 | “Fear was making her steps precise, like scissors cutting paper…” Brenna Briggs, the author of the unique Liffey Rivers Irish Dancer Mysteries, has commented that “the world of Irish dancers is out of control! Families spend thousands of dollars each year traveling to dance competitions all over the world and many dancers own several solo dresses, worth well over a thousand dollars each, along with multiple hard and soft shoes. |
Dancers glue their socks on, tan their legs with chemicals and wear wigs. At one time the style was to wear two wigs—one on top of the other. Most dance competitions have caps and close within hours of opening up for online registration and the Chicago Feis alone has more than 2,000 competitors. The feiseanna (competition) circuit is addictive. There is an online support group called MAIDS: ‘Mothers Addicted To Irish Dancing.’”
Briggs says that the idea of an Irish dancer who was also a girl detective evolved from the two worlds she lived in for many years. By day, Brenna worked as a paralegal in a criminal law office and after hours, she inhabited the world of her Irish dancing daughter, driving 100 miles a few times a week round trip.
Heroine Liffey Rivers is a 13-year-old Irish dancer who solves crimes and mysteries within a feiseanna framework, often taking risks. There are three books in this series so far and a fourth debuting in September. Serialized Liffey Rivers short stories also appear monthly in Irish Dance and Culture Magazine. The books are available online at Amazon.com and Amazon uk and through independent bookstores in Ireland, the UK and U.S. More information is available at: www.liffeyrivers.com