The Scholar (Cormac Reilly, #2) in Aussie Readers

Feb 10, 2019 Bree T rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: crime, arc, mystery, series, aww2019

This is one of my favourite new series’. I love a good crime series and it’s been a while since I’ve really found one that’s intrigued me as much as this. There’s just two books so far but things look promising for this to continue on for quite some time.

Carrie O’Halloran is feeling overworked. Recently appointed Sergeant, she’s been working long hours with a large number of cases and so when she goes to her boss seeking more balance, she negotiates offloading a couple to Cormac Reilly, who is s This is one of my favourite new series’. I love a good crime series and it’s been a while since I’ve really found one that’s intrigued me as much as this. There’s just two books so far but things look promising for this to continue on for quite some time.

Carrie O’Halloran is feeling overworked. Recently appointed Sergeant, she’s been working long hours with a large number of cases and so when she goes to her boss seeking more balance, she negotiates offloading a couple to Cormac Reilly, who is still pottering around in cold cases, still regarded with some suspicion by some of his colleagues. Meeting Cormac for a drink after work to inform him and brief him on the cases she’s giving him, Cormac receives a phone call from his partner Emma, a research scientist working out of a lab at the local university. She’s found a dead body.

Despite the fact that he probably shouldn’t because Emma found the body, Cormac takes that case too. At first investigation, it seems the body is that of Carline Darcy, heir to a pharmaceutical fortune and it goes without saying that Cormac will have to tread very carefully with such a high profile death. The further he gets into it, the more complicated things become and Cormac gets the feeling there are a lot of people hiding things from him and there are obstructions at every turn. Also, the further the investigation gets, the more things keep coming back to Emma herself and that’s putting Cormac in a couple of very uncomfortable positions.

I really enjoyed the exploration into Cormac’s personal life in this novel. We get some information in the previous book and know he has a long term partner named Emma, which is the reason Cormac moved to Cork. Emma received a very good job offer at the lab and what she’s working on is important and highly specialised. So Cormac was transferred to the local police force and has experienced ostracisation and even downright disdain from some of his fellow officers. Those that worked with him on the previous case have come to respect and even like him – but not everyone is a fan yet. Cormac, for his part, is remarkably hard to ruffle. He tends to take most things in stride….with the exception of things concerning Emma. Here we are given the bare bones about some of Emma’s past and how she and Cormac met but I still feel there is quite a bit to reveal about the two of them together as a couple. This case also has severe consequences for them personally, their relationship takes a bit of a beating and I think that both sides were well presented here, how it happened and why.

I loved both the cases that Cormac ends up investigating – one concerning a family where the father attempted to do something but was thwarted, and the case of the body that Emma finds. The first case shows just how much some of Cormac’s colleagues still irrationally resent him and how preconceptions and misconceptions can play a real role in someone’s lack of professionalism. I feel as though this case highlighted Cormac’s strong character and his general easygoingness as well – I liked the way he dealt with things. And in his detective role, Cormac knows how to connect with people, and get information out of them. And the other case, the more ‘main’ one concerning the body Emma discovered, was incredibly interesting. There were a lot of twists and turns – some were more easy to figure out than others. The who was kind of easy, the why was more difficult and went a lot deeper than originally indicated.

The writing and pacing is so good in this book. It’s not frenetic or anything but it’s a steady pace, increasing in urgency the further you get into the book as more is revealed and Emma seems to be more and more involved. This is a perfect balance for me, of a detective’s professional and personal life. In some ways, Cormac fits into a mould of police detectives in fiction but in other ways he very much does not. I enjoy his methods a lot and his way of relating to people.

This series ticks all the boxes for me – interesting, complex main character, incredibly well thought out criminal investigations and enough twists and turns to keep you guessing on things the whole way through. The writing is so good, I wish I had a dozen more Cormac Reilly books to dive into. Just going to have to be patient and wait for Dervla McTiernan to write them all!

