Who Killed Martha Mansfield?

Who Killed Martha Mansfield? is a short story collection comprising seven fictional tales whose common theme is crime. One way or another, an element of criminality affects all the characters’ emotions and their actions.
Who Killed Martha Mansfield? is the only story in the collection that is loosely based on real people and events. Martha Mansfield is a twenty three-year-old actress in the early days of the film industry. She is a rising young star of the fledgling Hollywood studio system. Martha’s life is cut tragically short in November 1923 when she is burned to death on the set of the motion picture The Warrens of Virginia. This tale casts a suspicious eye on her mysterious death.

Fourteen is a story of two bored and mischievous but otherwise harmless teenagers who decide to burglarize a house. Robbie and Ian aren’t bad kids but they’re not particularly good at interacting with others and often find themselves isolated and yearning for something to do; anything to break the monotony of their young lives. Robbie harasses the weaker Ian and eventually convinces his friend to participate in a burglary just for the thrill of it, a decision they both live to regret.
Small Timers is set in Dublin’s inner city and involves the plans of three criminals, two of whom are small timers with ambitions to become much greater criminals. Bookie and Terry plan to rob a security van at a Tesco supermarket and this time they will be armed with loaded shotguns. Their getaway driver is Mick and he is close to having a nervous breakdown, only Bookie and Terry don’t realize just how close. With these three witless miscreants, it’s inevitable the robbery won’t go according to plan.
Behind the Wheel follows Ernie on his way home from work on an ordinary work day, a day filled with acrimony between him and the boss he has come to despise. Ernie leaves the job and heads home in foul humor. The drive home takes an unexpected turn for the worse when he has a disagreement with another driver. What follows is not so much a road rage incident but a prolonged psychological battle between a very stressed out Ernie and a psychopath who pursues him for miles leaving Ernie in fear for his life.
A Rare Day in Dillon tells the story of an armed robbery on a post office in a small rural Irish town. The robbers are cold, ruthless and remorseless. They get their way, then they’re gone and if people get hurt in the process, that’s their problem. The town is woefully unprepared for such people and immediately after the thieves make their escape, a local policeman called Birdy has the task of questioning the traumatized locals, a task that tries his patience.
Who Made God? is the tale of Father Briggs, a local parish priest who finds himself unable to sleep one cold winter night. In the early hours of the morning, he discovers his church has been broken into. He also discovers that the intruder is still inside. Against his better judgment, Father Briggs does not call the police but instead goes to investigate, armed only with his faith and a can of mace. What follows is a frightening encounter with the stranger who does not recognize or appreciate the kindness or compassion Father Briggs shows him.
The Chemist is the story of Oliver Watson, a chemist who runs the local pharmacy in Stoneybatter in Dublin. Oliver has a sound business, dependable colleagues, and a good wife. All in all, he is content with his lot in life, until one day Dean Cassedy, a notorious bully from his school days walks into Oliver’s pharmacy. Cassedy is now a seasoned but failed criminal with a sinister streak in him that Oliver is all too familiar with. The two men haven’t seen each other in twenty years and Cassedy assumes time has healed all the wounds he ever inflicted on Oliver and so many others. What he doesn’t know is that those wounds are as fresh as ever for Oliver and he devises a plan to exact his revenge on his childhood tormentor.