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When Noel learns that his terminally ill former flame is pregnant with his child, he agrees to take guardianship of the baby girl once she's born. But as a single father battling demons of his own, Noel can't do it alone.
New York Times best-selling author Maeve Binchy has a way of making everyday experiences extraordinary. Scarlet Feather introduces budding entrepreneurs Cathy and Tom who, along with their extended families, meet the trials and rewards of life head on. Scarlet Feather is a new catering company formed by two friends from cooking school, Cathy Scarlet and Tom Feather. Their dream is to have the best business in Dublin.
Stoneybridge is a small town on the west coast of Ireland where all the families know one another. When Chicky Starr decides to take an old, decaying mansion set high on the cliffs overlooking the windswept Atlantic Ocean and turn it into a restful place for a holiday by the sea, everyone thinks she is crazy. Helped by Rigger (a bad boy turned good who is handy around the house) and Orla, her niece (a whiz at business), Chicky is finally ready to welcome the first guests to Stone House’s big warm kitchen, log fires, and understated elegant bedrooms.
Maeve Binchy imagined a street in Dublin with many characters coming and going, and every once in a while she would write about one of these people. She would then put it in a drawer; “for the future,” she would say. The future is now. Across town from St. Jarlath’s Crescent, featured in Minding Frankie, is Chestnut Street, where neighbors come and go. Behind their closed doors we encounter very different people with different life circumstances, occupations, and sensibilities.
When two unhappy women switch homes for the summer, there are extraordinary consequences, and each learns that the other has a deep secret that can never be revealed. At the end of the summer, when the women at last meet face-to-face, they find that they have become, firmly and forever, good friends.
In a small Greek island village, a group of travelers from around the world and the local residents they encounter are brought together in unexpected ways when sudden tragedy strikes. In her inimitable style, Maeve Binchy shares with readers the lives of these strangers, learning their hopes, dreams, and fears as they move forward, forever changed by their experience.
When Noel learns that his terminally ill former flame is pregnant with his child, he agrees to take guardianship of the baby girl once she's born. But as a single father battling demons of his own, Noel can't do it alone.
New York Times best-selling author Maeve Binchy has a way of making everyday experiences extraordinary. Scarlet Feather introduces budding entrepreneurs Cathy and Tom who, along with their extended families, meet the trials and rewards of life head on. Scarlet Feather is a new catering company formed by two friends from cooking school, Cathy Scarlet and Tom Feather. Their dream is to have the best business in Dublin.
Stoneybridge is a small town on the west coast of Ireland where all the families know one another. When Chicky Starr decides to take an old, decaying mansion set high on the cliffs overlooking the windswept Atlantic Ocean and turn it into a restful place for a holiday by the sea, everyone thinks she is crazy. Helped by Rigger (a bad boy turned good who is handy around the house) and Orla, her niece (a whiz at business), Chicky is finally ready to welcome the first guests to Stone House’s big warm kitchen, log fires, and understated elegant bedrooms.
Maeve Binchy imagined a street in Dublin with many characters coming and going, and every once in a while she would write about one of these people. She would then put it in a drawer; “for the future,” she would say. The future is now. Across town from St. Jarlath’s Crescent, featured in Minding Frankie, is Chestnut Street, where neighbors come and go. Behind their closed doors we encounter very different people with different life circumstances, occupations, and sensibilities.
When two unhappy women switch homes for the summer, there are extraordinary consequences, and each learns that the other has a deep secret that can never be revealed. At the end of the summer, when the women at last meet face-to-face, they find that they have become, firmly and forever, good friends.
In a small Greek island village, a group of travelers from around the world and the local residents they encounter are brought together in unexpected ways when sudden tragedy strikes. In her inimitable style, Maeve Binchy shares with readers the lives of these strangers, learning their hopes, dreams, and fears as they move forward, forever changed by their experience.
When a new highway threatens to bypass the town of Rossmore and cut through Whitethorn Woods, everyone has a passionate opinion about whether the town will benefit or suffer. But young Father Flynn is most concerned with the fate of St. Ann's Well, which is set at the edge of the woods and slated for destruction. People have been coming to St. Ann's for generations to share their dreams and fears, and speak their prayers.
