Read Ireland Book Reviews
Issue 475
1/2 May 2010
New Irish Romance Fiction
The Mammoth Book of Irish Romance edited by Trisha Telep
Paperback; 10 Euro / 14 USD / 8 UK; 512 pages
This is an enthralling collection of romantic tales set amidst beautiful Ireland's lush ancient landscapes: cottages and castles, pre-Christian ruins, green hills, rugged cliffs, and pounding Atlantic surf. These stories - by writers such as Donna Fletcher, Maeve Binchy, Amy J. Fetzer, Deb Stover, Dorien Kelly, and Sonja Massie - honour Ireland's rich heritage as a land of poets, magic, and mystery.
The Perfect Holiday by Cathy Kelly
Paperback; 4 Euro / 6 USD / 3 UK; 96 pages [Add To Basket]
An exclusive novella for World Book Day. Sometimes all we need is a relaxing holiday in the sun. For Anthony and Carole, a week in a lovely Greek hotel has helped them mend the cracks in their marriage. For widowed Jessica, it's the longest she's ever gone without visiting her beloved husband's grave. However when the flight doesn't go according to plan, they are each forced to face up to the very things they have been avoiding for so long. By the time they land, they have learnt important life lessons about themselves and each other that change them forever.
The Return Journey by Maeve Binchy
Large Format Paperback; 14 Euro / 20 USD / 11 UK; 304 pages
The Return Journey is a collection of 14 short stories of life, love and learning that enables the most harried reader to enjoy a well-told tale in its entirety before checking on the kids or sorting the washing. In the tradition of Binchy's classic tales Circle of Friends and Tara Road, this consummate summer beach book introduces readers not to models of literary and romantic indefectibility, but to people just like us, who lose their car keys and have bad hair days. The title story paints a portrait of the embattled relationship between a mother who left her home in Dunglass, Ireland, and her daughter, who has travelled to Ireland to find her history and finds love, as well. Through weekly correspondence, mother and daughter repair the damage to their relationship, laying to rest ghosts of an earlier mother-daughter relationship gone irrevocably wrong. Binchy's Victor and St. Valentine renews faith that truly romantic men do exist and are often overlooked, their motives suspect in an increasingly self-reliant world. No one can accuse Binchy of overtelling a tale; she has perfected the art of leading her readers to the verge and then allowing them to loose their imaginations as they see fit.
No Ordinary Love by Anita Notaro
Large Format Paperback; 14 Euro / 20 USD / 11 UK; 384 pages [Add To Basket]
Louisa is fed up with every aspect of her life. Boyfriend, job, flat - all these need an instant and radical makeover. And so she decides to change it all in favour of a carefree existence, exchanging her house for a trailer, her car for a motorbike, and her smart clothes for leisure wear. And, most of all, she starts a new business, as a dog counsellor. With her best friends Maddy and Clodagh she embarks on a new regime - to meet different people, discover new places and find a fabulous new man. Her business brings her immediate and extraordinary rewards, as she meets the owners of dogs whose problems often seem to echo those of their owners. But whatever the stresses of her new life, Louisa has the support of her two friends. If only that could last forever...
The Loving Kind by Sarah Webb
Large Format Paperback; 13 Euro / 18 USD / 10 UK; 400 pages [Add To Basket]
Romance writer, Libby Small, has just been dumped. By her agent, her publisher and now her husband and she's finally had enough. So she's over the moon when she's given the opportunity to ghostwrite a novel for ex Miss Ireland, Lulubelle Ryan. Particularly as it means travelling around the world as part of Lulubelle's entourage. Two months to write a raunchy bonk buster set in the glitzy world of modelling should be easy - right? Wrong! Especially when it becomes very clear to Libby that the story behind this book is very close to Lulubelle's heart for a reason. There are some benefits though - and Lulubelle's handsome and enigmatic manager, Leo, is certainly part of the attraction - if only Libby could forget about her other male addiction.
