The Celtic Riddle (Lara McClintoch Archeological Mystery, #4) by Lyn Hamilton

The Celtic Riddle (Lara McClintoch Archeological Mystery, #4) Reviews

• 
  Jill Bradley

  I read this when I was a kid and loved it. Reading it again, I realize that it's still very awesome and amazing! I love the nostalgia.
  
  The plot is great, the mystery is wonderful, the characters are flawed and lovable. The only problem I have is how almost easily the find the clues. They just found the local fisherman/historian and voila! clues! but it's still an awesome journey.
• 
  Clyde

  Fantastic!
• 
  Kate

  This turned out to be a cross between a cozy, a romance, and a grown-up 39 Clues story. There was history, yes, and definitely folklore (lots, which was awesome) . . . but "archaeology"? Nope. So I'm not sure about calling this an archaeological mystery. The folklore WAS good, though. I would have liked a bibliography / reading list for where to find more of it in the original.
• 
  Michelle

  This series keeps getting better with each book. Th author continues to introduce new characters and develops them well. This particular installment took place in Ireland and is infused with history and lore of the land. While this is a series, do not feel as if you must read from the start. While there is familiarity of characters, the author does a pretty good job of mini-introductions so the new reader is not in the dark.
• 
  Deborah

  Great story from a Canadian author. Interesting note about this book - it was used as the basis for one of the Murder She Wrote made for TV movies that aired after the series was over.
• 
  Marge

  Lyn Hamilton is just such a good writer!!!!
  
• 
  Fran Irwin

  Kept reading (this is the 4th in a series), hoping Hamilton would get better. Alas, she never did. Wanted to like her so much, as she is a friend of a friend.
• 
  Linda

  A very entertaining story well worth reading for the Irish lore, archeology, description, and interesting characters. One star off for a preposterous plot.
• 
  Sue

  Lara travels to Ireland with friends to attend a will reading and is caught up in a deadly game of treasure hunting. They follow clues and solve a puzzle while trying to solve the increasing slate of murders. Filled with lots of Irish details and told in Lara's distinctive voice, it's a very enjoyable novel.
  
• 
  Leslie

  I enjoyed the setting and the 'riddle' but felt that Lara should have figured out who the murderer was quite a bit earlier. Still, a fun read and I will most likely read more books from the series.
• 
  Sharon

  Antiques dealer Lara McClintoch can't seem to keep out of trouble. What should have been a simple trip to Ireland, to support a friend who is receiving an unexpected inheritance, sees McClintoch enmeshed in family drama, murder and mayhem.
  
  This is the second of Lyn Hamilton's books that I have read and, as with
  The Xibalba Murders, I enjoyed it thoroughly. Hamilton's characters are complex, entertaining and believable -- as are the situations in which she places them.
  
  It is always hard to review a mystery without delivering spoilers. However, this one is especially good; once again, Hamilton surprised me with the "whodunnit."
  
  A bonus is that this book's mystery is based, in part, on an ancient Irish poem called the "Song of Amairgen." From where I sit, Hamilton's clever mixing of ancient history with a modern mystery earns her bonus points!
• 
  Aprilleigh

  Every time I read this volume I like it more. The Celtic legends are fascinating, and I need to see if I can find one of the resources she mentioned in the author's note at the end of the book. The riddle was well-designed in some ways, and not so much in others, leaving a lot of head-scratching trying to figure out how they found some of the second set of clues.
  
  My only problem is with the character of Padraig - his last outing with 18-year-old Jennifer resulted in her setting him straight when he felt he was owed something she wasn't ready for. Not a nice guy, particularly since he was twice her age. It was only the tiniest part of the book, but it left a bad taste in my mouth that he never got called on that behavior.
• 
  Lansing Public Library

  Toronto antiques dealer and amateur sleuth, Lara McClinton, accompanies a co-worker to Ireland for the reading of the will of an eccentric businessman, who gives his family clues from an ancient Celtic poem that will lead to a great treasure. The treasure hunt turns deadly and Lara can’t resist the opportunity to try and catch the killes.
  
  
  The reading group rated this book 4.
  
  The group liked the book. They all had trouble following the clues to finding the treasure. They were all surprised to learn who the murderer was. The author did a good job in keeping us guessing.
  
