Reviews

Want to share your review of The Cyber Miracles with readers?
Send it to:
1MaeveKenny@gmail.com
Please include your name and hometown.

A fun, intelligent read, December 26, 2009

By	T. Wagaman “TheWags” (Binghamton, NY United States) -

I read voraciously. Sometimes I want a book that challenges, amuses, comforts or recalls fond memories. This book did all of this. The characters are engaging and realistic. I can imagine a conversation with any of them. The experiences of Irish immigrant and Irish-American characters ring true without seeming cutesy. I read it in one sitting, and look forward to reading it again soon. First, I’m going grab a cup of tea and read the sequel.

Peter Baumann, Philadelphia
I very much enjoyed the book.  The plot was wonderful.  The characters were engaging.  I especially liked the crisp dialog.  The pacing and cleverness of  the dialog reminded me of the banter in one of my favorite movies – “His Girl Friday.”  Your  book would make a hell of a movie! I hope that you will consider writing a sequel. 
     I have always felt that Binghamton was the best place in the world to grow up.  Your novel celebrates what is great about Binghamton – the culture, the food, Recreation Park, the sense of community. 

Definitely make a Movie of it, And a Sequel! , June 25, 2008

By	Therese Bohn (Endwell, NY United States) – See all my reviews

I just finished the book and I loved it! Congrats, Mary Pat! Yes, definitely a sequel! I want to see the further adventures of Maeve and Andy-and see if Ciaran wants Maeve back! (you got to have a triangle, you know, and Andy better win!) 

 

I Want More Maeve, April 9, 2008 By  D. Morello (Upstate New York)

This book was so wonderful that I wish it didn’t end yet I couldn’t put it down. It was tender, touching, hilarious, and oh-so-genuine. Ms. Hyland, please give us more Maeve…more Andy…more miracles!

 

Feckin’ Fun!, March 30, 2008

By	C. Solimini “My Real Name” (At Home) – See all my reviews

Get your hopes up! That’s the message of The Cyber Miracles and its charming heroine, Maeve Kenny, who turns her public crisis into personal redemption (though not without obstacles and embarrassments along the way). Who ISN’T looking for a miracle? Ultimately, author Mary Pat Hyland reassures us that our prayers will be answered, though not necessarily in the way we’d hoped. (Or as the Rolling Stones put it: You can’t always get what you want, but you just might find you get what you need.)
     Maeve and friends also prove to be the perfect tour guides to the Southern Tier of New York State and the folkways of Irish-Americans. Failte! So after you stop off for a spiedie and grab a Guinness, savor The Cyber Miracles!

 

Connie McKinney, Binghamton, NY, March 29, 2008
“The Cyber Miracles” is a book that grabs your attention from the first page and never lets it go. The characters are so real that they remind you of people you know.
     Mary Pat Hyland is a skilled writer who knows how to use details that help bring the characters and the setting alive. Her descriptions let you see, hear and smell what’s going on. You can see the sun shining on the backyard grotto, hear the editors yelling in the newsroom and smell the beer during the bar scenes. You can almost taste the grilled chicken spiedies.
    Those chicken spiedies are one of several references to life in Upstate New York which are sprinkled throughout the book. As a lifelong Upstate resident, I especially enjoyed these details.
   The plot keeps thickening throughout the book, and the action keeps moving. Maeve’s story never drags. Readers never stop wanting to find out what happens next.
   In the interest of full disclosure, I am one of Mary Pat’s friends from her newspaper days. However, this book is so well written and so interesting that I never thought about Mary Pat or anyone else while I was reading it. I was too caught up in Maeve’s adventures to think about anything else.
   To sum up, this is a terrific book. Let’s hope there’s a sequel.

Brilliant!, March 6, 2008

By	Sheila Forsyth (Fayetteville, NY)

The Cyber Miracles held my interest from beginning to end. It was a delightful read – full of humor, some sadness, and a delicate handling of the subject of faith. Mary Pat has shown her expertise in the Irish language throughout the book, as well as her knowledge of the inner workings of a newspaper room and the internet. When you buy this book, be prepared to sit down and read it straight through! So, raise your “bloody good martinis” to toast this brilliant book!

