Forty Shades of Illusion

In this fourth book in the series about Nora Duffy, her family, and her friends, Forty Shades of Illusion weaves the family's attempts to distinguish between reality and illusion as they once again travel to her Irish castle on the southwestern coast of Ireland. Mayhem and murder follow them when Nora's old nemesis relentlessly hunts her down so that he can kill her and anyone else who stands in his way. The family visits some of the most beautiful cities in the world and are supported during their trials by their police friends from Chicago, California, Ireland, Rome, Assisi, and Paris.

In each city they visit, the family makes interesting new friends and business contacts. Nora and her father, Dr. Michael Duffy, a renowned cardiologist, strive to finish their second book about the continuing challenges that the world faces after the COVID pandemic.

Nora is a petite pediatric brain surgeon in Chicago, while her handsome husband, Tommy Barry, is an international lawyer who continues to think of her as his Irish warrior princess who has inherited fairy fey abilities. They now have a precocious daughter, Emily, who is seven years old and is a budding artist and musician. Their three-year-old son, Conor, has an irrepressible personality and loves to spring into gymnastic feats at a moment's notice wherever they are.

Countering the evil that they encounter, three lovely weddings of relatives and friends occur and give them some well-needed entertainment and joy. Nora is delighted that some of the newer members of the staff at Duffy Hall Castle play important roles in bringing important discoveries to light.

They find the bones of a young child from the 1500s in a locked chest on the fourth floor of the castle, along with a cache of important paintings that she created. It seems probable that Polly was a victim of much abuse when she was alive and is now a ghost. The Conneelley leprechaun clan, who live amidst the rocks at the nearby Coral Beach, once again provide inspiration and protection to "the big people."

Nora and Tom try to maintain a sense of balance amidst this chaos, and they depend on each other for strength and support. The many activities of their large families provide relief for their stress. They believe that God is in charge, and they ask him for his help every step along the way of their interesting but traumatic journey.

-- Babs L. Murphy