Chapter summaries Road Trip Mary Kay Andrews

Chapter 38: The Grogan Family Barbecue and the IRA Art Heist

⚠️ Spoiler Notice

This summary and analysis covers Chapter 38 of Road Trip by Mary Kay Andrews. If you have not read this chapter, proceed with caution.

Summary

Maeve arrives at Luke Grogan’s Georgian Revival farmhouse for a family barbecue. Liam warns her that the Grogans are boisterous. They are met by his niece Claire, who immediately interrogates Maeve about her intentions. After being introduced to the extended family, Maeve sits down with Liam’s cousin Jamie. Jamie reveals that his mother, known as Starr (real name Peggy McGahee), was a member of the IRA gang that robbed Tarrymore in 1974. Starr was a chemistry student at Oxford, radicalized after Bloody Sunday, and recruited by her lover Danny Dwyer. The gang planned the art heist to raise ransom money and free imprisoned comrades. Starr acted as the decoy at the servants’ entrance. The paintings were hidden in a cottage in the Wicklow Mountains. The gang was caught because Dwyer’s wife informed the Gardaí for a reward. Jamie explains that he was born in 1981, fathered by a prison guard, and raised by his grandmother. Maeve shares her own connection: her great-grandmother Kathleen Connor fled Tarrymore in 1926 after Lady Delia’s murder, and the portrait of Lady Geraldine (the one not recovered from the IRA heist) may be the very painting sold at auction in New York for over a million dollars.

Key Events

  • Liam and Maeve arrive at Luke’s farm; Liam warns the family is “a lot.”
  • Claire, Luke’s four-year-old daughter, rushes out with a kitten and bluntly asks Maeve if she will make Liam move to America.
  • Maeve meets Angela, Luke’s wife, who acts as her guide through the family gathering.
  • Cormac, the middle brother, is tending to a wounded twin; the ice cream fight between Aidan and Eamon is laughingly resolved.
  • Maeve is seated next to Jamie and Maddie; Jamie agrees to tell the story of the Tarrymore art heist.
  • Jamie recounts Starr’s life: a well-bred chemistry student radicalized at Oxford, recruited by IRA member Danny Dwyer.
  • Starr and three others planned the robbery to free jailed comrades; the butler was pistol-whipped, Lady Rossington was hit with a gun.
  • The paintings were hidden in a cottage boot and under a bed; the gang was betrayed by Dwyer’s wife for a reward.
  • The fourth gang member (lookout) escaped but was killed in a shoot-out two days later.
  • Starr was imprisoned; she received early release in 1981 because she was pregnant with Jamie, fathered by a prison guard.
  • Maeve reveals her own family history: Kathleen Connor, Lady Delia’s murder, and the portrait that may be the one sold at auction for over $1 million.
  • Jamie connects the dots: the IRA portrait was never recovered; Maeve believes it could be the study recently sold in New York.

Character Development

  • Maeve: Demonstrates poise and adaptability with the chaotic Grogans. Her investigative side emerges as she presses Jamie for details, and she shows vulnerability when sharing her great-grandmother’s story.
  • Liam: Protective and supportive, he warns Maeve about his family but trusts her to handle the truth. His blush when Claire mentions Bonnie shows he is invested in this new relationship.
  • Jamie: Opens up about his painful family legacy for the first time in depth. His flat affect suggests a lifetime of recounting a scandalous origin, yet he shows warmth when paired with Maddie.
  • Claire: A direct and perceptive child who reflects the family’s blunt curiosity about Maeve.
  • Angela and Cormac: Grounded figures who ensure Maeve feels welcome, contrasting with the more raucous elements of the clan.

Themes, Symbols, or Motifs

  • Family as a double-edged sword: The Grogan clan is loud, intrusive, and full of secrets, yet ultimately welcoming. This echoes the theme that family (both biological and chosen) can be both a burden and a refuge.
  • The IRA and radicalization: The novel explores how political violence can transform an ordinary person (Starr) into a criminal. Jamie’s account underscores the personal cost of ideological commitment.
  • The portrait as a symbol of hidden history: The unrecovered painting links the 1974 heist to the 1926 murder, symbolizing how the past is never fully buried. The portrait’s financial value also highlights themes of inheritance, theft, and identity.
  • Deception and loyalty: The gang’s betrayal by Dwyer’s wife mirrors the betrayals within the Rossington household (Lady Delia’s murder). Both stories hinge on who can be trusted.

Why This Chapter Matters

This chapter is the narrative linchpin of the novel. It provides the full backstory of the Tarrymore art heist, solidifying the connection between the IRA theft and Maeve’s family mystery. Jamie’s testimony offers the missing piece: the portrait that disappeared in 1974 is likely the one sold at auction. Maeve’s parallel revelation about Kathleen Connor’s flight and Lady Delia’s murder ties the two timelines together, suggesting that the portrait holds the key to both crimes. The chapter also humanizes the Grogan family, enriching Liam’s character and deepening Maeve’s emotional stake in Ireland.

Study Questions and Answers

  1. What role did Starr play in the IRA heist, and how did her background make her valuable to the gang? Starr (Peggy McGahee) was the decoy who knocked at the servants’ entrance. Her value came from her “well-bred” appearance, which disarmed suspicion. She also had shooting skills learned at her granddad’s estate and a chemistry background useful for building bombs.

  2. How does Jamie’s account of the heist parallel the story of Kathleen Connor’s flight from Tarrymore in 1926? Both involve a young woman complicit in a crime linked to the Rossington family. Kathleen fled after Lady Delia’s murder (which she may or may not have committed); Starr fled after the art heist (which she did commit). Both stories involve betrayal, hidden paintings, and a legacy that echoes for generations.

  3. Why does Maeve believe the portrait sold at auction is the same one stolen by the IRA? The portrait of Lady Geraldine that was in Maeve’s family since 1926 is a finished wedding-gift painting. An earlier study by the same artist, worth over $1 million, was sold in New York. That study matches the description of the only painting from the 1974 heist that was never recovered, suggesting it was the one the IRA stole and later sold.

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