***A copy of this book was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review*** ...more

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Feb 22, 2020 Tabitha Bird rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2020-books

Dervla McTernan has done it again! Another brilliant crime novel. Deliciously written and easily accessible. Cormac is again the heartbeat of the book and I can't wait to see what he gets up to next! ...more

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Sep 12, 2021 Kate Forsyth rated it really liked it

Shelves: crime, contemporary

This is the second offering from Irish-born, Australian resident Dervla McTiernan and its almost as good as her smash debut, The Ruin, which was a cracker. Both books are set in Ireland, and feature Detective Sergeant Cormac Reilly, who is struggling to find a place for himself after moving to Galway. His girlfriend Emma has taken a job there, and he has followed her, both hoping for a fresh start.

Emma is a scientist and works in a research lab at the university. The story begins when she discov ...more

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May 03, 2019 Kathy rated it really liked it · review of another edition

4.5 stars.

The Scholar by Dervla McTiernan is a fiendishly clever, riveting mystery. This second installment in the Cormac Reilly series can be read as a standalone but I also highly recommend book one, The Ruin.

Finally freed from working nothing but cold cases, DS Cormac Reilly is the lead investigator of a hit and run death that occurred near the local university. The case is quickly complicated due to the fact that Reilly's partner, Dr. Emma Sweeney, discovered the victim. Then he finds out 4.5 stars.

The Scholar by Dervla McTiernan is a fiendishly clever, riveting mystery. This second installment in the Cormac Reilly series can be read as a standalone but I also highly recommend book one, The Ruin.

Finally freed from working nothing but cold cases, DS Cormac Reilly is the lead investigator of a hit and run death that occurred near the local university. The case is quickly complicated due to the fact that Reilly's partner, Dr. Emma Sweeney, discovered the victim. Then he finds out the deceased has a connection to Darcy Therapeutics' research laboratory which is where Emma works. Surprisingly, Superintendent Brian Murphy has no issue with Cormac working the case but he does caution him to tread lightly around the über wealthy Darcy family. Just as the team is making progress on the case, another murder increases the tension for Cormac who is desperate to unmask the killer.

Cormac relies heavily on Detective Peter Fisher as he juggles the current murder investigation and another case he recently inherited from overworked Sergeant Carrie O'Halloran. Identifying the hit and run victim is not easy due to the damage inflicted by the vehicle. They do have one valuable clue that leads straight to Darcy Therapeutics. John Darcy is quite formidable as he fights to protect the proprietary information in the research lab. Cormac then turns to the lab head James Murtagh who is a little more forthcoming but will the information he provides lead them to the murderer?

Cormac is a well seasoned veteran detective whose keen instincts serve him well throughout the investigation. While most of his co-workers are eager and hardworking, Officer Moira Hanley is not one to come in early or stay late. She is not at all happy to be working with Reilly but will her resentment harm the investigation and Cormac's career?

The Scholar is a multi-layered mystery which is set against the backdrop of pharma research and the academic world. Cormac is an engaging lead protagonist who is finally settling into his new life in Galway. Emma is a bit of an enigmatic figure whose past is shrouded in mystery. The investigation moves at a steady pace but just as Cormac is starting to piece together the truth, a second murder turns his world upside down. Although savvy readers will most likely guess the killer's identity early on, Dervla McTiernan keeps the motive for the murders tightly under wraps until the novel's stunning conclusion. Mystery buffs are sure to enjoy this newest addition to the fantastic Cormac Reilly series.
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Sep 16, 2019 Marg rated it really liked it

Shelves: book-club, audio-book, awwc-2019

4.5/5 so good!!

Already looking forward to the next instalment in this series.

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Jan 03, 2020 Karen rated it really liked it · review of another edition

I enjoyed the first book the Ruin about Detective Cormac Reilly and his partner, Dr Emma Sweeney, so was looking forward to this one. It was a quick easy read, and kept me wanting more. Emma stumble s acorns a victim of a hit and run outside Galway University late one evening. She calls Cormac to the science. A security card in the young gilt identifies her as Carline Darcy, a bright student and heir apparent to an Irish Pharmaceutical company founded by her grandfather. The dead girl is not Car ...more

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