The Art of Friendship by Erin Kaye
Large Format Paperback; 14 Euro / 19 USD / 11 UK; 456 pages [Add To Basket]
It is New Year's Eve. Downstairs, the party is in full swing, but hostess Janice is locked in her bathroom, drinking champagne with her best friends, making resolutions for the coming year. Patsy has been stashing a bit away from her art gallery's profits. She intends to take her husband on African safari. But she hasn't reckoned on the recession. Clare vows to take up painting again and make a career of it. She's done the Mummy thing and is tired of her husband's neglect. Young widow Kirsty knows it's time to get herself a new man. Her in-laws are wonderful but every act of kindness is like a nail in the coffin of her independence. Janice actually dislikes resolutions. Since her unmarried pregnancy, she knows you can't control fate you just have to ride the wave of life, deal with it, cope. When the women exit the bathroom, in a spate of girlish giggling, they little suspect the coming year will bring disasters that will try their relationships severely. Can their friendship survive when put to such a test? Can they?
Designer Games by Emma Hannigan
Paperback; 9 Euro / 13 USD / 7 UK; 380 pages [Add To Basket]
Emily Cusack's got it all sorted. A loving husband, two adorable kids and a gorgeous home. All she needs now is an au pair, for life to be truly perfect. Her friend Susie is content too. A brilliant psychotherapist, she's got an elegant flat, a wardrobe full of ball-busting suits, a sleek sports car and doesn't need a man, thank you very much. The only jeans the friends normally encounter are the designer version. Then Emily learns about genes of a different kind and why she could be a carrier of a cancer-causing one. Emily doesn't take much lying down and deals with this in her decisive way. But can her marriage survive the aftershock? Emily's news rocks Susie and makes her take a long hard look at her own self-sufficient life. Brought up by her loving but ditzy single mum, Susie has never known her father. Now she decides to do something about it. But she's in for more than she bargains for! One thing's for sure - life will never be the same again after a trip on this roller-coaster of discovery.
The Wish List by Martina Reilly
Paperback; 8 Euro / 11 USD / 6 UK; 384 pages [Add To Basket]
Like any married couple, Allie and Tony have had their fair share of heartache. But when Tony's actions force Allie and her young sons out of their home, things take a desperate turn for the worse. Without her husband around, Allie must cope with two increasingly inquisitive children - as well as the reappearance of her estranged father. So when her eldest son Mark befriends a mysterious next-door neighbour, Jeremy, Allie's glad he's found a distraction. The only trouble is that Mark believes Jeremy is Santa Claus - and that he can put the family back together. While Jeremy becomes increasingly mortified at the mix-up, a little magic never did anyone any harm - did it?
Barefoot Over Stones by Liz Lyons
Paperback; 8 Euro / 11 USD / 6 UK; 356 pages [Add To Basket]
What would it take to destroy your closest friendship? Alison and Ciara meet at college in Dublin and soon become firm allies, sharing a flat and facing the world together. Ciara is all that Alison aspires to be - sassy, confident and fearless. Although their backgrounds could not be more different, they find solace and humour in each other's company. That is until gorgeous Dan Abernethy, a young medical student, enters their lives, and everything changes irrevocably. Love turns Alison's world upside down and a terrible betrayal threatens everything she holds dear. It is only when tragedy strikes many years later that Alison and Ciara are offered a chance at redemption.
Three Nights in New York by Michelle Jackson
Paperback; 8 Euro / 11 USD / 6 UK; 360 pages [Add To Basket]
3 girls, 3 guys, and 3 unforgettable nights in trendy downtown New York! Eve doesn't believe in knights in shining armour. As director of Just for Coffee dating agency she reckons you need the correct profile and bank balance to find love. Fate, however, does not agree! This is single mum Nicky's first time in New York and she has come to shop! But she gets more than she bargains for! For Rachel it's time out from her stressful marriage and a chance to visit her hunky brother Conor. A holiday fling is the last thing she needs. Until she meets sexy Alex who uncovers the dark secret she lives with in her cosy secure life back in Dublin. From the High Line to SoHo and the Boathouse to Chelsea the magic of New York transforms their lives forever!
