This month I have “branched out” and turned my focus on to Irish authors, both north and south of the border. As we are a nation of storytellers, it’s no surprise that they are all five star reads even though the books are very different. There is a mixture of crime, romance, drama, history and mysticism. If I had to choose a favourite, it would be “Strange Sally Diamond” by Liz Nugent closely followed by Louise Kennedy’s “Trespasses” which has recently been adapted for TV by Channel 4.
Trespasses by Louise Kennedy – five stars
First, I read the book and then I watched the TV series which has been on Channel 4 recently. To be fair, the TV series is a very good reflection of the book although the parish priest has a higher profile in the book.
Written by Louise Kennedy who grew up near Belfast, “Trespasses” is set in Northern Ireland in 1975 in a small coastal town near Belfast with an Army barracks – Holywood is my guess of the location. The main character is 24 year old Cushla Lavery, a Catholic and a primary school teacher with a part-time job in the family pub. While working there on Ash Wednesday with her forehead freshly scrubbed after the Catholic Church ashes, she meets Michael Agnew who is a married Protestant barrister. Even though he is a lot older than Cushla and a different religion, a passionate but secretive love affair starts which includes a dirty weekend in Dublin! Cushla even attends dinner parties with some of Michael’s posh friends and tries to teach them Irish. Through Davy McGeown, a pupil in her P4 class, Cushla befriends the McGeown family who live on a Protestant housing estate. It’s a mixed marriage and the dad is violently beaten as a result. Even Cushla’s alcoholic mother Gina brings the family a casserole to help at this difficult time.
The backdrop to the story is the Troubles – news reports centre on bombings, shootings and punishment beatings, the Army are patrolling the streets and communities are fearful for their lives. It’s a masterful depiction of what life was like in Northern Ireland in the 1970s. Overall, I found this a very sad reminder of the past but it is a compelling read which keeps you guessing as to how the Cushla-Michael relationship will pan out.
The Lost Bookshop by Evie Woods – five stars
Evie Woods is a Galway author and this book has been on my TBR (To Be Read) list for a while. And Evie definitely didn’t disappoint me with “The Lost Bookshop”.
Set mainly in Dublin, the book has dual timelines and three main characters – Opaline, Martha and Henry. We first meet Opaline in the 1920s where she moves from London to Paris to Dublin. She has a fascination with rare books and with Emily Brontë in particular. She opens up a book shop in Dublin but shortly afterwards is forced into a mental asylum in Connacht by her tyrannical brother Lyndon.
Martha and Henry are living in 21st century Dublin. Martha has recently escaped from her abusive husband Shane in Co Sligo and ends up getting a job as a housekeeper for the enigmatic Madame Bowden. Englishman Henry, on the other hand, is researching rare books in Dublin and his quest for Opaline’s bookshop leads him to the building next door to Madame Bowman’s house which seems to have disappeared. It is here that he meets Martha and they become friends. But how do Martha and Henry find out more about Opaline?
This is a book full of books and mystery but with a sprinkling of “Narnia” type magic and romance as well as providing valuable insight into Ireland from the 1920s to the 1950s. Opaline is the heroine and I couldn’t help but admire her resilience and strength of character in overcoming so many obstacles. Perhaps we should all take a leaf out of her book.
The Stranger Inside by Amanda Cassidy – five stars
This was my first Amanda Cassidy book to read but it won’t be my last. Amanda lives in Dublin and this story is based in the Dublin area too.
Midwife Ciara Duffy wakes during the night and discovers her husband Morgan lying in the bed beside her even though he is supposed to be in London. But Morgan is dead and has a dagger in his chest! Ciara is the obvious suspect, is accused of his murder and ends up in Logan Prison awaiting her trial. She pleads her innocence but no one believes her except for her father Jimmy, a former Garda detective. Then Jimmy is found dead in his car and the Garda believe it is suicide although Ciara disputes this. She asks for permission to attend his funeral but this is denied although she is allowed to see him in the funeral home. There is a media circus at the funeral home and in the melee, Ciara manages to escape driving away in the prison guards’ vehicle. She then goes “on the run” but will she get caught? Her daughter Sally is also seriously ill and Ciara is desperate to see her.