• 
  Sarah

  At first I thought that it would be difficult to read this book - not in the sense that it was challenging to understand, but the chapters were long so I worried that I would have a hard time getting into it. I was wrong. I quickly got into this book and the story/mystery of it. I didnt even predict the ending! It was a great little mystery and I have a huge love for Irish things so the two went hand in hand brilliantly for me. :)
• 
  Terri Lynn

  I fell in love with Lyn Hamilton's series recently except for this one. It hardly seemed to have been in the same series. I don't know why, but this was simply boring, dull, and dry as dust. I detested all of the characters and the whole story and had to force myself to read the whole thing. I tried to be fair by reading it all but it was a trial. I do NOT recommend this.
• 
  Jenn

  With this busy month, it took over a month to read Lyn's 4th book. Enjoyed it very much and am curious about her other books, which ones are worth looking into, are they just as interesting as this one....
• 
  Shannon

  Love all of Lyn's books.
  
  I enjoyed the Irish countryside in this one and the puzzles that the protagonist has to unravel.
• 
  Barbara

  Ennh. Too much feisty female detectives. Too much feistiness. Tiresome. Dublin was cool, but not all that. It was just too, too nutty.
• 
  Robin

  This is the second time I have read this book. It was an enjoyable mystery set in Ireland with some Irish folk history included.
• 
  Dyana

  This series is classified as an archaeological mystery, but as in the previous book, I would call it an antiquity series. Instead of digging up ancient artifacts, the main character travels to different places in the world to pick up antiquities for her antique shop called Greenhalgh and McClintoch in Toronto. In this one the reader visits Ireland to learn some Irish history, mythology, and geography. The book includes a murder mystery, descriptions of Irish culture, rare and valuable antiques, a travelogue of the local sights and visitor spots, and a search for a mysterious treasure.
  
  Lara McClintoch's dear friend, neighbor, and faithful helper at her antiques store, Alex Stewart, is reluctant to go to a reading of the will of wealthy businessman Eamon Byrne in County Kerry, Ireland. He hadn't seen Eamon for years and only had a passing relationship with him. To encourage Alex, Lara gives moral support and accompanies him. She also convinces a friend named Rob Luczka (RCMP) and his daughter Jennifer to go along for a vacation too. They plan to tour Ireland after the reading of the will. Besides the will there is also a video recording by the deceased detailing what's in the will along with comments and snide remarks. Alex inherits Rose Cottage, its contents, and the land on which it sits. He loves it at first sight. This does not set well with the family.
  
  It was a source of considerable pain to Eamon Bryne that there was so much strife in his family which includes his wife, Margaret; his three daughters Eithne, Fionuala and Breeta; his two sons-in-laws Conail and Sean; and others so he devised a treasure hunt. They each get an envelope that contains a different clue, which leads to a secondary clue, and putting all the clues together leads to something that is remarkable and priceless. It could keep the family from financial ruin. One clue is not enough - they must work together as a team and, hopefully, will mend their quarrels. A problem arises when the wife and daughters don't want to search for clues. The rest need those clues to continue the search.
  
  The main clues are lines from an old Irish poem titled "Song of Amairgen". Lara decides for Alex's sake to join in the hunt for clues, and she thinks it will be fun. It isn't long before two murders occur - the butler, John Herlihy and the gardener, Michael Davis who work at the estate - they didn't even get any clues! Later the maid, Deirdre, is murdered. She was very skittish and had a secret of her own. Lara meets three elderly gentlemen named Kevin, Malachy, and Denny who are well versed in Irish mythology and history. Denny is the storyteller who regales them with the legends and lore of ancient Ireland; and, as it turns out, is woven in and connects to the present treasure hunt. His stories open some of the chapters. The plot becomes somewhat convoluted when Lara discovers the clues are based on an ancient language called ogham. Lara eventually gets too close to finding the treasure, and she and Rob are kidnapped and locked in a clochan - a beehive shaped hut. They escape and when she finally figures out where the treasure is and who the murderer is, her life is in peril again.
  
