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Alone in London

The van was a red blur in the distance. I took my cap off, tussled my hair and breathed in the chilled evening air after twelve hours cooked up with a carpet and seven men. Someone hadn’t washed. I’ll leave it at that. Looking about, it seemed the driver had kept his word, this was London. “What you gonna do?” I asked the young lad who stood opposite me. “I’m home mate. I’ll be in my sister’s…

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Casualty

Join me in a casualty department in Dublin

Photo by RDNE Stock project on Pexels.com I’m sitting in casualty awaiting my turn. George Michael’s “Careless Whisper” wafts in from the room next door. Out here, the kid two seats away from me is coughing his guts up. His Dad sitting next to him is focused on his mobile phone. I wonder why Dad doesn’t pass him a cough drop or something to suck on, to stop his booming chest-rattling cough.…

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A quiet word from a pharmacist – for Irish readers

Spring advice from a chemist in Ireland regarding Allergies, Vaccinations, and Probiotics

Our local pharmacist spoke to a group of residents this week and I picked up some useful information that I believe is worth sharing. I am not an expert in medical matters and I would refer you to the HSE or your own doctor or chemist if you need further advice. Hay Fever & allergies: Spring is the time of year when people struggle with pollen-related allergies. Hay Fever can be fought with a…

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Sunday Morning

Flash story with a moral to learn

It was seven-fifty on a Sunday morning when I inserted the key in the front door. I  released the dog from his walking harness and the mutt made straight for the kitchen. My first task of the day was done and though time was short I was still on course to deliver my grandson to his rugby training session at nine am. It would be my first day attending and he was playing rugby for my old…

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Murder On The Dodder - book review

I review a new Irish crime fiction novel, Murder on the Dodder by Keith Bruton

This is a Dublin hitman’s diary, a fast-moving thriller with a high body count. We step into Patrick Callen’s world as it threatens to spin out of control. The root cause of his problems is that he fell in love. Before this, he was a relentless cold, cool, calculating killer, with a steady stream of successful contract killings. Unfortunately for him, his chosen love interest comes with strings…

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A Park Run start – Marlay Park

It was a March Saturday morning in Marlay Park, near the large children’s playground. The forecasted rain had fallen ten minutes earlier and now at nine-thirty, we stood behind the starting line, bathed in brilliant sunshine but we weren’t warm. A lazy breeze, as my mother would call it, cut through our flimsy clothing. Packed like sardines, over five hundred runners stood in the sixty feet…

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Amazon Customer 1-star reviews

New books can be sunk by 1 star Reader Reviews left without any comment. Can we change this?

  No words no star? Having a book published is a big thing for all of us writers. A friend of mine just had his book launch recently. I went to see how his book is doing in the Amazon book listings. Very well thank you for asking, but I then looked at Customer Reviews and saw that the book carried an overall star score of 3.3 from 5 reviews. He’d scored 5-star and 4-star ratings with three…

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A Living Legacy  

Kari Rosvall is an amazing living legacy of a most frightening kind.

A Living Legacy  Mark Rice 500 words The story that follows is unbelievably true and not the work of this writer’s imagination. Would you be surprised if I told you that a survivor of World War Two is still alive and living locally in Dublin? I was. The war ended eighty years ago. I met Kari Rosvall as she talked about her book and her life in our local GAA club. Would you be surprised if I…

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Eating Out

FLASH story about eating out in Dublin

Photo by Gu00fcl Iu015fu0131k on Pexels.com We’d stood outside, for almost an hour, on a cold winter night in Dublin. The white fluffy snow that initially floated down was now driven to fall as sleet rain. Our pacing back and forth on the pavement had led the fallen ice to be squelched underfoot, and to form puddles.  “My boots are killing me, Peter, can’t we just go in?” pleaded my date. I…

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Becoming a writer – one Irishman’s tale

How I became a writer and whats going to get me published

I’ve been writing forever like many of you have. In my angst teen years, I poured my frustrations into my diary. I was writing because I needed an outlet for the thoughts that crossed my mind and the stories that presented themselves to me. I was fortunate to sneak into the College of Commerce in Rathmines, Dublin, to complete a three-year business studies course which I elongated into four.…

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Neglect

Neglect people and things and you may live to reget it.

I’ve been guilty of neglecting people and animals until something happens and then I say, why didn’t I do more to catch up with them, why didn’t I listen to them? Why did I let time slip through my fingers? Last week a dear neighbour that I encountered frequently on our road was buried, cruelly taken from us and her family in a moment. She took the dog out for a walk and never came home. She was…

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Girl with coffee

Close encounter of the unintended kind “So, you don’t want anything in Dickinsons, do you?” Angela asked, glancing at her watch and watching anxiously the stream of departing shoppers, laden with large brown bags.  Her fear of loss was almost palpable. “No” Keith answered, “but you fire ahead. I know the sales are on but the Dickinsons menswear department is stuck in the middle ages.” “Go on…

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Men now and then

A brief personal look back on the education of men and boys – sounds familiar?

A brief personal look back on the education of men and boys – sounds familiar? I’ve never really had, in nearly seventy years, a male best friend. I have brothers so I always had someone to play with during my childhood and school years but later in life I failed to bond closely with any other male.   Me and men don’t tend to gel except on common issues, such as discussions about sports, work…

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Murder in Maspalomas

Extract from my novela "Murder in Maspalomas" a page turner thriller

Matt watched the tall slim blonde return from the outdoor smoking area, her two-year-old “wobbler” walking slightly ahead of her.  He caught the woman’s eye and she read his thoughts and despised him for them. He’d only stepped into Burger King to while away 40 minutes before boarding his flight to the Canary Islands.  Most of his fellow passengers were escaping the cold of an Irish winter. He…

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A Christmas Story – An Abandoned Car

A nice Christmas morning read, a short story with a few twists and turns, new fiction from Ireland. Merry Christmas!

Winter gales swept across the country and in response, the Government swept away all public transport and the need to travel to work or school. The roads of suburbia Dublin at dawn lay deserted, their un-walked footpaths covered in a layer of multi-colored leaves that were further dissolving with each passing day. Photo by Marta Dzedyshko on Pexels.com The latest blustery storm had arrived at…

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A Christmas Gift Only We Can Give

An idea for Christmas Present thats personal and only takes your time to give

With Christmas barely a week away the hunt for suitable presents is reaching a fever pitch. Parents are hitting the shops with definite lines of inquiry. At least for them, they know intimately their recipients and have a list of products to aim for. Specific things that must be wrapped and under that Christmas tree on Christmas morning, come hell or high water. If so they are the lucky ones,…

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Getting Rid Of "Stuff"

Part of growing old is letting go, of “stuff,” and it’s not as easy as one would suspect

Part of growing old is letting go, of “stuff,” and it’s not as easy as one would suspect, even in this digital world. I say “Stuff” deliberately as it’s an all-encompassing word that can apply to anything a human can possess and yes, it can include other humans. The appreciation that, life is for living, but we aren’t supplied with an infinite period to live, meant that some people were…