This is a gripping rollercoaster of a crime thriller, full of twists and turns with an amazing plot line. Overall, it was an entertaining and enjoyable read and I would definitely recommend reading it.
The Perfume Killer by Linda Hagan – five stars
If you enjoyed the “Blue Lights” BBC television series, you will enjoy this book too. DCI Gawn (pronounced “Gan”) Girvin is based in Belfast and she has a team of detectives under her command who I imagined were colleagues of the Blue Lights cast!
The story starts with the murder of Dieter Weil, a German tourist, who is found dead at dusk in Belfast’s Botanic Gardens. Gawn’s team head up the investigation but there are few clues as to who the mysterious murderer could be although the top of an expensive perfume bottle was found at the scene. The PSNI are helped by a German police officer, Norbert Schneider, who provides background on Dieter who turns out to be a criminal.
A suspicious package is left at the door of Gawn’s Carrickfergus apartment which contains an empty perfume bottle. She then realises that she is a target for the murderer. A few suspects emerge but through good old-fashioned police work, the identity of the killer emerges but he can’t be found!
I loved reading a book set in Northern Ireland because I know the locations. It’s a fast paced story with a very dramatic ending plus a touch of romance. The author, retired English teacher Linda Hagan, lives in Carrickfergus so her familiarity with the area is obvious as you read the book – but you don’t have to hail from Northern Ireland to enjoy it. This is the first book of the DCI Gawn Girvin series so I’m looking forward to reading the other seven.
Strange Sally Diamond by Liz Nugent – five stars
If I could give a book six stars, “Strange Sally Diamond” would definitely merit it. I absolutely loved this book and I devoured it in 24 hours!
Set in an isolated rural community in Co Roscommon prior to the Covid pandemic, we meet 44 year old Sally Diamond who is living alone with her adopted father Tom. Sally is a bit “strange” and has many difficulties with social interaction but when her dad dies, she follows his instructions to a “t” and “puts him out with the bins” – she evens tries to cremate him in the barn as she does with other rubbish! Not long afterwards, Tom’s absence is noticed and Sally admits to the cremation. The Garda then get involved as well as the media but then news of her early life was uncovered.
Sally’s birth mother Denise had been kidnapped by her father Conor at the age of 11 and Sally had spent her first five years locked in a windowless room with her mother. Naturally Denise and Sally were very disturbed by the experience and after Denise’s suicide, Sally was adopted by psychiatrist Tom and his GP wife Jean. Her natural father Conor had disappeared when Denise and Sally were found. After Tom’s death, Sally tries to make friends in the local community but that doesn’t always go too well due to her straight talking and her “black and white” perspective on life. But her life is turned upside down, when a shoebox containing her childhood teddy Toby arrives with a New Zealand postmark. Is Conor still alive and living in New Zealand?
Described as a crime novel, “Strange Sally Diamond” is so much more than this as it lets us get under the skin of a very damaged Sally as she tries to rebuild her life after her adopted father’s death but she is haunted by the darkness of her early childhood. There are touches of “Eleanor Oliphant” in Sally’s character and you are willing her on to make a success of her life even though the odds are stacked against her. It’s a book that will stay with you for a very long time and one to recommend to your friends. Thanks to Dubliner Liz Nugent for writing it and I’m looking forward to reading her other books.
Hopefully I have given you some inspiration about what to read next and if you have any ideas as to what I could read next, please feel free to comment below with your thoughts. Next month, I’m going to profile my Top Ten Reads for 2025.
Lynda
(Photography by Siofra O’Reilly and Christine Watson in Hillsborough Forest)
The Author
Lynda Willis lives in Co Armagh and writes blogs about her rambles in nature as well as rambling about topics close to her heart. This year, she is fundraising for Breast Cancer Now so please click here if you’d like to donate.