  Subplots include; (1) To justify her long stay in Ireland, Lara searches out antiques to ship back to her shop, (2) Jennifer falls for a local named Padraig Gilhooly who is much older than she is, and Rob wants Lara to talk some sense into her, (3) has Rob been smitten by Garda Maeve Minogue of the local police and Lara by one of the lawyers, Charles McCafferty, that Eamon Brynes had hired for his legal affairs?
  
  This book was slow reading at times. There were plenty of red herrings, twists and turns. Something that was concerning in the plot was that once the first clues were figured out, the secondary clues were vague when indicating a general location but were immediately found by Lara and her team when they searched. Some clues just showed up with no explanation where they were found. There was a good wrap-up in the last chapter and a surprise for Lara regarding her shop when she returns to Toronto. Except for recurring characters, it is not necessary to read in order. An OK story.
• 
  Susan

  I enjoy this series.
  
  Note: I used togive full reviews for all of the books that I rated on GR. However, GR's new giveaway policies (
  Good Reads 2017 November Giveaways Policies Changes) have caused me to change my reviewing decisions. These new GR policies seem to harm smaller publishing efforts in favour of providing advantage to the larger companies (
  GR Authors' Feedback), the big five publishers (
  Big Five Publishers). So, because of these policies from now on I will be supporting smaller publishing effort by only giving full reviews to books published by: companies outside the big five companies, indie publishers, and self-published authors. This book was published by one of the big five companies so will not receive a more detailed review by me.
• 
  Jennifer

  The plot reminded me of the hunt for the Fenn treasure except in Ireland instead of the Rocky Mountains, so I had to look up the original publishing date of this book (2000). Similar to the search for the Fenn treasure, I found the thrill of the chase the best part of The Celtic Riddle as it wove Irish history and legends, the Ogham alphabet, and Irish Gaelic into the story.
  I like that Lara McClintoch is someone closer to my age than the usual twenty-to-thirtysomethings I usually read about in cozy mysteries. I find her more relatable and she seems more of a real figure. I think the characters are well-drawn; there are no Mary Janes here.
  This might be listed as an "archaeological" mystery but it strikes me more as an "antiques" or "antiquities" mystery series, as Lara McClintoch isn't an archaeologist but co-owner of an antiques shop.
  I plan on reading more from this series and I have at least two more from Lyn Hamilton on my enormous TBR pile.
• 
  Henri Moreaux

  The Celtic Riddle is the 4th book in the Lara McClintoch series, whilst the first two books weren't that great the third book, The Moche Warrior was a substantial improvement and I was pleased to find that this continued on that trend. It was also vastly better than the first two books even if the whole idea of a treasure hunt in a will was a bit trite.
  
  The mystery aspect nonetheless is well done dropping ample clues along the way to the reader that lead down various paths but ultimately do not ever reveal the culprit until the end when they are unmasked.
  
  Overall, it's a fair mystery novel, not exceptional but not terrible either. I did prefer the prior book over this book due to the factual history it contained which was interesting that this one lacked, but purely story wise they are about equal.
• 
  Loraine

  This book in this mystery series is set in County Kerry Ireland. Lara has accompanied her employee, Alex, to attend the funeral and reading of the will of an old friend of his. But little did she know that the reading of the will would lead to a race to find a treasure belonging to his friend, Eamon Byrne; and that the clues he left would all connect to an old Irish poem.
  
  This story is filled with wonderful old Irish myths that help the seekers to discover the clues meanings, and I thoroughly enjoyed this unusual touch. Once again Hamilton's descriptions of the life and geography of Ireland made this book feel like she placed the reader right in the midst of County Kerry Ireland. An enjoyable mystery filled with a touch of Ireland.
• 
  Lea Day

  I love this series. This is a reread for me which I don’t normally do but I recently found most of this series and decided to read them again.
  
  I am so glad I did. It is preferable that you read the books in order but I read this in honor of St. Paddie’s Day and had no problem following the storyline again so feel a new reader would be okay just picking this up out of order.
  
  The story is wonderful and suspenseful. Really glad I reread it and makes me long for Ms. Hamilton who unfortunately has passed.
  
  My advice read her books and enjoy them for the treasure they are. Definitely there is gold at end of the rainbow 🌈 reading this book. 😊