Story for the Week
I hang my head in shame with the following confession: I recently confused Wales and Ireland. (Eimear, I apologize.) I never claimed to be good at geography, but this was more of a mistake than poor geographical knowledge. Allow me to explain.
While Corinne was in Liverpool for her spring semester of college, she made a couple of friends from Ireland—Eimear (pronounced “EE-mer”) and Niamh (pronounced “Neev”). One of the conversations we had while Corinne gallivanted around the European countryside with her international friends regarded the Gaelic language and alphabet.
Now I have had contact with some colleagues in Ireland, so I understand that the spelling of a name can be very deceiving when you’re used to American English. I actually knew the pronunciation of Niamh and have known the pronunciation of Siobhan (“shi-VAWN”) for a while. Through my colleagues and work contacts, I learned how to pronounce Saoirse (Sur-shuh) and Aoife (EE-fuh) as well.
What I wasn’t prepared for was hearing Eimear speak English, let alone Gaelic. Corinne has been home from Liverpool for a while now, and a couple of months ago, she called Eimear. Both agreed that they actually missed the other’s accents. Corinne came into the office with the call on speaker, and I think I understood less than a handful of words in the multiple sentences Eimear said. Born and raised in Ireland, her accent is, shall we say, prevalent…and she speaks incredibly fast.
One of the things Corinne and Eimear discussed that day was Gaelic being a distinct language. Corinne had gotten into a debate with one of her cousins who suggested that Gaelic was a dialect of English. She quickly corrected him, but of course, she had to share the story with Eimear, who was properly offended. 🤣
I tell you that story to tell you this one. While Corinne was in Liverpool, the global program as a whole visited Wales, where they also speak English. There is, however, a not insignificant percentage of the population who speak Welsh, which is also a distinct language.
So as I was reading the fantastic book below, the third in a series that includes a number of Welsh phrases and names, I got to thinking about the conversation with my nephew about distinct languages. And that made me think of Eimear. I asked Corinne to ask Eimear some questions.
I had a question about driver’s licenses…in Wales. I asked her to find out if “The Hill” is a real place…in Wales. Corinne forgot to ask (thank goodness), and then a couple days later, I asked Corinne to send me some of the pictures she took in Wales so that I could include them with this post, because the book reviewed below is set in Wales.
Our conversation went something like this:
Me: Can you send me pictures from Wales please?
Me: And is Eimear from Wales?
Corinne: She’s from Ireland.
Me: So why does she speak Welsh?
Corinne: You mean Gaelic? Because she was born and raised in Ireland 😂
Me: Ohhhhh
Me: Never mind then
Me: Still send me pictures from Wales 🤣
Corinne also ventured to Ireland with her friends while she was across the pond. And she spoke English…because she doesn’t speak Gaelic…which is not Welsh…which they speak in Wales.
I mean, you can see how I got confused, right? And it had nothing to do with my poor geography knowledge. I just made a mistake—a teeny tiny, itty bitty mistake. 👀
That said, it would be a huge mistake not to read the book reviewed below…which is set in Wales…where they speak Welsh…which is not Gaelic…because they’re not in Ireland. 🤦🏼♀️🤷🏼♀️
Book Review
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
5 Stars for Other People’s Houses by Clare Mackintosh
366 pages
Publisher: Sourcebooks Landmark
Publication Date: September 16, 2025
I received an advance copy of this title from NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark.
Publisher’s Description
You want what they have, but what price would you pay?
The Hill is the kind of place everyone wants to live: luxurious, exclusive and safe. But now someone is breaking and entering these Cheshire homes one by one, and DS Leo Brady suspects the burglar is looking for something, or someone, in particular.
Over the border in Wales, DC Ffion Morgan recovers the body of an estate agent from the lake. There’s no love lost between Ffion and estate agents, but who hated this one enough to want her dead—and why?
As their cases collide, Ffion and Leo discover people will pay a high price to keep their secrets behind closed doors….
