A week in winter (by Maeve Binchy)

(Amazon UK link)

I have thoroughly enjoyed re-reading the late Maeve Binchy’s novels over the past eighteen months or so. And in the past few days I have re-read her last novel, ‘A week in winter’, which I first read in 2015. I had, unsurprisingly, forgotten everything about it.

It’s written, as so many of this author’s books were, as a series of interconnected short stories, each one featuring a different character.  The first person we meet is a young woman known to all as Chicky. She grew up on a farm with five siblings, most of whom left as they grew up, to find good jobs. Chicky isn’t an academic, but found quite a good job in a local knitting factory. Until she met Walter, that is…

Walter is a charming American who persuades her to leave her home and family and follow him to America. Her parents are horrified, particularly as they aren’t planning to get married. And at first Chicky loves the new environment… but she sees it as rather more permanent than Walter does. She has to invent a story for her family to explain why he never visits them, and a more drastic one to stop her niece from visiting her...

Eventually Chicky returns to her home town, and buys a run-down house belonging to an elderly lady, which she transforms into a hotel. The next couple of chapters are about different people who are involved in helping her with building work, with planning, and design. We meet Rigger, the son of one of Chicky’s close friends, who has been in all kinds of trouble. And it’s hoped that, by going to Ireland to work with Chicky, he might reform. And we meet Orla, Chicky’s niece, who has a high-powered job but thinks she might give Chicky a year of her time..

As the hotel approaches completion, the staff think of ways to attract visitors. Orla is good with publicity, and people spread the word. But everyone is quite nervous about the first guests. When they arrive, they’re quite a mixed bunch. Some are happy to socialise, to go on long walks, and to praise the excellent food and ambience. Others are quieter. One is a retired headmistress who doesn’t seem to like anything. One pair of mismatched people are a bitter mother with her future daughter-in-law. And there are two married doctors who have seen some tragedies.

All are at the hotel for different reasons; one couple won second prize in a competition, one person was given a voucher as a retiring present. Some are hoping for beautiful views and relaxation, some want to find their roots… and more. Most of the characters are new to this book, although there are brief references to a few people who appeared in earlier books. But they’re minor characters, and it’s not necessary to have read any of her other novels first. 

A chapter at a time, we get to know most of the guests from the first week. They all have secrets in their past, which are explored in the early parts of their chapters. Maeve Binchy had a talent for creating three-dimensional, believable people. She demonstrates in this book how unhappy experiences in childhood can lead to negative attitudes or problems in adulthood, but also makes it clear that each person is responsible for their own behaviour and actions. 

The pace is gentle, with just the right amount of description for my tastes. There’s no real plot as such, other than the overall one of Chicky renovating and starting her hotel. The title of the book refers to one of the proposed attractions of the hotel - a week to relax in winter - but little is made of this. Most of the characters covered are there for the first week. I didn’t always remember who was whom, but it didn’t really matter.

It’s not for everyone, and it’s not my favourite of Binchy’s novels. But ‘A week in winter’ is warm, and encouraging - rather like Chicky’s hotel - and I very much liked re-reading it. Definitely recommended if you like this kind of character-based novel with interwoven stories rather than any real plot.

Review copyright 2025 Sue's Book Reviews

Minding Frankie (by Maeve Binchy)

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I am so enjoying re-reading my collection of novels by Maeve Binchy, some of which I’ve only read once before. One of these is ‘Minding Frankie’, which I first read in 2012, and have only just read for the second time. I knew I liked it first time around, but I had entirely forgotten the story, and the main characters.

As with several of Binchy’s books, it’s set in a small town where some of the minor characters appeared previously in other novels. Many of them live in the same street; I didn’t entirely remember who was whom, but was at least familiar with the twins Maud and Simon (now adults, and running a catering company), and the doctor Declan. I also remembered Clara, who featured prominently in ‘Heart and Soul’, which I re-read last month. It’s not necessary to have read previous novels by this author, but I like the continuity, and hearing more about people who had started to feel quite real to me in earlier books.

However the main storyline involves a young man called Noel Lynch. His parents are very religious, and had hoped that he might become a priest one day. But Noel has mostly thrown off his Catholic roots. He disliked school, and left as soon as he could, joining a local company as a kind of office boy. He’s a secret drinker, too, hoping to hide it from everyone else, but increasingly making trouble…

Noel’s cousin Emily comes to visit from the United States. She has never been to Ireland, and doesn’t know anyone. But she’s the kind of person who listens without judgement, and takes action where she sees a need. She encourages Noel’s parents to think about new activities and ways to earn money, and she also gently confronts Noel. Her father was an alcoholic, so she knows the signs. 

Noel learns something startling about a former casual girlfriend called Stella who is in hospital, terminally ill. And around the time he’s deciding that he should be becoming alcohol-free, he has to make another huge decision which will affect the rest of his life.

The bulk of the story involves the fate of a baby girl called Frankie. The entire street rallies round, taking turns looking after her when her father has to work. Emily organises a rota, and it all seem to work extremely well. Frankie is well-fed, and meets expected milestones with ease. She’s comfortable with everyone around her. However her social worker, Moira, is convinced that she would be better off in foster-care. 

There are a lot of gently interwoven subplots, as is typical for Maeve Binchy novels. Gradually we learn about Moira’s childhood, and the way she has grown up to be quite bitter. Even when she thinks she’s being friendly, people find her abrupt and irritable. She keeps appearing through the book, trying to find problems. She’s treated as a villain, at times; but underneath she’s very insecure and troubled.

Lisa is another young woman whom we meet for the first time. She has lived with her parents much longer than expected, although her sister moved out and has married. Lisa works for a graphic art organisation where she’s doing quite well, until she falls for a handsome chef called Anton, who admires and flatters her. Then Lisa discovers something shocking about her rather cold parents, and is forced to move out quickly.

There are some quite poignant threads in the novel, too. I liked Stella, who only comes into a few scenes, but whose influence and decisions affect the rest of the story. She has a lot of courage, but her story is moving and very sad - even if she does insist on secret cigarettes in hospital. There’s an even more poignant storyline involving a delightful man who has been in several of the earlier books, whom everyone likes enormously. He discovers that he doesn’t have long to live, and his family and friends are devastated.

There are some low-key romances, too, though the author wisely omits details of bedroom scenes, as well as bad language. Some of them are perhaps a tad too neat and tidy; people pair off rather easily, it seems. But I quite like it, particularly as a plot device to ensure that folk stay around rather than moving away.

Once I’d started ‘Minding Frankie’, I found it difficult to put down. I thought it a wonderful book, full of courage, friendship and believable, likeable people. I already look forward to reading it again in another decade or so.