The Penance Room by Carol Coffey
Large Format Paperback; 14 Euro / 19 USD / 11 UK; 390 pages [Add To Basket]
Broken Hill Nursing Home is a house laden down with secrets, its residents now settled in Australia but living out their troubled lives trapped in the past. Thirteen-year-old Christopher, whose parents run the home, is its self-appointed guardian. Deaf since childhood, his foot severed in a horrific accident, he notices what others miss. Isolated and ignored, he is obsessed with helping these damaged souls find the peace they crave. He befriends the beautiful young Maria whose strange sadness puzzles him, then gains an ally when a mysterious young man arrives to record the extraordinary lives of the aging immigrants. Christopher eagerly awaits the transformations he expects will result from these confessions. But will delving into the past disturb the residents fragile mental state and open up a Pandora's box that was best left closed? And can Christopher himself survive their terrible disclosures?
The Better Woman by Ber Carroll
Paperback; 8 Euro / 11 USD / 6 UK; 400 pages [Add To Basket]
Sarah Ryan, orphaned at a young age, grows up in a remote village in Cork. John Delaney, the boy next-door, is her best friend, her first love and the one who breaks her heart. Jodi Tyler is raised on Sydney’s northern beaches amidst a loving family, but a terrible secret shadows her teenage years. On her eighteenth birthday, the awful burden she has been living with is finally exposed, with tragic consequences. This is a story of two remarkable women, their illustrious careers, their families, their friends, and the men they love. Sarah and Jodi, from opposite ends of the world, have more in common than they’ll ever realise - they have their sights set on the same job. For both, it represents how far they’ve come to triumph over the tragedies of their pasts – but at what cost to their personal lives?
Mother of the Bride by Marita Conlon McKenna
Large Format Paperback; 14 Euro / 19 USD / 10 UK; 384 pages [Add To Basket]
Everyone knows that Amy and Dan are made for each other. So when they announce their engagement their families are over the moon, especially Amy's mother Helen. What could be more exciting than planning a daughter's wedding? But as the countdown to the Big Day begins, and mother and daughter throw themselves into creating the wedding of their dreams, not everyone's prepared for the commotion this involves. Bride-to-be Amy sees her best laid wedding plans start to unravel and things go from bad to worse, as Helen struggles to pick up the pieces and get her family back on track. Amy and Helen each discover what love and marriage is all about...but is it too late? It's not easy being a mother, let alone the Mother of the Bride!
Can You See Me? By Ruth Gilligan
Paperback; 9 Euro / 12 USD / 7 UK; 362 pages [Add To Basket]
When Alice arrives on campus amidst the ancient splendour of Cambridge University, she thinks she's found her wonderland. Then one night something happens – one inexplicable act ruins everything and she finds herself alone. Alice will not admit defeat; having practically raised her two brothers single-handedly, she is good at being strong. Too good. But Soon her dark secret becomes too much and the cracks begin to show. Her weekly meetings with Flo, the stranger on the bench, become her lifeline. And try as she might to bury the dark truth of that awful night, she begins to realise that some things have to be faced up to. It's time for Alice to look at her broken reflection and start to put the pieces back together...
Love in the Making by Roisin Meaney
Large Format Paperback; 14 Euro / 19 USD / 11 UK; 416 pages [Add To Basket]
Hannah Robinson is just about to open the doors to her new shop Cupcakes on the Corner when out of the blue her boyfriend Patrick announces that he’s leaving her for another woman. Faced with starting a business on her own, Hannah begins to wonder if her life-long dream has just turned into a nightmare. So her best friend Adam sets his birthday as a deadline - seven months to make her shop a success, or walk away from it all. And as Hannah immerses herself in early-morning icing, she soon discovers that she’s too busy to think about Patrick and his now pregnant girlfriend . . . or to notice an increasingly regular customer who has recently developed a sweet tooth for all things cupcake . . . But while Hannah is slowly piecing her life back together, family friend Alice’s is falling apart. Her husband Tom’s drinking is getting out of control and things are about to get a whole lot worse. As the seven-month milestone approaches, Hannah must decide her future. And while she’s figuring out what’s really important, it becomes clear to everyone that happiness in life, and in love, is all in the making.
