The Nationalists

Irish, Book 1

By: Liam Robert Mullen

Narrated by: Pat O'Brien

Length: 5 hrs and 59 mins

Publisher's summary

Described by one reviewer as "bloody accurate", The Nationalists is an Irish story set against the bloody backdrop of the 1916 Easter Rising, the War of Independence, and the Irish Civil War.

From the author of The Scribe, The Soaring Spirit, Kolbe, and Land of Our Father comes a sweeping new novel that spans the turbulent years in Irish history - 1916 to 1923.

The 1916 Easter Rising wasn't just a military rising, but a cultural revolution too. The Nationalists tells the story of a doomed love affair between a revolutionary journalist and a headstrong Kerry-born Cumann na mBan girl. The story also explores how the Catholic Church viewed the events of the day. Interweaving both factual and fictional characters, the story follows an eccentric array of characters.

The Nationalists is the first book of a planned trilogy. A powerful tale of rebellion, love, redemption, and loss.

©2016 Liam Robert Mullen (P)2019 Liam Robert Mullen

Very good historical novel

I truly enjoyed this book and I’m gonna go and read the second volume in the series

amazing

one of the best history fiction I have ever listened to .
you have a lot of details; a lot of characters.....
I love the story....
you need to be very very concentrated to take it in..... it's not a book that I could have listened in the car because I needed to be very concentrated... I needed to be at home in silence doing my chores but without listening outside it's very very very special and unique kind of story I learned a lot about history and overall it was a fantastic fantastic listen

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review

Distinctive and powerful

The Nationalists: Irish, Book 1.. Probably the best book I have read/listened to this year.
This book expresses the emotion of the time,anger, fear and hopes of the Irish people, it is all of these weaving history and a beautiful tale into a tale well told...
The historical facts are solid and the fiction is about individuals lives.
Pat O'Brien's narration is excellent and makes the book very listenable, though it is a complex tale with many details and concentration is required.
A must read for lovers of historical fiction.
I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

I really wanted to like this!

I really tried my best to like this book and some parts I did. However, if you don’t have knowledge of the Irish rebellion and civil war, you will be confused. The author skips from one character’s point of view to another without warning. It creates a sense of disconnect and makes the story feel all chopped up.

As for the narrator - good lord. I’ve never heard someone speak in a monotone Irish-ish accent SO BADLY that you can only stand it for so long. His voice sounds forced and NEVER changes. It’s just awful.

A lot of Irish history here...

A great cast of characters real and created by the author. It paints a very grim but realistic picture of this chapter in Irish history and their determination to throw off 800 years of brutal British subjugation. The struggle against the British was very real and well documented by Mullen as was the Civil War that followed. It's graphic, tragically raw, yet so very poignant in places. What happens to the two brothers is utterly heart wrenching.

The narrative didn't always flow seamlessly and I found myself re-listening in several places while also actively checking things out on Google -- wanting further information on some of the key historical players.

O'Brien was good although I sometimes had trouble distinguishing which person was speaking unless identified in the narrative. I liked it and would be interested to see where the author intends to take things, as this is only Book 1.

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.