Review copyright 2025 Sue's Book Reviews

Heart and Soul by Maeve Binchy

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In my gradual rereading of my collection of Maeve Binchy’s novels, I’m getting towards the end. I’ve just finished ‘Heart and soul’, which was first published in 2008. I acquired a hardback edition a few years later, and read the book in 2012. I liked it very much, but - as ever - had totally forgotten both the characters and the story.

The main setting for this book is a new health clinic being set up in Dublin. It’s supposed to educate heart patients about self-care: nutrition, exercise, and what their different medications are for. The head is Dr Clara Casey who is still feeling a bit sore that she wasn’t offered a top cardiologist post at the attached hospital. She doesn’t really want to take on this new project, but, having agreed to do so, she throws herself into it. She is a determined person, and her ideas for open plan offices and bright decor are adopted despite opposition from some of the hospital board.

Clare has a good instinct about the staff she wants to employ, and she’s usually right. Declan is appointed as the main doctor on duty, with Fiona and Barbara as the nurses. It took me a few chapters to realise that Fiona is the nurse who was one of the main characters in the novel ‘Nights of rain and stars’, which I reread in March. It isn’t necessary to have read that first, but I very much liked catching up on her life, seeing her as a confident young woman who has moved on from a disastrous relationship. And a few of the other characters from that book appear towards the end. 

As with many of Binchy’s novels, the plot digresses and the narrative rambles somewhat as backstories are told and different people introduced. It could have been confusing, or annoying; but Maeve Binchy was a master of this kind of storytelling. I loved seeing insights into Clara’s home life, hearing about her annoying ex-husband, and getting to know her eco conscious vegan daughter who is a teacher, and her indolent and rather selfish daughter Linda who is unemployed. 

One of the new centre employees is a young woman called Ania who comes from Poland. She has quite a backstory too, which is explored in some detail. She’s been taking on a lot of menial jobs in order to earn enough to eat and pay rent, as well as saving for her mother. Clara takes her on as a runner - an office girl, perhaps - and soon discovers that she’s dedicated, very hard-working and loyal, and grateful even for the minimum wage. 

As well as the people working at the centre we get to know some of the patients, too. Some are a tad caricatured. There’s the ultra-religious Kitty who believes the saints will help her more than any medication or lifestyle change. There’s the friendly Bobby who is married to a snooty, arrogant woman called Rosemary. And, later in the book, there’s an incident involving Aidan, who was one of the main characters in the book ‘Evening class’. And there are also several threads involving Father Brian Flynn, who was one of the central people in the novel ‘Whitethorn Woods’.

Oh, and the twins, Maud and Simon are part of this book too; now seventeen, they are taking on more responsibilities, and are hard-working and kind. But they are still devoted to each other and finish each other's sentences.  Maud and Simon are in several of the books by this author, first appearing in ‘Scarlet Feather’, as far as I recall. 

However, although I was delighted to encounter some of these folk again, it’s not at all necessary to have read any of the earlier books. ‘Heart and soul’ stands alone. And while Binchy’s characters are not quite as three dimensional or memorable as those created by Rosamunde Pilcher, they are very likeable. The ‘bad’ guys are mostly off stage, described in the past rather than involved in the present. And the two - one male, one female - who do take part in the stories, are rather to be pitied than despised. 

I thoroughly enjoyed rereading this book, which I finished in just a couple of days despite it having around 450 pages. I would recommend it highly to anyone who has read others of Maeve Binchy’s novels, or who would like a warm, character-based novel that meanders through a year in several people's lives. 

Review copyright 2025 Sue's Book Reviews

Whitethorn Woods (by Maeve Binchy)

(Amazon UK link)

In my gradual re-reading of most of Maeve Binchy’s novels, I reached ‘Whitethorn Woods’.  I last read it  in 2008, so it’s not surprising that I had forgotten the stories and the characters. I say ‘stories’ rather than ‘story’, because this is a series of loosely connected character cameos rather than a conventional novel. 

The opening section introduces Father Bryan Flynn, the curate - or assistant priest - at the Catholic church in a small Irish town called Rossmore. In his parish there’s a kind of ancient shrine, to St Ann (possibly the mother of Mary). Father Bryan is not superstitious, and he finds it annoying that so many of his parishioners, who don’t generally visit the church or go to confession, go to this shrine to pray to St Ann for all kinds of things - ailments, family problems, or the wish to find a husband. 

And he knows that there’s a new highway planned, a kind of bypass which will bring a lot more visitors, and make access easier. But the plans show it going right through St Ann’s shrine. So a lot of local people are very upset, and have been demonstrating against the new highway.

In the first chapter, Father Flynn ponders about the people he will be visiting that morning. There’s his sister-in-law Kitty, whose husband has left her. She lives in squalor and complains constantly about her life. Father Flynn regularly visits his elderly mother, and is wondering about whether she would be happier in a retirement home, particularly a local one called Ferns and Heathers.

He also plans to visit Neddy Nolan, a farmer whose property is right in the middle of the planned new highway. He wonders if Neddy - who’s not considered very bright - will accept money offered by speculators, or will wait for the compulsory purchase. 

And more. I didn’t really take in who these people were as I read. But the first chapter back-tracks a little; it’s told by Neddy Nolan looking back on his childhood, and his teenage years. It’s very cleverly done, demonstrating that while he’s not academic, and he’s quite naive, he’s a hard worker and prudent planner. He looks after his brother when they go to work abroad, and then he decides to live with his father after their mother dies. Then Neddy meets and falls in love with Clare, and is most surprised when she agrees to marry him. 

The second half of the first chapter switches to Clare’s viewpoint. She was an A-star pupil at her school, but lived in fear of an abusive uncle when she was at home. She manages to get to university, as her ambition has always been to become a teacher, and she does some bar work and pole-dancing to earn money. She nearly gets caught in the clutches of the person who employs her, so Neddy is like a breath of fresh air. And he’s not as daft as everyone thinks.

This is the format of the entire book - two people who are connected, each telling their story. They’re all individuals, but there’s inevitably some overlap as the book progresses. Father Flynn is involved in a lot of people’s lives, and comes across as a very likeable, caring person. Some mysteries are unravelled - such as what happened to a baby, left in a pram outside a shop, who vanished over twenty years earlier. 

Not all the people are likeable, however. There’s a violent criminal in jail, whom Father Flynn visits. There’s a girl who becomes so jealous of someone else that she arranges something terrible, and also ends up in jail. There’s an old-fashioned, arrogant doctor who doesn’t like a new, younger doctor living nearby and does everything he can to discredit him. And many more. 

Some of the stories are quite moving, some of them less so. It’s a very readable book, but it felt more like loosely connected short stories than a novel. When characters who narrated in one chapter were mentioned later in the book, I couldn’t always remember who they were. Many are in Rossmore, but not all of them. 

