Murder, mystery and Irish accents. The new series of Starz Dublin Murders, who debuted on the premium cable network on November 10, delivers all three in spades. The eight-part series follows two detectives who are members of the elite (and fictional) Dublin Murder Squad. Rob Reilly (Killian Scott) and Cassie Maddox (Sarah Greene) are partners who investigate two different crimes, with which each detective has a close personal connection.
This may all sound a bit familiar to mystery readers. It’s because Dublin Murders is based on a series of books by Irish author Tana French. If you’re addicted to the Starz series and want to dig deeper into the world of Rob and Cassie, here’s what you need to know.
“Dublin Murders” is based on two French novels
Dublin Murders is based on the first two French novels: In the woods and The resemblance. The twisted crime thrillers were a hit with readers, who were drawn to its psychologically complex characters and vivid portrayal of life in contemporary Ireland.
In the woods focuses on Rob Ryan (renamed Rob Reilly for the TV show), while Cassie Maddox is the protagonist of The resemblance. Since her debut in 2007, French has written several other novels in her Dublin Murder Squad series. Characters from previous novels appear in subsequent novels, but each book is told by a different detective on the team.
French was not directly involved in the television adaptation of his work. “I was going to be involved, but I thought I wouldn’t be helpful here,” she told The Irish Times. “We’re just going to end up with everyone stressed out. You are very good at what you do. Go ahead and do it.
Expect unanswered questions
One thing readers love (or hate) about the mysteries of French is that they don’t always have good resolutions. In the woods, in particular, leaves some big questions unanswered.
It’s deliberate, French said. “I knew some readers would be furious if it didn’t fit into mystery genre conventions, and I could see why – but on the other hand, I also knew some readers would be furious if I sold my narrator in the last chapter for an easy shutdown, ”she wrote in response to a question from a reader on GoodReads about whether we would ever learn what really happened in In the woods. “I figured all I could do was write the best book I could write, and I hope it was good enough.”
“I see no way to solve this mystery,” she added. But she didn’t rule it out entirely, noting that she might find a way to clear it up somewhere down the line.
The French wrote four more mysteries of the Dublin Murder Squad

Season 1 of Dublin Murders discusses French’s first two books. But she wrote four other mysteries of the Dublin Murder Squad: Faithful Place, Broken Harbor, The Secret Place, and The intruder. This means that there is certainly material there if Starz was to do a second season of Dublin Murders. But so far, the network has not announced whether the show will be renewed.
However, screenwriter Sarah Phelps has said she will be ready for another season.
“Please God yeah! She told Radio Times after being asked if she would like to do a season 2. “And season three, I would like,” adding that she wanted “to cover the whole, cover the whole period of this period for Ireland. “
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