Long Island by Colm Tóibín
Twenty years on from ‘Brooklyn’ and we find Eilis Lacey in Long Island, settled in her life. But a knock on the door changes everything, in the long awaited follow up to ‘Brooklyn’. Is the past a foreign country, and what of Jim and Eilis?
The Heart in Winter by Kevin Barry
With ‘The Heart in Winter’, Kevin Barry creates a sort of Irish Western set in Montana in 1881, about two lovers fleeing across country, pursued by bounty hunters, in an engrossing and vivid novel that crackles with life.
Quickly, While They Still Have Horses by Jan Carson
This collection of 16 short stories are sometimes dark, quirky, moving, occasionally absurd, and always inventive and readable. A fine book from one of my favourite modern Irish writers.
Prophet Song by Paul Lynch
‘Prophet song’ by Paul Lynch is the booker prize winning dystopian story of a right wing takeover and societal breakdown in Ireland. How real is it?
Book Review - Water by John Boyne
A woman arrives on a small island, shaves her hair and changes her name. What is she running from? John Boyne delivers again in this powerful novella about remorse, complicity and abuse of power.
Book Review - The Bee Sting by Paul Murray
The Booker prize nominated ‘The Bee Sting’ by Paul Murray is a tragicomedy that fizzes with energy, as we follow the rich inner lives of the Barnes family, as their world starts to fall apart.
The Wren, The Wren by Anne Enright
Anne Enright’s latest is about how trauma passes down through the generations, as well as love and hope. Beautifully written.
Kala by Colin Walsh
Strong literary thriller about a group of friends who reunite 15 years after a traumatic summer, when dark secrets begin to resurface.
Book Review - Strange Sally Diamond by Liz Nugent
‘Strange Sally Diamond’ is a mystery thriller about a woman who begins to discover some disturbing details about her childhood, after she tries to incinerate her fathers body. A pacey, dark thriller, expertly told.
Book Review - The Trap - Catherine Ryan Howard
In this pace crime thriller, how far will Lucy go to find her sister Nicki, a year after she disappears from a Dublin pub - one of three women to vanish.
Book Review - Winter People by Gráinne Murphy
Winter People by Gráinne Murphy is a reflective and emotional book about three strangers on the Atlantic Coast of Ireland, dealing with grief and isolation.
Ordinary Human Failings - Megan Nolan
A child is murdered on an estate in London, and attention falls on a Irish family who had previously kept to themselves. Megan Nolan’s superbly written second book is about ‘ordinary families’ who find themselves having to face their secrets.
Book Review - Close to Home by Michael Magee
Michael Magee’s debut novel is about a young man returning to Belfast, when an altercation at a party leads to his life spiralling out of control.
Book Review - My Father’s House - Joseph O’Connor
Strong and atmospheric work of historical fiction that is loosely based on the true story of Hugh O’Flaherty, at the centre of a clandestine operation to smuggle Jews and escaped allied prisoners out of Nazi occupied Rome.
Book Review - All the Broken Places by John Boyne
‘All the broken places’ picks up where ‘The boy with the striped Pyjamas’ finished. Older sister Gretel and her mother are hoping to start again in Paris, but can they escape the past, and do they deserve to? This is an engrossing, thought provoking follow up from John Boyne that is another masterclass in empathetic storytelling.
Book Review - The Colony - Audrey Magee
Set on an Island off the coast of Ireland in 1979, Audrey Magee’s lyrical novel is about imperialism, identity, art and self determination.
Book Review - Factory Girls - Michelle Gallen
Michelle Gallen’s ‘Factory Girls’ is a scabrously funny and accurate story of a teenagers summer spent working in a factory in the north of Ireland in the mid nineties. If you’re missing ‘Derry girls’ you’ll love this.
Book Review - The Queen of Dirt Island - Donal Ryan
Donal Ryan delivers again with this wonderfully written story about four generations of women living under one roof. It’s about love and loss, joy and grief, and all the stuff in between, but is mostly about family.
Book Review - Tennis Lessons - Susannah Dickey
Raw, funny and painfully honest story that follows the life of a young woman from childhood until adulthood. A strong coming of age debut from another talented Irish writer.
Book Review - Before my heart actually breaks - Tish Delaney
Funny and moving story about Mary Rattigan, a young Irish woman with plans who finds life taking a different turn. Engaging storytelling with lyrical prose.