Overall it works well, giving a realistic (if slightly caricatured) picture of this diverse community. And running through out is the question of whether or not the highway will be built, and whether or not the shrine will remain. The shrine is important to all the people in the book, some more so than others. 

I’m not sure I cared all that much about the road, or the shrine. Nor did I feel close to any of the characters as their starring roles were all very brief. But I liked reading the book anyway. It was easy to read just one double-sectioned chapter at a time since each one stands alone. I thought the ending was cleverly done, bringing together several of the threads, and resolving the question of the highway in an unexpectedly satisfactory manner.

Recommended if you like this kind of gentle, rambling fiction without too much of a clear plot (but a great many subplots). 

Review copyright 2025 Sue's Book Reviews

Nights of rain and stars (by Maeve Binchy)

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It’s almost two decades since I read ‘Nights of rain and stars’ by the late Maeve Binchy. So it’s not surprising that I had completely forgotten the plot and characters. I hadn’t even remembered that this book is set in a small Greek island rather than the author’s more usual setting of Ireland. 

Whereas the last few Binchy novels I read featured some of the same characters, this one is - as far I know, anyway - an entirely new set of people. And the story opens with a terrible tragedy. 

Andreas is the owner of a taverna up on a hill overlooking the bay in a village called Aghia Anna. He thinks he sees flames down in the bay, and assumes he must be mistaken until his customers also notice something going on. A local man, some teenagers and a party of tourists are on an excursion on a boat when it catches fire. The folk at the taverna can’t do anything - it’s quite a walk down the hill - and they can see ambulances and police, so they stay where they are. 

There are five foreigners in Andreas’s taverna, all in their twenties. Thomas is an American in baggy shorts. He’s on a sabbatical from his job in California, and evidently quite well off. Elsa is a tall and very beautiful German who, we learn later, has been working as a TV presenter but has left her job. David is a rather awkward English guy who tends to say the wrong thing, although he’s very kind and well-meaning. 

Then there’s a young couple from Ireland, Shane and Fiona. It’s clear from the start that they are mismatched. Fiona - who is a nurse - is devastated as the tragedy unfolds. Shane thinks it’s nothing to do with him. He’s abrupt and grumpy, and uninterested in socialising. Fiona is devoted to Shane and does all she can, insisting nobody else understands him. 

As the day draws to a close, the visitors have to leave to get back to their accommodation in the village. They know they’ll see each other again as it’s a small place, although Shane is anxious to move on. He and Fiona are staying in an uncomfortable room which is all they can afford. She loves the beauty and friendliness of the place, while he wants to get to a city as soon as possible.

The book follows these diverse characters over the next few days, interacting with local folk in the village, and getting to know some of them quite well. There’s Vonni, for instance; she came from Ireland twenty years earlier, and evidently has some secrets in her past which the tourists are all curious about. Her story comes out slowly, as she shares little parts with the tourists. And they slowly get to know each other, too. Despite coming from four different countries, they find a lot in common.

Since I live in a Greek-speaking country, I could relate to a lot of the culture and descriptions. The Greek words that the tourists (David in particular) pick up are familiar to me. I know the kinds of foods that they ate, too. Evidently Maeve Binchy spent some holidays - or perhaps longer periods - in Greece. It reads as if written by someone who appreciated the people and culture.

As the story progresses it becomes clear that each of the tourists - and some of the Greek locals - have family problems. Andreas’s son Adonis lives in Chicago and hasn’t been in touch for a long time. Vonni hasn’t seen her son for even longer. Thomas has a nine-year-old son in California, living with his mother and stepfather, and Thomas decided it was good for his son that he travel a long distance away. Over the course of the book, Thomas begins to see things differently and to appreciate his son’s point of view better.

Elsa has run away from someone in Germany - someone she loves, but feels she cannot trust. She has to make some serious decisions too, and has a lot of correspondence before she finally reaches a conclusion. And David has escaped from his rather stifling parents; he’s an only child and his father wants him to go into his business, while David is more of a free spirit; he wants to write, and paint, and learn about the world before settling down to a desk job. 

Fiona has also escaped from her parents, who are obsessively trying to plan for their silver wedding party. There were angry words exchanged when she set out on her travels, as they didn’t like Shane at all. But the more they criticised him, the more she stood up for him. Fiona and Shane’s relationship comes to a head after an unpleasant incident, and she has to make some difficult decisions too.

It’s entirely a character-based book, and I thought it quite clever to start with a tragedy that drew these diverse people together so quickly. Maeve Binchy had a gift with characterisation, and I felt as if I got to know each of the tourists (except Shane) quite well. I didn’t know how it was going to end for any of them, or what decisions they would eventually make. And I thought the ending was very well handled, with positive outcomes and plenty of hope for the future.

Perhaps it’s a bit sanitised, with a lot of things working out a tad too easily. But I didn’t think of that until after I had finished. The writing is evocative and perfectly paced for my tastes. I was entirely drawn into the story, and sad when I had to close the last page, feeling as if I were saying goodbye to some people I cared about.  

Highly recommended.

Review copyright 2025 Sue's Book Reviews

Quentins (by Maeve Binchy)

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When I first read Maeve Binchy’s novels, I acquired them gradually and read them over the course of many years. I realised that there were overlaps in some of the characters, but couldn’t always remember them from previous books. Now I’m re-reading around one each month, in the order in which they were published, and am very much appreciating this aspect of continuity.

I last read ‘Quentins’ in 2003, and in more than two decades had totally forgotten the story, and the characters. The restaurant known as Quentins was first mentioned, as far as I recall, in the book ‘Evening Class’, which I reread in October last year. Its owners Patrick and Brenda are shown as hard-working, generous people, but we didn’t learn much about the restaurant. ‘Evening Class’, however, is primarily about Brenda’s closest friend Nora. 

The restaurant is mentioned again, in passing, in ‘Tara Road’, which I re-read at the end of November; that book introduces Ria, who lives in Tara Road, and various of her friends. And in ‘Scarlet Feather’, which I re-read at the start of January, the focus is on Tom Feather and Cathy Scarlett who run a catering company. They’re not in competition with Quentins, which is quite a high class restaurant by that stage. That book also introduces Cathy’s parents, known as Muttie and Lizzie, and  delightfully curious (and oddly naive) twins called Maud and Simon. 

In the novel ‘Quentins’, which I just finished, the main character is called Ella. She first visits Quentins, with her parents, when she is six, and she’s very impressed by the courtesy shown to her. She and her parents live in Tara Road, and although she has no siblings, they’re very happy. Or so they seem until she grows up, and realises that her parents have very little in common with each other. 

