The quieter side of Dublin (and why it’s perfect for a mystery)
When people imagine Dublin, they often think of the big, busy places. The pubs, the music, the crowds.
But some of the most interesting parts of the city and surrounds are the ones that don’t demand your attention.
The side streets.
The Georgian doors.
The quiet corners that feel almost too still.
Those are the places that stayed with me when I looked to write Skeins and Secrets.
One of my favourites is the Iveagh Gardens.
Tucked just behind the National Concert Hall, just off Harcourt Street, it’s the kind of place you can walk past countless times without ever realising it’s there. The entrance is easy to miss unless you know to look for it. And once you step inside, the city seems to fall away almost immediately.
It feels hidden. Slightly removed. Like it belongs to a different version of Dublin.
There are other places like that too.
Merrion Square, especially early in the morning or later in the evening, when the paths are quieter and the city feels a little more still.
Ranelagh Gardens, tucked into a residential area, where life carries on just beyond the walls, but inside there’s a sense of calm that feels almost deliberate.
And the smaller green spaces scattered through the city, the ones you stumble across rather than plan to visit.
Whenever I’m in places like these, I find myself imagining them in another time.
Full of people walking.
Stopping to talk.
Making their social calls for the day.
And then my mind wanders a little further.
What else could happen here?
What else might these places have been used for?
That’s where the idea for the yarn festival in Skeins and Secrets really began.
In my mind, the Iveagh Gardens at dusk became something else entirely. Full of colour and light, stalls and yarn, and the low murmur of conversations drifting through the trees.
A place that feels warm and welcoming.
And also… just a little bit perfect for something to go wrong.
That contrast is what I wanted to capture in Skeins and Secrets.
A beautiful, tucked-away setting. A festival full of colour and creativity.
If you’d like to see what happens when that quiet setting changes…
And if you enjoy mysteries with that same sense of place you might also like:
Dead in Dublin by Catie Murphy – a Dublin-set mystery seen through the eyes of a taxi driver who knows the city’s streets and secrets.
Murder in an Irish Village by Carlene O’Connor – small-town Ireland, strong community dynamics, and plenty of secrets.
The Dublin Murder Squad series by Tana French – a darker take, but one that beautifully captures the atmosphere of Dublin.
