Matchmaker Of Kenmare: A Novel Of Ireland (2014) - Plot & Excerpts
So, I forced marched my way through this book after the first maybe 25%.TMoK is a 'bodice ripper' or 'true romance' dressed up as something more. And told from the frustrated but virtuous male point of view. All this sleeping together nude, but such a gentleman.All this self searching of his motives, anguish blah blah blah.We get miles of 'scenery' and pages of 'stories' as well as excerpts from our 'heroine's diary". I'm sure we'll find out how he came upon her diary....if we can stand to read to that point.Oh, and foreshadowing of the "If only I had known then what I knew later" variety.It is so irritating, all the sources our narrator has but he forces us word by word through this mess more or less chronologically. I didn't read the first book (about his long lost wife, who FIRST ran off with his own father, but never mind that). And although it is supposed to be better, I imagine that is a relative term.Better than this mess, perhaps. Better than ANY BOOK I value, I seriously doubt it. OMG, to New York, to Florida, leaving Vanessa in the 'waves' ??? to Dachau, to who knows where, pigs and giraffes? GIVE ME A BREAK. Where is all the money to pay for this traveling coming from? And Miller learned to use the bathroom? He's incontinent before that....look this is just over the top.To Kansas????? (Toto, I've a feeling we're not in Kansas any more.) He took Killer Miller to Kansas to 'spring him on Kate"? OMG OMG OMG.I read to the bitter end, and I do mean bitter.I just had to get this down, to see it, and I still can't believe I read it to the end.We never did find out if his own parents were keeping from him the 5 letters from Vanessa. I could make a listas long as your arm of plot gabs. This is a string of characters and events at best. I won't go into at worst. This week I read The Matchmaker of Kenmare by Frank Delaney. He is one of my favorite writers, and a master storyteller! I have read several of Delaney's other books:Ireland,Tipperary,Shannon, &Venetia Kelly's Traveling Show.The Matchmaker of Kenmare is a sequel to Venetia Kelley's Traveling Show. It begins in mid-1943 during the Great Emergency, or what neutral Ireland called World War II. It is the continuing story of Ben MacCarthy, a story collector for the Irish Folklore Commission. His job entails traveling all over Ireland collecting and recording stories that reflect Ireland's rich oral storytelling tradition. Ben's travels lead him to Kenmare, where he meets Miss Kate Begley and her grandmother, both practitioners of the ancient art of matchmaking. Ben is mesmerized by Kate and her craft. He also learns that Kate has other amazing skills. For example, she can "find" missing or wanted persons with an item the person has touched, a map, thread, and a needle. Magic seems to surround Miss Kate Begley.Soon after Ben's arrival, Charles Miller, an American military intelligence officer, arrives at Kate's cottage on the shore. He needs something from Kate that has little to do with matchmaking. Kate has other plans, and Charles and Kate come to an agreement: if she proves herself in a "test", Charles will marry Kate. After some language training in London, Kate and Ben travel to the continent for their mission. They go back into the middle of the war two more times. Kate and Ben are put through hell... all because of Kate's infallible faith in promises she means to keep and knowledge she knows in her heart to be true.Ben's devotion to Kate and their friendship is tested after the war as Kate awaits Charles' return. She refuses to believe rumors of his execution by German intelligence officers. She embarks with Ben to America where she diligently meets every ship sailing into New York Harbor. After many months, Kate insists they travel to the very center of America: Lebanon, Kansas. Charles promised he would meet her there after the war if they failed to rendezvous in Ireland.One of the central themes of the book is whether or not a man and a woman can be friends, or remain neutral, without the relationship ever evolving into something deeper. After knowing what Ben endures in Venetia Kelly's Traveling Show, I want to shake Ben. Why is it that he attracts these beautiful, strong-willled women who manipulate him? Ben is not stupid by any means; he knows he is being manipulated, yet he allows it. But I must also admit that Ben MacCarthy is one of the most intriguing fellows in contemporary fiction. I can't get enough of his story!Both books are told from Ben's point of view, and the intended audience for his memoirs are central to his odyssey, but I can't tell you more because it would be too much of a spoiler. Frank Delaney never disappoints, and although the backdrop of this story is war, destruction, loss, and heartbreak, the characters and plot have many shining moments. You know these characters, and you actually care about them. I also love the way Delaney weaves folklore and history into the plot. I hope that Mr. Frank Delaney will put this reader out of her misery and write a third book about Ben because I think there is more to this story. And, like a modern-day Ulysses, I want Ben to find his way home, finally.
What do You think about Matchmaker Of Kenmare: A Novel Of Ireland (2014)?
Definately not my favorite Delaney but still a good book. It seemed to ramble a bit at times.
—kyla
I will give it three stars, but i liked his other books better...
—emeralbear
I really liked the tone and atmosphere. A great story teller.
—Catdaddy92