Ella eventually moves out, and takes a job teaching. And then she falls in love with a married man, who is charming to everyone and assures her that his marriage is dead. He spends a lot of time with her, and advises her friends and family financially, in ways that, at first, seem legitimate… 

Ella and some friends who work in film production decide that it would be good to make a documentary about Quentins and some of the patrons and staff. They apply for funding from an American company, and Ella is sent to talk to the wealthy boss, Derry King, who has historical links with Dublin but no desire to go back. 

The twins Maud and Simon appear several times in this book, as do Cathy and Tom of Scarlet Feather. We see Nora, too, and in each case I was delighted to read a bit more of their stories, to know how they were getting on. There are also a lot of other people introduced, with connections to Quentins, including the actual owner whose name is Quentin. 

When Ella is in the United States, telling the stories that are planned for the documentary, several chapters are taken up with different people. Some had been mentioned before, some are (as far as I could remember) new. Each had a story connected with the restaurant, whether positive or negative. And we learn more of Patrick and Brenda’s story too: how they decided that they needed their own restaurant, and what principles they believed in. 

Even though I had read the other books relatively recently, I found the number of characters a little overwhelming, and could not always remember who was whom. But the significant ones stood out; I liked Ella very much, and thoroughly enjoyed meeting the twins again, with their awkward, innocent questions. I even laughed aloud at one of their song suggestions towards the end.

There’s a fair bit of drama in this book, and some quite tense scenes when Ella has to make some difficult decisions. But the whole is warm, showing a community that stands together, with people who support and care for each other. And the ending is uplifting and encouraging.

Definitely recommended, though it's probably best if read after other books with these characters; at least ‘Scarlet Feather’. 

Review copyright 2025 Sue's Book Reviews

Scarlet Feather (by Maeve Binchy)

(Amazon UK link)

In my gradual re-read of the novels by the late Maeve Binchy, roughly in chronological order of publication, I reached ‘Scarlet Feather’. My edition is a hardback with just under 500 pages, so I was a little daunted when I decided to read it at quite a busy time of year.  I last read it in 2017. 

However, as with many of this author’s books, particularly the later ones, I was quickly drawn into the story, felt empathy with some of the characters, and eager to know what was going to happen. I had recalled a few significant incidents from the plot, but not the majority and I thoroughly enjoyed it once again. As with many of Maeve Binchy’s novels, it’s set in Dublin. 

The two main characters in this book are Cathy Scarlet and Tom Feather, good friends who met on a catering course some years earlier. Both have a passion for cooking, and have set up a business together. Cathy is married to a lawyer called Neil, and Tom lives with the very beautiful Marcella. The four sometimes get together socially; both Neil and Marcella are interested in the business (known as ‘Scarlet Feather’). Neil sometimes offers legal advice, Marcella is happy to help out in the kitchen. 

Cathy is from a working-class background, with several brothers and a sister who went to work in the United States some years earlier. Her father, known as Muttie, is out of work and addicted to betting on horses, although he does sometimes win. Cathy’s mother Lizzie works hard as a cleaner, and is usually quite cheerful. She used to work for Neil’s mother Hannah, and Hannah has never approved of their marriage as she’s quite a snob. 

However Hannah’s brother-in-law is a dodgy person who often disappears, and his wife becomes drunk and very vague. They have a young adult son called Walter who is always trying to find ways to make money without doing any work, and they have nine-year-old twins called Maud and Simon. I liked the twins so much! They’re a strange mixture of naivety and confidence, taking many things rather literally. They’ve been left to run wild and tend to race around and break things; but they also feel deeply unloved and unwanted at times. The twins provide some humour in the book; they are gifted at asking inappropriate questions with terrible timing. But they also lead to much of the poignancy. 

Then there’s Cathy’s aunt Geraldine (Lizzie’s sister) who lives in a luxury flat and has relationships with a series of married men. There’s James, who is involved in the purchase of new premises for Cathy and Tom’s business, and who wants to take cooking lessons as well as working as their accountant. And various other characters. 

The novel takes place over the course of a year. We meet most of the cast on New Year’s Eve. Cathy is working hard to provide food for a party held at Neil’s parents’ home. She won’t be paid, or even appreciated since she and Hannah do not get along. But she hopes that some of the guests might be so impressed with the food that they book Scarlet Feather for some other function. Tom is at a different function with Marcella. Other people are pinpointed around the locality; it’s a good way to introduce them. I found the number a bit overwhelming at first and made notes in the front of the book, but it is quickly clear who the main and most interesting ones are, and easy enough to distinguish them.

Maud and Simon are the catalyst for many of the events that take place, starting when they arrive at the party in a taxi, saying they have been left on their own and have nowhere else to go. But Hannah doesn’t want them either, and her husband Jock, their uncle, is rather vague, so he leaps at the idea that Cathy and Neil might take them in.  Neil is less happy…

The book charts the highs and lows of Scarlet Feather over the course if the year, including one shocking incident that almost destroys them. It also looks at relationships, and what happens when a couple starts pulling in different directions. Tom doesn’t like Marcella modelling scanty lingerie, but her dream has always been to be a model. Neil crusades for the homeless, and campaigns for justice for refugees, but gets so caught up in his good works that he has little time for Cathy. And he sees her business as insignificant, irrelevant. It’s quite thought-provoking seeing the two viewpoints, which are very well portrayed.

The most moving sections involve Maud and Simon, who have learned already when to speak up about their problems, and when it’s probably better to stay silent. They’re not good at keeping secrets, and they worry, sometimes, that they are being a nuisance. And there are some thought-provoking questions (and another minor storyline involving someone else) about whether children are better off with caring foster parents or neglectful blood relatives. 

The last chapters and the ending are somewhat bittersweet; I had forgotten what happened, but perhaps it was inevitable. I know I was very sorry when I reached the end of the book the first time, as so many things seemed to be left open. I’m relieved to know, now, that several of the characters re-appear (albeit in more minor roles) in subsequent novels. 

I’m very glad I read ‘Scarlet Feather’ again, and already look forward to re-reading it in another decade or so.

 Review copyright 2025 Sue's Book Reviews

Tara Road (by Maeve Binchy)

(Amazon UK link)

I’ve been re-reading some of my collection of Maeve Binchy books, and just finished ‘Tara Road’. It’s a long book - over 600 pages - but I finished it in just a few days. It’s a very engaging story and I found myself caught up with the people, sometimes almost unable to put the book down. I last read this book in 2015 and had only remembered the general storyline, not the people or situations. 

The book opens by mentioning when the main character of the book - Maria, known as Ria - was born, in 1960. She lives in a small town in Ireland, and has just one sister, Hilary, who is a couple of years older. But the story begins a couple of paragraphs later when Ria is sixteen, in the cinema with a boy who wants to kiss her. Ria and Hilary discuss boys and what they might do with them…

Then the action moves to an estate agency where Ria gets her first proper job. There she meets a self-contained, elegant young woman called Rosemary and the two become great friends. Ria is quite humble and expects that everyone will fall for Rosemary rather than her. So it’s quite a surprise when a new employee, the lively and handsome Danny Lynch, is quite taken with Ria…

The style of writing is friendly, somewhat informal at times, drawing out the personalities and quirks of the different main characters. I liked Ria almost immediately, and could empathise with her. She’s constantly surprised at Danny’s friendship and growing love, even though her mother and sister are suspicious.  

