Transported to this wild Irish island
- Book: The Women at Ocean’s End
- Location: West Ireland
- Author: Faith Hogan
Oh my, what a book. The sheer wildness and beauty of Pin Hill island, the constant movement of the sea and sky, the bleating of the goats… I was there.
The characters are wonderful too, as the way the story is woven. Constance; lonely, waiting out her days with resilience, forbearance, and only small joys. We see her now and as a terrified child who falls down a well in 1957, and at points in between, teased out as the mystery which binds her to Heather’s late mother is slowly revealed. Then Heather herself, discovering the books which will pull her from London and back to the place of her happiest childhood memories. And finally Ros, the youngest of the three, an incomer who perhaps loves the island more than anyone else.
I love stories of friendship and there is a real magic to this one, perhaps because the tensions which drive the novel forwards are not between the women, but around them. And Faith Hogan is such a skilled writer, mistress of her genre, and for me this wonderfully uplifting book is her best yet.
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