known existed. That fateful day Bridget lost all of her family in America and found a new family in Ireland.

Fiona fell in love with Bridget and Jacob upon first site! Maggie, Culley's younger sister, did too. The only one who did not was the older brother, Riley. Riley believed Bridget to be a fraud. Culley would never have wed a woman in America when he had a fiancé waiting for him in Ireland! But Jacob was the spitting image of Culley. And Riley could soon feel an attraction to Bridget that could have easily seduced his brother. And the woman was able to hear the voices!

Caislean Dubh was the name of the castle that overlooked the land. It was the Mulligan ancestral home, but no one had lived within the walls due to "The Curse" in a long time. Only Culley had heard the strange whispers that came from the castle. And only upon his death had Riley been able to hear them. No one else ever heard them, until Bridget. Why did she hear them? What could it mean?

***** Author Deb Stover spiced up this romance novel with just a dash of magic. At times I felt as if the past and the present were one and the same. I found it delightful to see a strong modern heroine in the haunting setting of a gothic tale, taming a stubborn man who fit the dark setting so well. Somehow the author was able to put it all together while showing the reader how breathtakingly beautiful Ireland really is. Highly recommended! *****

Reviewed by Detra Fitch.

In Reedville, Tennessee, Bridget Colleen Mulligan mourns the accidental death of her grandmother. Bridget is stunned to learn the tiny trailer they shared has been foreclosed upon due to Granny's gambling debts. She is even more shocked to learn the man she married seven years ago, who disappeared seventy-two hours later, did not abandon her. Instead, his accidental death so quickly after their elopement deprived his family of knowledge of his young bride. Only her eventual divorce papers lead them to contact Bridget, and then, perhaps, only because she bore Culley's son. Desperation for family and new beginning leads Bridget to accept the invitation to her husband's family farm on the west coast of Ireland.

Culley's mother and sister truly Bridget and her son Jacob, but brother Riley disbelieves her tale. Culley had been engaged to a woman in the local village, and Riley did not believe his brother would marry another. Nevertheless, Bridget's straightforwardness and blatant honesty, not to mention her country cooking, eventually begin to work their magic on him. Then he finds her in the abandoned family castle, abandoned a hundred years ago due to a curse. Riley has heard the whispers of the castle since his brother died, though he never puzzled out why Culley believed he could end the curse. Riley believes the story of his brother's bride to a con until he realizes she can hear the whispers, too. And then there are the erotic dreams that lower his defenses and leave him vulnerable to the woman's spell.

Deb Stover writes with a stunning beauty and wry wit that resonates beautifully throughout all of her novels, but never so profoundly as with MULLIGAN STEW. Like the stew for which it is named, MULLIGAN STEW offers something for everyone's taste in this artful blend of Irish contemporary romance, an ancient curse, a haunted castle, gothic overtones and the struggle to reconcile the past with the present. Characters are vividly realized from the heroine who will kick another woman in the shins for hurting her child's feelings, to the hero who cannot forget the dead brother he loved so deeply. Stover creates a poignant tale of loss, healing and recreation that will linger long after the last page is turned. Yet another Stover novel to add your keeper shelf, MULLIGAN STEW earns the WordWeaving Award for Excellence.

Fans of Deb Stover's time travel and historical novels will be pleased to learn that, in this contemporary romance offering, she has retained the heartwarming characters and distinctive voice that has made her a reader favorite.

When Bridget Mulligan learns that her deceased husband's family wants her and her son to live with them in Ireland, it seems like the answer to a prayer. Having been left destitute in Tennessee by the death of her granny, Bridget and her six-year-old son need a home badly. But she soon learns that finding the loving family she had hoped for isn't quite so easy. Not only does her sexy, moody brother-in-law keep her off-balance, but she must solve the secrets of the family's cursed castle before it claims any more lives.

Deb Stover takes one eerie Irish castle, adds an ancient curse, sprinkles in a touch of humor, and stirs in compelling characters and lush sensuality to brew up a savory Mulligan Stew. You'll love it!

- Author, Author!

"Deb Stover just took flight on wings of magic and landed in Ireland in a pot of Mulligan Stew hot enough to singe your eyebrows off with her extraordinary characters that jump off the pages into your heart.

When her grandmother dies leaving her in debt, Bridget Mulligan sees no hope for her son's well being until the letter arrives from Ireland. She learns that her husband Culley never abandoned her as she had thought for years, but actually died in a car accident. His mother and sister want her to come to Ireland to live with them though his older brother Riley thinks she is a gold digger.

Bridget and her son travel to Ireland where she feels the nearby ruined castle calling her. Though her female in-laws shower her with love, Riley treats her rather shabbily. Still even though he does not fully believe that Jacob is his nephew, he begins to act like an uncle towards the lad. Neither one wants it, but soon Riley and Bridget fall in love. However, chances of anything between them are improbable as both savor the memory of Culley and he remains doubtful about her motives. Finally there is the family curse.

Award winning Deb Stover provides her fans with an exhilarating paranormal romance within a classic-style romantic story line starring two souls who mistrust one another while falling in love. Riley remains obstinate a bit too long, but the audience will still cherish this hunk. Bridget is a strong female protagonist doing what needs to be done for the sake of her son. The support cast supplements the plot by providing depth to the personalities of the lead duet. With a strong cast, the key to MULLIGAN STEW is the ability of Ms. Stover to interweave her two subplots into one entertaining cohesive tale.

Harriet Klausner

This novel has the usual stupid stubbornness of the hero's initial hostility and dislike for the maiden fair, but his longing and desire for her are steamy enough to set you ablaze without making you feel like he's some kind of pig after you've read it.

Although Mulligan Stew seemed the type genre that I usually enjoy, I found Deb Stover's hillbilly slang (such as "reckon" and "ya'll") quite annoying throughout the book. Imaging Bridgette's voice in that whiney, Tennessee twang just ruined the read for me. Overall it was a pretty good story line though.