Synopsis
Amid daily reports of violence, Cushla lives a quiet life with her mother in a small town near Belfast. By day she teaches at a parochial school; at night she fills in at her family’s pub. There she meets Michael Agnew, a barrister who’s made a name for himself defending IRA members. Against her better judgment – Michael is not only Protestant but older, and married – Cushla lets herself get drawn in by him and his sophisticated world, and an affair ignites. Then the father of a student is savagely beaten, setting in motion a chain reaction that will threaten everything, and everyone, Cushla most wants to protect.
Rating
★★★
Thoughts
This book had been sitting in my TBR since its gritty title and cover drew me in at a bookstore last summer. All in all, I just found the story too drab for my taste. The characters and environment failed to evoke much emotion from me. So, there’s not much more to be said about it. It was okay, but dragged pretty hard.
Quote
“It was so much easier to say nothing than to forget.”