I've read all of French's books, and this is definitely an inferior effort. The entire premise, an ex-cop from the U.S. setting up in rural Ireland and attempting to find the missing brother of a young boy who turns out to be a girl, is awkward and not believable. The plot is mushy and wandering, and the ending unsatisfactory. The protagonist's character is not clearly drawn, and I never had a good sense of who he is.

French's writing is not up to par here. She seems ill at ease in her depiction of the local pub regulars, and the dialog is often maladroit. She should probably stick to Dublin or the more urban settings going forward. I hope she gets her groove back soon.