A Few of the Girls is a glorious collection of the very best of her short story writing, stories that were written over the decades - some published in magazines, others for friends as gifts, many for charity benefits. The stories are all filled with the signature warmth and humor that have always been an essential part of Maeve's appeal.
The Mountainview School in working-class Dublin boasts a brightly festooned room brimming with paper flowers and Renaissance posters. There, in an evening class, "An Introduction to Italian," come Aiden Dunne, the supervisor, Signora, the professoressa, and 30 or so students, whose hopes and dreams are bound up in the Tuesday and Thursday lessons.
World War II had begun, and London was being bombed. Most parents were sending their children to live with relatives in the countryside for safety's sake. But shy, delicate Elizabeth didn't have anyone nearby. Instead, she would have to go far away, to Ireland, to stay with an old classmate of her mother's - whom Elizabeth hadn't even met. Accustomed to a life of unspoken rules and quiet discipline, Elizabeth wasn't prepared for the large, boisterous O'Connor family.
After many happy years of marriage and raising a family, Brian and Kathleen suddenly find themselves a bit lost in life. Midwesterners who've never traveled, Kathleen decides that what she and Brian need is a vacation, and she plans a trip to Ireland in search of her roots. In beautiful, quaint Lisdoonvarna, to the couple's surprise, they find themselves in the midst of a joyous yearly gathering, and they rediscover something much more important than evidence of long-dead ancestors: their love for each other and for life itself.
It began with Benny Hogan and Eve Malone, 2 inseparable young Irish women, growing up in the village of Knockglen. Benny, an only child, yearning to break free from her adoring parents and Eve, an orphan, abandoned to be raised by nuns, seemed an unlikely pair. Together, Eve and Benny knew the sins and secrets behind every villager's lace curtains...except their own. The pair becomes a circle when Benny and Eve leave for university in Dublin, and meet beautiful Nan Mahon and Jack Foley, a doctor's handsome son. But heartbreak and betrayal would bring the worlds of Knockglen and Dublin into explosive collision. Long-hidden lies would emerge to test the meaning of love and the strength of ties held within the fragile gold bands of a...Circle Of Friends.
From the royal wedding to boring airplane companions, Samuel Beckett to Margaret Thatcher, "senior moments" to life as a waitress, Maeve's Times gives us wonderful insight into a changing Ireland as it celebrates the work of one of our best-loved writers in all its diversity - revealing her characteristic directness, laugh-out-loud humor, and unswerving gaze into the true heart of a matter.
Carved in the trunk of the mighty copper beech tree that embraces the schoolyard in Shancarrig are declarations of love, hope, and identity - the youthful dreams of the children who studied there. Now grown, yet shaped by their years in the schoolhouse, they lead different lives. The Copper Beech is about 8 of these dreamers. From Ryan's Hotel to Barna Woods, where the gypsies came each year, from Nellie Dunn's sweet shop to Father Gunn's church, the tenor of life in Shancarrig is outwardly placid and uneventful. Some, like Nessa Ryan, in search of passion, would say deadly dull. But behind the calm exterior, serenity fades into unexpected drama: Maddy Ross has a secret love; Eddie Barton, a surprising friendship; the Darcy's, the glamorous newcomers, find a curious partner in poor Maura Brennan. The Dunnes, Kelly's, Leo Murphy, and Dr. Jim's all have their own extraordinary stories to tell...brought to life by Maeve Binchy's sure touch.
A secretary's silent passion for her boss meets the acid test on a business trip...A man and a woman's mutual disdain at first sight shows how deceptive appearances can be...An insecure wife clings to the illusion of order, only to discover chaos at the hands of a house sitter who opens the wrong doors...A pair of star-crossed travelers take each other's bags, and then learn that when you unlock a stranger's suitcase, you enter a stranger's life.
Kirstie Rawlings is jolted awake by a child crying. Racing upstairs to check on her newborn, she is plunged into every parents’ worst nightmare. She hears an unknown voice in the baby monitor saying, "Let’s take the child - and go." Is someone trying to steal her little girl?
In 'Homecoming', read by Sean Campion, the Brennans run Quentin's restaurant in Dublin for the owner, who lives abroad. But what will happen when he suddenly pays a visit? 'Telling Stories', read by Joanna Myers, sees Irene's fiancé turning up the night before the wedding with a face as white as the dress that is to be worn the next day. Then trouble starts....