The action moves forward; Ria and Danny are married, living in a spacious house in the up-and-coming Tara Road. They both have an eye for antiques and ‘good taste’, and like slowly improving the house, shopping for bargains. Ria is an excellent cook and loves to socialise. Her kitchen is constantly filled with baking, and with friends or family members who pop in.  She and Danny have two children: Annie and Brian. 

It’s something of a saga novel. The first half, approximately, covers Ria’s apparently charmed life as her children grow up. Annie is a somewhat temperamental teenager by the mid-way point of the book, often clashing with her mother. Brian is delightful, always managing to say the wrong thing for the best of motives. I loved Brian’s comments which made me chuckle more than once. 

There are a lot of subplots going on, too. There’s Gertie who runs a launderette and is married to a man who regularly gets drunk and violent. She won’t acknowledge it to anyone, and has created a fiction for her relatives that theirs is a very happy marriage. Then there’s Colm who runs a new restaurant on the corner of Tara Road with his somewhat withdrawn sister Caroline. Nobody knows quite what their relationship is and there are quite a few rumours until a revelation which I had entirely forgotten. 

There are also business threads, but they’re never over-done or too detailed. Danny works for someone called Barney who is a wealthy entrepreneur who sometimes takes huge risks. Barney is married to the quiet, family-oriented Mona, and has a mistress called Polly whom everyone else knows about. Then Annie starts to take an interest in boys, though not as much as her friend Kitty does.

Then there’s a dramatic (though not unexpected) scene, and an announcement which Ria is totally unprepared for. In shock she spontaneously agrees to a two-month house swap with someone in the United States called Marilyn.  And most of the rest of the book covers what happens, both with Marilyn in Tara Road and with Ria in Marilyn’s home. 

I liked the way that these two women are both believable, yet strongly contrasted. Ria is outgoing, and likes to talk to anyone. Marilyn is much more reserved, and even her neighbours barely know her. Each somewhat shakes up the neighbourhood where they are temporarily staying. They also both learn a lot about themselves, and make steps to change. 

I found the pace exactly right, the different stories very engaging, and the writing excellent. There’s minimal bad language and nothing explicit, although there are plenty of hints and references to people’s bedroom activities. I think this would make an excellent introduction to Maeve Binchy’s writing for someone who likes reading long novels, though I don’t think I’d have appreciated it as a teenager. 

Definitely recommended.

Review copyright 2024 Sue's Book Reviews

Evening Class (by Maeve Binchy)

(Amazon UK link)

I’m gradually re-reading most of my Maeve Binchy collection, although I’ve missed out a few of the earlier ones which I hadn’t liked as much as her later books. I’ve just finished ‘Evening Class’, which I last read in 2006. I had almost entirely forgotten the plot, and had not remembered any of the characters. But I knew that I liked it very much, and hoped I would not have changed my opinion eighteen years later.

I’m pleased to report that, once again, I thought this an excellent book. The overall story concerns a group of 30 diverse people who decide to join an evening class to learn Beginners' Italian.  But whereas this could have led to a rather dull description of each evening, Binchy introduces us, one at a time, to key members of her cast. She shows us a little of each person's viewpoint as the story progresses.  

The number of characters is high, and trying to remember their relationships is a bit daunting, so I made pencil notes at the beginning of the book. I’m pretty sure that some of these folk reappear in later books by Maeve Binchy so I’ll be glad of the reference in future. As with most of her novels, it’s set in Ireland. 

The first family we meet is that of Aidan Dunne. He’s a thoughtful man, approaching fifty, who teaches Latin at the local comprehensive school. He has given a lot to the school, and is generally liked. The Headmaster is soon to retire, and Aidan believes he will be given the role. The only other contender for the post is Tony O’Brien, a much more recent addition to the school staff, who doesn’t seem to care much about the school or even know the names of most of the pupils.

Aidan is married to Nell, and wonders why their marriage seems to have gone stale. She no longer seems to have any interest in his job, or the stories he can tell. And she doesn’t talk about her own work, as a cashier at the local posh restaurant, Quentin’s. They have two young adult daughters still living at home, but they’re out and about and barely spend any time with their parents. Aidan isn’t a pushy guy, and mostly goes with the flow.

What Aidan doesn’t know is that his older daughter Grania has met and become very attracted to someone much older than she is...

In the next chapter, we meet Nora, known as Signora, who has lived in Italy for the past twenty years. She went there in defiance of her family because she was in love with an Italian man, even though she knew he had to marry someone else for the sake of his family. She lived in a small flat, observing his family, giving wise advice, and working as a tour guide, an English teacher, and the provider of beautifully sewn clothes and household furnishings. 

A sudden tragedy forces Nora to use the last of her savings to travel back to the UK and look for inexpensive accommodation. Which she finds after meeting a bright young woman called Suzi who works at a restaurant. Suzi has a younger brother who goes to Aidan’s school. Nora’s closest friend is called Brenda, and she, with her husband Patrick, run Quentins restaurant. 

The next chapter introduces a young man called Bill whose best (platonic) friend is Grania. He works in a bank and is in love with a rather ditzy girl called Lizzie. She is convinced that he’s going to be a wealthy bank manager, and when he mentions Italy she thinks they will go there….

And so, chapter by chapter, different characters are introduced, each one with some connection to those whom we have previously got to know. Writing them down helped me to remember much better who was whom and what their connections were. 

But the overall theme is that of the new Italian evening class, starting at Aidan’s school, under his direction. All the main characters sign up after Signorina is asked to teach it. She is clearly an excellent teacher who encourages them to talk to each other, and to learn useful words and phrases. She also teaches them about the culture, introduces them to Italian food, and generally inspires them all, whatever their level of understanding or education. 

Gradually a strong community spirit develops, but as new characters have their own chapters - with their stories often going back a decade or more - there are more and more connections.  There’s the wealthy Connie, for instance, whose husband’s business has crashed; this affects more than one person and she learns about them almost by accident. There’s a young man caught up in a web of crime who uses the school to store some dodgy boxes. There’s a growing friendship between Aidan and Signora which everyone else is aware of and suspects will lead to something else…

And so much more. I felt totally caught up in this community of diverse and fascinating people, each at the class for different reasons, each with their own past and secrets, some of which come to light over the course of the book.