************
Main Characters:
- Ffion Morgan – Detective Constable in Wales, has been dating Leo Brady but is always certain that they will inevitably split up, in the process of trying to find a place to live since her landlord is not renewing her lease
- Leo Brady – Detective Sergeant with the Cheshire Criminal Investigation Department, divorced from Allie, dad to seven-year-old Harris, trying to convince Ffion to get a place with him when her lease is up
- Bianca, Scarlett, and Dennis Dixon – live in The Coach House at the top of The Hill, Bianca runs her own business from home, Scarlett is Bianca’s seven-year-old daughter who is friends with Harris, Dennis (known as Grandad Dixon) is Bianca’s father who lives with them and takes care of Scarlett while her mother works
- Philip and Suki Makepeace – live in Fairhaven near the top of The Hill, Philip works in asset management, Suki works as an artist out of a home studio, upgraded their home recently with a loft and new security system
- JP and Camilla Lennox – live in Sunnyside on The Hill between the Makepeaces and the Dixons
- Mikaela, Cara, and Alec Jefferson – live in Hollies near the top of The Hill on the other side of the Dixons
- Warren and Emmy Irvine – live in Ormindale next to the Jeffersons, going through a divorce, Emmy wants to keep the house
- Allie and Dominic Green – live on Taplin Drive at the bottom of The Hill, Allie is Leo’s ex-wife and a stay-at-home mom to Harris, considers herself a resident of The Hill because you come out on The Hill if you go out their back door and down the alley, does everything she can to ingratiate herself to the residents of The Hill
I eagerly awaited the third installment of Clare Mackintosh’s DC Ffion Morgan series. I was not disappointed.
When I discovered The Last Party (I Love Your Accent…No, I Love YOUR Accent!), the first book in the series, I was excited to find out that the author had plans for two additional books. I was also bummed that I would have to wait more than a year for each subsequent book. Waiting so long between books is usually why I avoid series until they’re complete. That said, each book in Ffion’s story is a stand-alone, more recurring characters and their developing relationships than continuing story lines. And so worth the wait.
True to form for Mackintosh, we meet a whole host of suspects in Other People’s Houses. What’s different about this book, however, is the intertwining of three different cases. Leo is embroiled in a rash of burglaries on The Hill, an elite neighborhood whose residents tend to be cliquish. Ffion gets pulled into the murder investigation of a real estate agent on a retreat with some colleagues. And everyone, Ffion included, is obsessed with a podcast called Without Conviction about a cold case double murder.
The chapters alternate points of view between Ffion, Leo, and Leo’s ex-wife Allie. As readers, we get all of the case development for the burglaries and the estate agent murder. Allie’s chapters focus on her obsession with being a part of the clique of The Hill and her distaste for Ffion. She really does do everything in her power to make life difficult for them. Intertwined in the chapters are online comments in response to the podcast episodes. I had no idea and won’t give away how all of the story lines come together. Let’s just say I made a lot of wrong guesses along the way. Mackintosh excels at throwing in twists and surprises.
I loved seeing the progression of Ffion and Leo’s relationship. They met in The Last Party because they had to work a case together, and despite their chemistry, Ffion ghosted Leo at the end. In A Game of Lies (When You Realize You Have an Adult Child), they work together to solve a murder on the set of a reality series that crosses the boundaries of both jurisdictions. And they get together. In this book, they have established themselves as a couple. Ffion, having already failed at marriage once, is convinced they will fall apart eventually. But Leo gets her. He doesn’t coddle her and he also doesn’t play into her insecurity.
“‘We could buy together. Somewhere closer.’
‘It’ll be a nightmare if we split up.’
In Ffion’s world, Leo has come to understand, glasses are never just half empty—they’re bone dry and being used as ashtrays.”
“‘About Harris,’ Ffion says, because if she doesn’t do it now, she might not do it at all. ‘I’m sorry for my French exit yesterday.’
‘I assumed you’d been called into work early.’
‘Did you?’
‘No, of course not. I assumed you were angry with me because of what happened with Harris and, in true Ffion, style, decided avoidance was easier than having a grown-up conversation about it.’
‘Ouch.’”
One of the themes in all three books, and this one seemingly more than the others, is a bit of animosity between characters who speak Welsh and those who don’t. Even Leo gets teased, and Ffion tells him that her mother likes him more than she likes Ffion even though he doesn’t speak Welsh. The author placed importance on including authentically Welsh character and place names, and she offers a pronunciation guide at the beginning of the book for common sounds.
This one is definitely worth picking up…and I’m already looking forward to Mackintosh’s next book. 😄
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