A Miraculous Adventure!, March 6, 2008 By  Sharon Hyland (Newport News, VA)    Another full disclosure – I am Mary Pat’s niece-in-law and friend. I would, however, enthusiastically recommend The Cyber Miracles whether or not I knew the author personally. The novel is just the sort of book I would be naturally drawn to if I saw it on display at a bookstore or library. The title sparks interest, combining the reality of the technology-driven world in which we live with the real need for spiritual guidance. As I begin to read the novel, I feel a connection with the main character, Maeve Kenny. Perhaps this connection is due to my age, faith, background, or the incredible period of transition I have been experiencing in my own life. More probably it is because Maeve is someone that any reader can relate to. Similarly, the other characters in the book reach out and grab you. They remind you of people you know, admire, love, and in some cases, just can’t stand! The author sets these characters in a world of interesting environments, captivating stories, and nail-biting suspense, but still, a world that is very much our own. The Cyber Miracles is an excellent choice for anyone who wants to make some new friends, laugh out loud, and think deeply about the miracles that are just waiting to happen – in our own backyard.

  The Cyber Miracles, March 3, 2008

By	Isabella M. Corina -

This is such a fun book to read; I finished reading it the same day it arrived. I really like the characters, each one of them is so interesting. I did not want it to finish, and I wish MaryPat would write a sequel! It’s a pick-me-up kind of book, leaves you feeling good – makes you think that there is always a light at the end of the tunnel. It piques your interest in that you have no idea which way it’s going to go; at one point I found myself praying that what I thought would happen would NOT happen, so it definitely piques your interest. I highly recommend it.

Great craic!, March 2, 2008

By	Susan Hubbard (Florida)

This first novel is funny and wise — and bittersweet, at times. Maeve is Everywoman and, at the same time, a very specific protagonist on a very particular path. Follow her down it, and find all manner of surprises and delights. Highly recommended.  

Need a miracle? March 1, 2008
By  Anne Woodard, Ithaca, NY
Need a miracle?  The Cyber Miraclesdelivers that and more in one of the most compelling books I have ever read.  Where to start??!!!  This book will appeal to a wide variety of readers on SO many fronts: humor, spirituality, romance, Irish heritage, a bit of mystery…you name it, this book has it!  Mary Pat Hyland has a wonderful sense of honest and believable dialogue with her characters, and the book flows like a gentle upstate New York waterfall on a warm summer’s day.  I absolutely LOVED the characters, all of them!  I could not put this book down, and actually MISSED the characters when I was done. 
     In today’s hectic world, The Cyber Miracles reminds us about what is really important in life in a cleverly written and very amusing manner. The simple message it delivers is this… HAVE FAITH.  Although this book is fiction, since reading it I have found myself saying those words over and over in trying situations of my own.
      Mary Pat is a writer with incredible talent who needs to be heard.  I could easily see this book being turned into a movie, and could just as easily (and hopefully) see a sequel or two on the horizon.  What a masterpiece for a first novel!!!
      I highly recommend The Cyber Miraclesand rate it a perfect 5 out of 5 stars!  Maeve, please come back to us soon!

A Really Good Read, February 28, 2008 By  Valerie Zehl (Upstate New York)    First: full disclosure. In days past author Mary Pat Hyland was my editor and is a friend. That said, if i wasn’t genuinely impressed with her first published novel, i wouldn’t gush in public, which is what I’m about to do now. To me, there’s one hallmark of good writing: Do i care about the characters? I hated to see this book end, because i wanted to know how the rest of their lives unfold (I’ve heard murmurs about a sequel, and i may start circulating a petition to encourage MP to write one …)The plot is compelling enough to have kept me up half the night reading, and between the words are whispers of faith that will resonate with many, particularly (but by no means exclusively) Roman Catholics. MP also slides in her fluency with Gaelic — which i understand to be about as easy to learn as Sanskrit — which flavors the whole book with a distinctly Irish twist. (Not too surprisingly, the book is already finding an audience in Ireland, as well as a growing one here.) All of Cyber Miracles’ elements combine to create an intelligently written, engagingly human novel that will appeal to readers from Gens X and Y to Baby Boomers and beyond!