It’s not a quick read: my paperback edition has over 500 pages, but I found myself picking it up at every available moment to find out more about the many subplots that intertwine so cleverly. The novel takes place over the course of nearly a year, and the final chapters take us to Rome, for an end-of-year class trip that they all manage to take after extensive fund-raising. Misunderstandings arise, decisions have to be made… and the ending, back in Ireland, is nicely done.

All in all, I thought this a wonderful book. I don’t know why it’s taken me so long to pick it up again to reread. Recommended highly to anyone who likes this kind of gentle women’s fiction with a lot going on, and some delightfully realistic and diverse characters.

Review copyright 2024 Sue's Book Reviews

The Copper Beech (by Maeve Binchy)

(Amazon UK link)

I’m slowly re-reading most of my collection of Maeve Binchy novels. I collected them over many years, and some of the older paperbacks (acquired second-hand) are starting to fall to bits. That didn’t stop me from reading ‘The Copper Beech’ over the past couple of days, however. I last read it in 2008 and hadn’t recalled what it was about, or any of the characters in it. It’s over 400 pages long, but I finished it much more quickly than I had expected to.

It’s written in a style that Maeve Binchy did extremely well: that of each long chapter being written from a different viewpoint. It’s essentially the story of a group of students who have attended a Catholic primary school in Ireland, and what happens to them as they grow up. The school has a huge copper-coloured beech tree outside, where generations of students have carved their names or initials.

The first chapter involves a special visit by the Bishop. It introduces the good-hearted Father Gunn, who cares deeply about everyone in his parish. His housekeeper Mrs Kennedy would love to organise the event, but the Bishop is coming to bless the school. So the priest feels that the school staff and children should do the preparations.  And all goes well, until some of the children decide to sample some of the cakes on offer to the visitors…

It’s a great overview of the people whose lives will unfold over the course of the book, shown mainly through the eyes of Father Gunn. There’s Mr and Mrs Kelly, the schoolmaster and his wife; Mr Hayes the solicitor; Dr Jims. There are also some children who are behaving, and some who are not. Maeve Binchy had a gift for describing people in just a few sentences, and by the end of the first chapter, I knew several names and an idea of many of their quirks.

The next chapter focuses on a girl called Madeleine Ross. She was born in 1932, and we see her background, her family, and her general lack of ambition. Maddy is eighteen by the time the Bishop visits, and is startled to be invited to teach at the school. She agrees, as she has nothing else planned, and discovers that she loves teaching. She handles the younger children well, and decides this is where she wants to stay. 

Then she meets a new assistant priest, Father Barry. He doesn’t want to be in small-town Ireland; he longs to work as a missionary in South America. He fund-raises and preaches about the poverty his friends there are experiencing, but never quite feels that he fits in. He and Maddy become friendly; they understand each other, and have a lot to talk about. But then Maddy starts to feel something stronger than friendship…

Most of the rest of the book features children who leave the school together, or their parents. Some go on to other Catholic schools, some have to find work. Some of the children come from comfortable homes, some from large, impoverished families. There’s an awareness of class and disparity of wealth, but the children don’t all understand why some are welcomed in their homes and some are not. 

We meet Maura, from a large, struggling family, who manages to find plenty of work. She is unexpectedly courted by a young man who works at the hotel where she cleans, and things seem to be going well until their baby is born. I liked Maura - well, I did, until later in the book when she becomes a bit manipulative. 

Then there’s Eddie, a likeable boy who is interested in art and nature, and who starts a correspondence with a pen friend called Chris. Eddie assumes that Chris is a boy, and Chris - who is Christine - assumes that Eddie is a girl called Edith. We learn a lot about them both from their correspondence, and I liked them both very much. 

Each lengthy chapter is almost a novella in itself, with a main protagonist and a satisfactory (if not always happy) ending. And yet this isn’t a book of short stories. Each chapter picks up on someone from a previous chapter, and delves into their background, their hopes and dreams, and their lives as they go through the teenage years. 

I found it all compulsive reading. There aren’t too many great shocks, and at times I didn’t recall who some of the minor characters were. But I felt involved in the town, intrigued to know how it would all end. The writing is descriptive without being dull, the people different without being caricatured. There are some illicit liaisons and some criminal activities… but it all feels relaxed, and entirely believable.

The final chapter, set in 1969, sees the closure of the school, after much consultation. Several people are interested in buying it for a variety of purposes. It brings the novel full circle, and the ending is entirely satisfactory. 

Recommended if you like this kind of relaxing women’s fiction without too much action, yet with a lot going on in a small town.

Review copyright 2024 Sue's Book Reviews

Circle of Friends (by Maeve Binchy)

(Amazon UK link)

I have liked most of the books I read by Maeve Binchy, which I gradually acquired over the past twenty-five years or so. But I’ve only read most of them once or twice. So a few months ago I embarked on a gradual re-read. I’m aiming to read the novels in publication order, missing out a few of the earlier ones that I recall I didn’t particularly enjoy.  

I’ve just finished ‘Circle of Friends’, which was published in 1990. I last read it in 2008 and did not remember anything about it. This book features the residents of a small town in Ireland called Knockglen, and opens in 1949 when Benny Hogan is about to celebrate her 10th birthday. Maeve Binchy was a master of ‘showing not telling’, and in the conversation Benny has with the cook/housekeeper Patsy, we learn a great deal about her personality and circumstances. 

Benny is the only child of a quiet, devoutly Catholic couple who would have loved more children. Her father works hard at a gentleman’s outfitters, and her mother is at home full-time. Benny knows that they adore her, and she’s set her heart on a beautiful pink outfit that she has admired. However Benny is big-built, and it’s clear that she’s totally unsuited to pink velvet. It’s a deep disappointment to her when she’s presented with a nice but practical new jumper and skirt. But her mother is sure she will love it… and she hides her feelings and pretends to be happy about it.

All Benny’s local friends come to her party, and also Eve, an orphaned girl who has been brought up in the local convent. They haven’t had much to do with each other, but realise they are both lonely. After various incidents in the first chapter, they form what turns out to be a lasting friendship. 

The second chapter leaps forward eight years to 1957. Benny and Eve have just finished high school and are celebrating with coffee in the local hotel. Benny is going to university in Dublin, and Eve would love to go too, but there’s no money to send her. So she’s going to be apprenticed to a convent in Dublin. Benny is looking forward to her studies, but she won’t have much freedom as her parents expect her home every evening on the bus. 

The rest of the novel follows the first year at university for Benny and the people she gets to know.  There’s a large cast of characters, and at times I forgot who somebody was, but in most cases it didn’t much matter. The action takes place partly in Dublin, and partly in Knockglen and the novel is primarily character-based. Benny is kind, generous and a tad naive; Eve is loyal to her friends, but quite prickly and at times extremely hot-tempered. 

