Book news, reviews and recommendations
I was delighted to see a new Donal Ryan in the publishing schedules, jumping at the chance to read it as soon as it appeared on NetGalley. Heart, Be at Peace returns to the setting of Ryan’s debut, A Spinning Heart, a decade after many in the town were devastated when the son of the […]
Heart, Be at Peace by Donal Ryan: Revisiting the past Read More »
I was intrigued when I spotted John Boyne’s Water in The Bookseller, billed as the first in a series of four interlinked novellas each named after the elements, something of a departure from his usual doorstoppers of which I’ve read and enjoyed several including his last, The Echo Chamber. It begins with a woman arriving
Water by John Boyne: First in a series Read More »
A new Anne Enright is always worth looking out for although it has to be said I still have a copy of Actress, her last novel, sitting unread on my shelves. Of course, that didn’t stop me putting up my hand for The Wren, The Wren when I spotted it. Enright’s new novel follows a
The Wren, The Wren by Anne Enright: Mothers and daughters Read More »
Having had such a brilliant year reading Irish women writers in 2022, I’ve had my eye out for more this year which is what drew me to Chloe Michelle Howarth’s debut, Sunburn. Set in rural Ireland in the late ‘80s/early ‘90s, it’s a queer coming-of-age story which follows Lucy, long since assumed to be on
The premise of Caroline O’Donoghue’s The Rachel Incident reminded me of Belinda McKeon’s Tender which I loved but was stunned to find I’d reviewed back in 2015. The novels turned out to have little in common besides being written by Irish women about the relationship between a young straight woman and her gay male friend.
The Rachel Incident by Caroline O’Donoghue: Paging Netflix Read More »
I’m on a winning streak with Irish women authors this year. I’m sure to hit a dud eventually but Niamh Mulvey’s debut, Hearts and Bones, certainly isn’t it. This slim collection comprising ten stories comes with a subtitle which sets the tone, echoed by that brilliant jacket, as its narrators, mostly women, look back at
Following on from her non-fiction handiwork, described as a ‘sister publication’ by the publishers, Sara Baume’s Seven Steeples is the latest in what I hope will be a continuing line of excellent books by Irish women writers this reading year. It spans eight years in the lives of Bell and Sigh who move into an
Seven Steeples by Sara Baume: Leaving the world behind Read More »
It was the mention of The Stinging Fly in her biographical notes that made me want to read Louise Kennedy’s The End of the World Is a Cul de Sac. I’ve yet to read a set of stories from one of their contributors that hasn’t hit the spot for me. Someone there has a very
The End of the World is a Cul de Sac by Louise Kennedy: A smartly delivered collection Read More »
Given that it was praised to the skies by the likes of Donal Ryan and John Banville, I’ve no idea how I managed to miss Conor O’Callaghan’s debut, Nothing on Earth, but I did. Fortunately, We Are Not In The World caught my eye on Twitter, looking very much up my literary alley. O’Callaghan’s novel
We Are Not In The World by Conor O’Callaghan: The unbearableness of loss Read More »
I rarely agree to look at a book in response to a direct request from the author. Given that this blog is about books I’d be happy to recommend to a friend, there’s too much of a risk I won’t enjoy it enough to review it which always feels like a personal rejection and I’m
Carrying Fire and Water by Deirdre Shanahan: Stories of loss and longing Read More »
After a slightly sticky start with Donal Ryan’s The Thing About December I’ve become an ardent fan of his fiction, my admiration increasing first with All We Shall Know then From A Low and Quiet Sea, both of which shared themes of love and redemption in their different ways as does Strange Flowers. Beginning in
Strange Flowers by Donal Ryan: True love Read More »