Happy Every After by Patricia Scanlan
Paperback; 9 Euro / 13 USD / 7 UK; 528 pages [Add To Basket]
When the honeymoon is over, real life begins...Newly married Debbie is at her wits' end about her and Bryan's mounting debts, but there's no way he's going to stop living the high life and become a stay-at-home husband. Meanwhile, her dad has just found out his workaholic second wife, Aimee, is pregnant. He couldn't be happier, but she's horrified. Is their marriage going to last? Debbie's mum, Connie, has met a gorgeous new man and is all set to make a life of her own. But her family need her more than ever to sort out all their problems. Will she put her family first as always, or can she walk away and finally make a fresh start? Will anyone be happy ever after?
Leaving Clare by Geraldine O’Neill
Paperback; 9 Euro / 13 USD / 7 UK; 660 pages [Add To Basket]
Growing up in the 1950S in Kilnagree, a small village in Co Clare, Rose Barry lives a quiet, predictable life. Working part-time in the local pub while helping her grandmother at home, Rose's only ambition is to marry a decent local lad and stay close to her family in Kilnagree. In Offaly, Rose's pretty, precocious cousin Hannah Martin is hiding dark secrets. Dreaming of the day she can flee her vicious-tempered mother, Hannah finds a welcome escape with her cousins in Kilnagree where she is the life and soul of the party. Lenora Bentley, whose daughter lives in Kilnagree, also finds peace and tranquillity when she visits Co Clare. A wealthy widow, living in a large empty house in Dublin, Lenora is nursing a wound that refuses to heal. In trying to come to terms with her grief Lenora has closed herself off from a fulfilling social life and the one man who could open the door to a very different future. Will Rose find happiness in Killnagree or do her fortunes lie elsewhere? Will Hannah break free from her domineering mother and her own dangerous behaviour? And will Lenora ever be able to let her guard down to enjoy a full life again? All three women are searching for a new life which means leaving the old behind. For Rose Barry it may well mean leaving Clare.
A Moment in Time by Mairead O’Driscoll
Large Format Paperback; 14 Euro / 20 USD / 10 UK; 423 pages [Add To Basket]
Can a single moment in time alter the course of a life forever? For the Carmody family, it certainly seems so. An interrupted childhood has coloured Laura's view of life and her dream of having a proper family remains just that a dream always just around the corner and a little bit out of reach. Donal is inundated with advice get a steady girlfriend, buy a house, find a better job and life will be as it should be. But no amount of polishing his life to a shiny surface will be enough to scrub away the secret that haunts him. Orla always gets what she wants or does she? No matter how slim and efficient she is, no matter how glossy her hair or how clean her house, it never seems enough. Even perfection doesn t seem enough for those around her. The past won t release its hold so how can they build a future?
Under the Rainbow by Mary O’Sullivan
Paperback; 9 Euro / 13 USD / 7 UK; 450 pages [Add To Basket]
Unhappy with her job as teacher, smarting from being cheated on by her partner, Adele Burke takes a year off, leaves Dublin and returns to her home town of Cairnsure on the south coast. Her hope is to rekindle the intensity of her childhood friendship with accountant Jodi and ex-nurse Carla. But she finds both her friends preoccupied and, living with her widowed mother, soon regrets coming home. Then New Zealander Eoin Kirby arrives in town and Adele's mother begs her to have nothing to do with him, while refusing to explain why. Adele feels she is surrounded by mysteries. Why does her mother fear Eoin? Why has Jodi left a blossoming career in London? Why is Carla, who seems to have the perfect lifestyle, so unhappy? As Adele copes with tragedy, deceit and heartbreak, Cairnsure finally yields up its secrets.
Please note: Prices were correct at time of original posting but are subject to subsequent change without notice.
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