what i've been reading this week

10/3 – 16/3

hello everyone! happy monday but more importantly happy st. patrick’s day! i’ve had a kind of chill week compared to the normality of the last couple weeks—pretty much just settled into my new place and spent most of my time revising my first draft before sending it to my agent, which i’ve now done!!! so much can be said about this but for now i’m both excited and nervous to have another person read Mammy in its entirety (have also sent the full thing to my own Mam, so that’s even more nervewracking!) today’s plans include inviting a few of my irish pals over and attempting to make a spicebag so we’ll see how we get on! but for now, let’s chat about the books i read last week and get into them…

---

Lucy Sullivan is Getting Married by Marian Keyes

Really all I have to say is all hail queen Marian. This is one of her earliest novels, I think maybe her second, and it still slaps 20+ years later. I got really big Bridget Jones vibes off this one, and I love Keyes’s signature humour and the way she is so incredible and balancing the funny with the more heartfelt and serious issues that she explored in this, like depression and alcoholism. She’s a fucking legend! A national treasure! I think this means I’ve only got 3 of her novels left to read and that makes me very sad indeed.

---

I Want To Go Home But I’m Already There by Róisín Lanigan

This was a banger!! A book that uses the haunted house trope to explore the (terrifying) renting crisis in London and the breakdown of a relationship, this follows Áine as she moves in with her boyfriend Elliott to a horrid flat and things start to go wrong one by one…

I thought this was sharp, funny and compelling. Every time I put this down I simply wanted to pick it back up! It also explores the complexity of female friendship in such a nuanced way too. Out this week!

---

Nesting by Róisín O’Donnell

Another really compelling but incredibly nuanced book, Nesting has just recently been longlisted for the Women’s Prize and I can totally see why: it’s emotional, moving, beautifully written and important. It looks at the state of the housing crisis in Ireland, and one woman’s attempt at freedom from a coercive relationship with her husband. Ciara was a brilliant protagonist, and written with such a tender care. Really enjoyed this one, very much recommend!

What about yourselves? What have you all been reading and loving and maybe not loving? Let me know! Until next week xx