One of the first people Benny meets is a beautiful, poised girl called Nan. She doesn’t have a happy or secure family life, but she’s determined to rise about it. Nan has read every book she can find on etiquette, and she behaves graciously to everyone, always apparently knowing what’s the right thing to say, and when to keep quiet. It’s a testament to Maeve Binchy’s writing that I could see that Nan is a tad too good to be true, and inherently very self-centred. 

There are boys, too, of course: the handsome Jack, the jokey Aiden, the loyal Bill, and several others. Other girls in the class put out lures while Benny is sure nobody will fancy her. And if they do, they won’t have much chance to pursue a romance because she has to return to Knockglen every evening. 

Meanwhile in Knockglen, her father’s slimy assistant Sean has his eye on Benny, and two or three young relatives of other shopkeepers are determined to upgrade the shops and bring in more custom. I didn’t always follow what was going on, or recall who was related to whom. The action switches frequently from person to person, but it builds up a picture of a caring community. It also shows the tension between the older traditionalists and the younger generation who are full of creativity. 

There’s a lot that happens - the novel is over 500 pages long - and I found myself so engrossed in the different interwoven subplots that it was sometimes hard to put the book down. Benny matures a lot in the year, and learns a great deal about herself and who her real friends are.

The novel is warm, and encouraging, and ends in a positive way. It’s interesting from an Irish social history point of view - the author was, I’m sure, writing at least in part from her own experience - and the main characters are three-dimensional and believable. It’s not a quick read, but if you like character-based women’s fiction that revolves around a community of people, then I would definitely recommend this.

Review copyright 2024 Sue's Book Reviews

Silver Wedding (by Maeve Binchy)

(Amazon UK link)

Having decided to re-read my large collection of novels by the late Maeve Binchy, in roughly chronological order, I picked up ‘Silver Wedding’ a couple of days ago. I recalled liking this book very much, but since I hadn’t read it since 2003 I had no recollection of any of the characters, nor of any story other than that it related to the celebration of a Silver Wedding.

Desmond and Deirdre are the couple soon to celebrate 25 years of marriage; it’s clear from the start that they love parties, and - even more - love talking about the family photos that are taken for every milestone and party. They are in their late forties, but already empty-nesters. Their three children, Anna, Brendan and Helen, have all left home.

Anna, as the eldest (and the one closest to her parents) knows that it’s up to her to organise the party. She has lots of ideas, then decides that the best thing is to discuss it with her parents. The first chapter of the book is focussed on Anna and her boyfriend Joe, who (it’s clear) is dependent on her home and income. Anna works in a bookshop and Joe is an out-of-work actor. 

Each chapter then switches to another of the main characters in the family and the original wedding party. We don’t see the meeting Anna has with her parents; instead, time gradually eases forward and we learn that people have received invitations, or that they’re thinking about what they might wear. It’s cleverly done; each chapter has a little subplot of its own, revealing secrets about the person concerned, and a bit more about some of the others. 

Brendan is the subject of the second chapter. He lives in Ireland with his uncle, after escaping from what he perceived as pressure from his parents to be academic and work in an office. It’s a bit ironic, since his father, quarter of a century earlier, escaped from the bleak family farm to live in London. 

Helen is perhaps the most interesting of the three: she’s a postulate in a convent, but the other nuns really don’t know if she’s suited to taking her vows. They all work in the community, and Helen is enthusiastic and big-hearted, but tends to make all kinds of mistakes. I liked Helen very much and felt a lot of empathy for her situation, and the secret that is revealed in her chapter.

Maeve Binchy had a gift for creating slightly larger-than-life but three dimensional people who are easy to distinguish from each other. And she was a master at ‘showing not telling’ - often we learn more about people other than the viewpoint character during the course of a chapter, from the conversations and thoughts of the person concerned.

There are some quite series themes covered sensitively such as teenage pregnancies, and adultery, as well as the gentler topics of lies, misunderstandings or miscommunications within families. Several people learn, over the course of the book, that the way they were living or the lies they were telling were unnecessary. 

I’m very glad I re-read this book, which I liked very much and would recommend to anyone who likes this kind of women’s fiction. It was first published in 1989 so inevitably feels a bit dated; but the people are recognisable, and likeable, and I was sorry to close the last page and say ‘goodbye’ to them. 

  Review copyright 2024 Sue's Book Reviews

Firefly Summer (by Maeve Binchy)

(Amazon UK link)

I’ve decided to re-read all the books I’ve collected by Maeve Binchy, roughly in chronological order. So I pulled ‘Firefly Summer’ from its bookcase… and looked at it in some dismay. It’s a very long novel, over 750 pages, and I didn’t remember particularly liking it when I first read it, or when I re-read it in 2005. But I thought I would at least start it, and aim to read at least fifty pages a day. 

In the event, I found it so absorbing that I finished it in just a week. Like all Binchy’s writing, the novel is warm, descriptive without being dull, filled with real, three-dimensional characters. It’s set in the 1960s in a small Irish town called Mountfern. The main characters are a family who own the pub: John Ryan and his wife Kate, and their four children. Dara and Michael are twins, aged 12 at the start of the novel. They have two younger brothers, Eddie who seems to be attracted to mischief and adventure, and his much more nervous, fearful brother Declan. 

Dara and Michael have a group of friends around their age, and spend a lot of their time playing in the ruins of the old, ruined Fernscourt mansion. Then a wealthy American arrives, having bought the Fernscourt land. He has Irish roots and wants to rebuild the house as a hotel. Patrick O’Neill is a likeable person who has dreamed of returning to his roots for many years, although most of his friends advise against it. He has a son, fifteen-year-old Kerry, who is cynical and devious, and a beautiful 12-year-old daughter, Grace, who is charming, friendly and kind. Possibly a tad too much as Grace appears to have no faults at all.

Patrick’s arrival is the catalyst for a lot of changes. There’s inevitable opposition, and a lot of worries about what the hotel might do to local businesses, particularly the Ryans’ pub. He has to learn that things don’t happen quickly - the novel covers about three years, not just one summer as the title implies. And there aren’t any fireflies in Mountfern. 

There’s a large cast of local characters, too many for me to remember them, but whereas in some books it’s confusing to have so many people, it wasn’t a problem for me in this book. When one of them is significant to the story, their context is subtly shown. A few stand out: Rachel Fine, Patrick’s colleague and mistress from the United States is a very likeable person. Sheila Whelan, the postmistress, observes everything that’s going on, and is both understanding and discreet. Fergus Slattery, the solicitor, is a bit disorganised, single-minded but naive. 

There are some shocks in the story, events that have many repercussions. It’s so long since I last read the book that I had entirely forgotten about them; even when they happened I was not expecting them. People’s lives change forever, and although Patrick is not necessarily held responsible, he knows that if he hadn’t arrived, following his dream, life might have continued without some of the tragedies that occur. 