Lough Glass is at the heart and soul of the namesake town clinging to its shore. They say that if you go out on St. Agnes' Eve and look into the lake at sunset you can see your future. But beneath its serene surface, the lake harbors secrets as dark and unfathomable as the beautiful woman who walks beside its waters.
Dr. Clara Casey has been offered the thankless job of establishing the underfunded clinic and agrees to take it on for a year. She has plenty on her plate already - two difficult adult daughters and the unwanted attentions of her ex-husband - but she assembles a wonderfully diverse staff devoted to helping their demanding, often difficult patients.
Before long the clinic is established as an essential part of the community, and Clara must decide whether or not to leave a place where lives are saved, courage is rewarded, and humor and optimism triumph over greed and self-pity. Heart and Soul is Maeve Binchy at her storytelling best.
I am a BIG Maeve Binchy fan, but this one is dreadful - there are way too many characters, the story is disjointed, some characters are never developed and it goes no-where. Maeve - what were you thinking? By-pass this one is my recommendation. Sorry Maeve.
10 of 10 people found this review helpful
As a big fan of Maeve Binchy, I have to say this was not one of her best books in my opinion. Too many characters were introduced and too few of them were developed enough. She kept throwing in names/characters from her previous novels where it really wasn't necessary. I'm a little annoyed that I paid 2 tokens for this book. Not worth it.
8 of 9 people found this review helpful
I agree with all of what other reviewer's have stated. I have not read any other Maeve Binchy books. And after reading these reviews, I wonder why I don't pay more attention to them beforehand.
The story as uneven. Many, many characters. It goes into detail about this priest's situation even though I would not have considered him a main character. The detail about Anya, even with her being more of a main character, went on for far too long. The twin's travels to Greece adding nothing to Fiona's issues, and it should have. Even more importantly, I do NOT get why the twins had to sond like robots!? The obnoxious woman had a role that should have been more suited to the mother of the bride or groom.
Altogether the narration was odd. As said, sometimes it was Irish, sometimes it was not. It did get confusing. The Polish was too thick. I did not find it easy to distinguish between the characters, but that was partly because there were too many.
Listen if you want, but I would not put mch stock into it. It makes me wonder if I should try another one of this author's books. Definitely I will avoid the nrrator.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful
this should have been an easy and charming book to listen to. Sile Bermingham, however, ruined it for me.
First of all, puzzlingly, she reads in an American accent for all the Irish characters.
Much worse than that is her "Polish" accent which is so stilted, incorrect and just UGLY that I found it impossible to listen to. Also a pair of twins show up that talk exactly like robots! Why???
I turned it off after a few hours. I couldn't keep on having my ears assaulted. it's too bad...
7 of 8 people found this review helpful
I can always count on Maeve Binchy to tell a heart warming story. I gave her 5 stars, but the narrator just 3 stars, hence the 4 star rating.
11 of 13 people found this review helpful
there was absolutely no plot to this book whatsoever--just a bunch of random characters' stories woven around a thin location. Long, rambling stories that lead you no where. Very disjointed, I got confused in the middle of the novel when it diverts to some hackneyed story about a priest. All of the characters' issues wrap up too neatly and it makes Dublin look like Hayseed, Iowa. If I was Irish, I'd be a bit offended by this quaint village show she puts on. I liked her other novels but this one just DRAGGED.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful
I can always count on Maeve Binchy's books to be enjoyable listens full of characters and charming narration. This book, while not one of her best, was still fun to listen to though I have preferred other Binchy audiobook narrators over this one.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
The story was not one of her best. It was pretty predictable. The reader was not up to par either. Sometimes she used an Irish accent and other times it faded. Also, it was read a bit slow. I probably would have like it better in general if it had be read better.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
The narrator lisps. If you can tolerate "s" being pronounced "th", go for it.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
The story sounded interesting in the summary description and although I never read Maeve Binchy I like stories about medicine (I'm a nurse and my husband's a physician) and I often find stories about my husband's family homeland charming and fun. However, after just 45 minutes, I realized this is a "He said/She said" book in the style of romantic novels and I prefer to spend my time reading or listening to books that are well-written and worthy of the description "great literature." So sorry, this one's not for me.
2 of 3 people found this review helpful