Second book in Wicklow mystery series released

Robert T. McMaster has just published his sixth novel, Fugitive from Injustice. Set in the fictional town of Glenkerry in County Wicklow, this is the second in the series of County Wicklow Mysteries and the sequel to Rose of Glenkerry.

Fugitive from Injustice tells the stories of four families from war-torn regions, Ukraine, Syria, and Afghanistan, who have fled their homelands and sought refuge in Ireland.

Based on published accounts, these are gripping narratives of courage and determination, of sadness and hope.

But Fugitive from Injustice has a lighter side, the story of Glenkerry’s newest sport team, the Hurleys. The team includes girls from different lands and cultures who have just one thing, one very important thing, in common: their passion for camogie.

Those two threads, of refugees and camogie wannabes, at first seem unrelated, but gradually they converge and finally collide in a harrowing encounter during one of the team’s victory celebrations.

The main character of Fugitive from Injustice is 21-year-old Cary McGurk. Newly graduated from a Dublin university, Cary has revived the Glenkerry Gazette, a small weekly newspaper founded by his father nearly thirty years ago.

But Patrick McGurk is gone; he died suddenly just days before Cary’s graduation. Reeling from the loss, Cary decides that re-opening the newspaper would be a fitting tribute to his father as well as an exciting opportunity for an aspiring young journalist like himself.

But a month later the young publisher is struggling to attract readers and pay his bills.

“If only there was one big story, one riveting piece of news that everyone in Glenkerry will want to read” he tells himself, even as a small voice within issues a warning: "Be careful what you wish for!"

Early on a calm September morning, Cary sets off on a run at Travelhawk Beach at the foot of the Black Castle in Wicklow town. There he makes a startling, unsettling discovery — the body of a man, wrapped in seaweed, awash on the beach at the foot of the ancient ruins. But who is this man?

What brought him to this normally peaceful place? And how did he die?

The gardaí investigate the death, but progress is slow. Cary and his friend Rosie O’Malley do some sleuthing of their own, uncovering a web of intrigue that stretches back a decade and half and a world away. Most alarming of all, the story it seems is not over, threatening to shatter the peace and tranquility of Glenkerry.

Meanwhile garda Sabrina Selkirk has just been named coach of Coláiste Gaeilge’s new camogie team, the Hurleys.

What the players lack in skill and endurance they more than make up for with spirit and drive. But as Sabrina and Rosie O'Malley, her unofficial assistant coach, struggle to pull together that ragtag bunch of would-be hurlers, they begin to suspect that something is amiss with one of the new players, Molly Boyle.

In the search for the source of Molly's unease they stumble into the midst of a sinister plot right in the heart of idyllic Glenkerry.

A compelling story line, enchanting setting, and unforgettable characters combine to make Fugitive from Injustice a thoroughly satisfying read for young and old alike, for those fortunate enough to live in the Emerald Isle as well as those who can only dream of such a life.

Fugitive from Injustice: A County Wicklow Mystery by Robert T. McMaster, is published by Unquomonk Press. It is suitable for ages 16 to adult.

Visit www.WicklowMysteries.com for more information.