LoveReading Says
What a remarkably moving story. With a gorgeous narrative voice that charms from the off. Anne Griffin’s The Island of Longing presents a raw and readably lyrical portrait of a mother’s anguish, a family’s struggles, and the lingering ripples of loss and hope in the aftermath of a daughter’s vanishing.
Rosie grew up on Roaring Bay island, West Cork, and became the ferry skipper at the age of twenty, “just like my father”. 29 years later she returns to her home island, “totally broken but willing to stand at the boat’s helm once again. Still a wife — although my husband back in the city might have had his own opinion on that — and mother. Mother.” Rosie wonders whether the “mother” moniker still applies to her. Eight years on from the day her daughter Saoirse cycled to town and never came home, Rosie’s the only person who still believes she might return.
An unexpected call from her father to come home to the island “of fisherman and writers, farmers and potters, ferry folk and beekeepers” draws Rosie into a new state of being. In her father’s words, “it might do you good. Maybe it’s exactly what you need — a distraction”.
A distraction it might be, but Rosie’s return also edges her to face reality, with solace found in memories, being among the islanders, and being at sea. Suffused in compassion, community and finding comfort are at the core of this heartbreaker of a novel.
Joanne Owen
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The Island of Longing Synopsis
WOULD YOU EVER GIVE UP ON FINDING YOUR CHILD, IF THEY VANISHED WITHOUT A TRACE?
Number One Irish bestselling author of When All is Said Anne Griffin returns with this beautiful, emotional novel about love, loss, family and hope that will break your heart . . . but also put it back together again.
THE IRISH BESTSELLER THAT EVERYONE IS RAVING ABOUT:
'Stunning . . . I loved it' LIZ NUGENT
'Elegant and moving' JOHN BOYNE
'A storyteller of rate gifts' JOSEPH O'CONNOR
'A beautiful, emotive mystery' CHRIS WHITAKER
'Gently heartbreaking, but also hopeful and uplifting. An insight into the fragility of the human condition and what holds us together when we break' IRISH TIMES
One unremarkable afternoon, Rosie watched her daughter Saoirse cycle into town, expecting to hear the slam of the door when she returned a few hours later. But the slam never came.
Eight years on, after an extensive investigation into her disappearance, Rosie is the only person who stubbornly believes that her child might still be alive. When Rosie receives a call from her father, asking her to return home for the summer, she is forced out of her limbo. Life on the island of Roaring Bay revives old rivalries, but it also brings new friendships and unexpected solace.
Yet, when a sudden glimmer of hope appears, Rosie is forced to face an impossible question: is she right to think that Saoirse is still alive? Or will her belief that her daughter will one day return to her come at the cost of everything she has left?
'This book consumed me' DISHA BOSE
'A hauntingly beautiful tale' SUNDAY POST
'Tender and wise and life-affirming' KATHLEEN MACMAHON
'A compelling novel about the healing power of community' SARAH GILMARTIN
'Griffin's writing is as engaging and compassionate as ever: The Island of Longing is a superb novel that tussles with the hope and heartbreak of being alive' DANIELLE MCLAUGHLIN
'This beautiful novel about maternal love is especially moving on the back and forth between hope and acceptance' GOOD HOUSEKEEPING
'One of Griffin's great gifts is how she draws small-town communities and the personalities that make them what they are' IRISH SUNDAY TIMES
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