Publisher: 23rd February 2021 by Hachette Australia
Pages: 336 pages
How I Read It: ARC book
Genre: contemporary
My Rating: 4 cups
Synopsis:
A converted stone farmhouse on the Irish coast is about to receive its first guests in this warmly captivating story for fans of Maeve Binchy and Monica McInerney
Whether it was the lure of the rugged coastline or the comforting image of the house, he wasn't sure, but he couldn't remember the last time he'd taken a holiday. . .
With its brightly painted front door, white-sash windows and garden path sweeping down toward the sea, Lizzie O's guesthouse promises a welcome escape from the world. Aisling and Mick Fitzgerald are travelling all the way from Tasmania to celebrate their wedding anniversary, but Aisling is burdened with a secret that could ruin their marriage. Declan Byrne, exhausted from an unhealthy routine of long hours, takeaway and too much red wine, has spontaneously taken the week off to visit the village of his childhood summers. Katie Daly returns to West Cork after an absence of 35 years to care for her ageing mother only to find she must confront her painful past. Finally, Mia Montgomery is taking this holiday without telling her husband.
Each of this group of strangers is at a crossroads. And one week in the middle of winter may change all of their lives.
My Thoughts
With all the Maeve Binchy feels, Esther invites you to spend a week at an Irish B&B where a random group of guests arrive to partake in everything from relaxing to cooking classes, hikes and poetry pub nights. With glimpses of the rugged Irish coastline, these people will rediscover or emerge from the weights everyday life has placed on them.
‘How strange it felt to be in a West Cork kitchen, chatting with women she hardly knew but felt connected to by some sort of divine sisterhood. There was no one judging her here.’
Setting and the various plots make this an enjoyable read as the guests congregate and share the proverbial crossroads they find themselves at. In-between beach walks and baking, these incidental interactions will bring about revelations, whether wished for or not, that Esther invites you to be part of. There is also the mother-in-law minding the children back in Tasmania who also confronts her own ‘meaning of life’ epiphany.
This is a lovely escapist read with its Irish flavour and down to earth characters. Speaking of which, there are quite a few to wrap your head around at the beginning. However, once you work out who is who, their tales of tragic past events, unfaithfulness in marriage or caring for aged parents will see the reader engaged and hopeful for the requisite happy ending.
A Week to Remember with its Irish charm and engaging locales and liaisons, will fill the readers longing for escapism into another life and problems satisfyingly solved for one and all.
‘... if he’d learnt anything from his week at Lizzie O’s, it was that everyone had their troubles. And wasn’t that why they needed each other?’
This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. The quoted material may have changed in the final release.
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