In the end things come full circle in a way which, again, I had not remembered at all. Perhaps it’s inevitable, perhaps for the best. I found myself a little disappointed; yet I’m not sure how else it could have ended. 

I’m glad I decided to re-read ‘Firefly Summer’, and hope I won’t leave it nearly two decades before I read it again.

Review copyright 2024 Sue's Book Reviews

Victoria line, Central line (by Maeve Binchy)

(Amazon UK link)

I read the first two books in my Maeve Binchy ‘Three bestsellers in one volume’ in October and November. I wasn't too keen on 'Dublin 4', a series of four novellas, which I read in September. However I very much liked 'The Lilac Bus', which I read in November. I have just finished the third book in this large volume: ‘Victoria line, Central line’. I last read this in 2001, and all I recalled about it was that it was a collection of short stories, some of them a bit inconclusive.

My memory is accurate. Maeve Binchy wrote some wonderful novels, with thoughtful descriptions and believable, flawed characters. The characters in her short stories are good too; I could relate to several of them. And the first couple of stories did seem to have an ending. 

There’s Amy, for instance, married to Ed, finally getting to meet his beloved big sister Bella. She’s very nervous about this. Bella more-or-less brought Ed up, and he writes to her every month, wanting her approval. The story involves Amy’s preparation, and a potential disaster when the train she’s on breaks down.  This first story ends very neatly, in my opinion. 

The second story is entirely different, about a couple who are planning something unexpected which they hope will spice up their marriage… that, too, has a satisfactory conclusion. But then there’s a story about Vera who’s rather a snob; it’s a good character study, but doesn’t really have much story at all. 

The themes are widespread, some of them potentially shocking, and not ‘family friendly’, although Maeve Binchy never makes the mistake of including details about what goes on in intimate situations. But there’s a lot of jumping in and out of bed, promiscuity, an unwanted pregnancy and a great many women going to bed with men who are married to someone else. 

The stories are all set in London, in different places that have stations on the Underground. Many of the characters use the Underground to travel, or meet in stations. But since I don’t really know London they didn’t mean anything to me; it felt just like a device to give unrelated titles to each of the short stories rather than finding more relevant ones. 

The writing is excellent, as I expect with Maeve Binchy; the people mostly three-dimensional, although for a book first published in 1983 some of the morals and ethics are rather shocking. Quite apart from the secret relationships and adultery, people think nothing of telling lies to each other, to their bosses, and sometimes to themselves. In a few stories this leads to trouble, but one story involves a shop-lifter who is entirely successful… 

One or two of the stories are a little chilling, as controlling personalities are cleverly revealed and the main characters fall under their overt charm. And others disturbing, with flagrant rule-breaking or dishonesty. It feels a bit as if the author was experimenting with different storylines and people, and the style of writing doesn’t quite work with the actions of the characters.

Books of short stories can be unsatisfying when they’re all about different people, and I mostly just read one or two at a time rather than several at once. 

I don’t know that I’d recommend this, particularly, but if you’re a fan of Maeve Binchy, or want some short stories to dip into, it’s not a bad book.

Review copyright 2023 Sue's Book Reviews

The Lilac Bus (by Maeve Binchy)

(Amazon UK link)

I’m re-reading the novels and short story collections that I’ve collected, over many years, by the late Maeve Binchy. I have an omnibus volume of three of her books which I decided to read (and review) one at a time. I read the four novellas which comprise the first of these, ‘Dublin 4’, in the middle of September. A couple of days ago started the second, ‘The Lilac Bus’. 

I’m surprised to find that I have never previously read this book - or, at any rate, not in the past twenty-five years or so since I started cataloguing and reviewing my books. I’m not sure whether to class it as a novel or a set of short stories, because in a way it’s both. However each story builds somewhat on the earlier ones.

There are eight separate long chapters, each telling the story of one of the people who travels, every  weekend, from Dublin to their home town of Rathdoon. The journey takes about three hours, and is not an official bus but a private arrangement with the driver, a young man called Tom.

The first section is about Nancy, a young woman who works as a receptionist for three doctors. She’s clearly good at her job, but not a particularly likeable person. We learn from her conversation, and other asides that she takes frugality to such an extreme that people think of her as rather mean. 

She thinks she’s helping by telling everyone how they can eat more cheaply, or where they can find money-saving coupons. Although she’s earning a good salary, she seems to begrudge every penny she has to spend. Nancy has a few eye-opening moments during this particular weekend. 

The next section looks at Dee, the doctor’s daughter in Rathdoon. In the first chapter it appeared that she was a kind, caring person as she sat next to Nancy on the bus, and listened to her talking at great length on many topics. But Dee has a secret, and something Nancy said makes her realise that her secret is not in fact what she thought….

Each section builds a little on the previous ones, enlarging on the knowledge we have already. There’s Mikey, who’s very good natured but annoys people by telling risque jokes. He travels back to stay with his brother and sister-in-law, and to help look after his very elderly father. There’s Kev, a rather nervous young man who turns out to have a secret life in Dublin which he’s very ashamed of, but sees no way out of. There’s Rupert, an upper-middle class academic who also has a secret of a very different kind, which he hasn’t been able to share with anyone. 

Judy is the oldest of the passengers, a woman who works at a herbal ‘New Age’ shop in Dublin, but is afraid it’s going to fail. Nobody really knows why her husband left her, taking their two children, a couple of decades earlier. She assumes everyone knows, but in conversation she discovers that they don’t: so she admits what happened in the past, and then makes a rather risky decision about the future. 

Celia, who likes to sit by Tom, is the daughter of the pub-owner in Rathdoon. She works as a nurse in Dublin and has some pleasant flatmates; but she can see that her mother is drinking too much. Her father died after being an alcoholic, and her siblings live around the world and can’t help. Celia feels as if she’s at her wits’ end, and knows she has to confront her mother somehow.

And Tom, who owns the bus, also has a life that none of the others know about. He observes them all, but doesn’t ask any questions. 

Each of these eight characters comes alive in Maeve Binchy’s word pictures, and their interactions with other people. I thought it was very well written and a clever idea, even if it is a tad unlikely that all eight passengers on a regular bus would have secrets or pasts that they are keeping from everyone else. But that doesn’t matter; nor does the slight caricaturing of some of the minor characters. 

A wide variety of situations are covered, and I found it a very readable, light novel (if that’s the correct word) with some mild humour here and there and some poignancy too.  Not all the situations are fully resolved - that’s an issue I have with many of the short stories by this author - but at least some of them are partly sorted out by the end of the weekend. 

Recommended if you enjoy Maeve Binchy’s writing, and if you like character-based books that examine several different slices of Irish life in the mid-1980s. 

Review copyright 2023 Sue's Book Reviews