Maeve Binchy

With each new book, Maeve Binchy continues a remarkable progression of sales and audience growth, reaching fans of all ages and backgrounds with her matchless wit, warmth, and sheer storytelling magic. "Tara Road," her first full-length novel since "The Glass Lake," again shows her incomparable understanding of the human heart in the tale of two women, one from Ireland, one from America, who switch lives, and in doing so learn much about each other, as well as much about themselves. Ria lived on Tara Road in Dublin with her dashing husband, Danny, and their two children. She fully believed she was happily married, right up until the day Danny told her he was leaving her to be with his young, pregnant girlfriend. By a chance phone call, Ria meets Marilyn, a woman from New England unable to come to terms with her only son's death and now separated from her husband. The two women exchange houses for the summer with extraordinary consequences, each learning that the other has a deep secret that can never be revealed. Drawn into lifestyles vastly differing from their own, at first each resents the news of how well the other is getting on. Ria seems to have become quite a hostess, entertaining half the neighborhood, which at first irritates the reserved and withdrawn Marilyn, a woman who has always guarded her privacy. Marilyn seems to have become bosom friends with Ria's children, as well as with Colm, a handsome restaurateur, whom Ria has begun to miss terribly. At the end of the summer, the women at last meet face-to-face. Having learned a great deal, about themselves and about each other, they find that they have become, firmly and forever, good friends. A moving story rendered with the deft touch of a master artisan, "Tara Road" is Maeve Binchy at her very best — utterly beautiful, hauntingly unforgettable, entirely original, and wholly enjoyable.

Dit jaar zal het anders zijn: is een bundeling kerstverhalen van Maeve Binchy, waarmee zij opnieuw haar unieke talent bewijst om zonder onnodige romantischering intens warme verhalen te schrijven. Ze geven een beeld van het brede scala aan gevoelens die de kersttijd met zich mee kan brengen: eenzaamheid, gevoel van verlatenheid, discrepantie tussen blijde gezichten en onderhuidse spanningen, te hoge verwachtingen, verplichte gezelligheid, maar ook echte saamhorigheid, goedheid en openheid. Deze verhalen gaan verder dan een witte kerst en een harmonieus kerstdiner, het zijn levensechte verhalen die getuigen van een haarscherp inzicht in mensheid gevoelens en relaties.

"It was sometimes called the echo cave, and if you shouted your question loud enough in the right direction, you got an answer instead of an echo..." Clare and David--divided as children by a rigid social code that branded her as shanty Irish and him as gentry...brought together as adults by a desire that knew no class, no barriers, only the urgent hunger of two people destined to love--and ready to defy a world determined to keep them apart.Even at fifteen, David Power knew the echo would answer eleven-year-old Clare O'Brien's dearest wish, to win a school prize. But it was years before Dr. Power's cherished only son saw in the huckster's daughter the answer to his own heart's desire. Here in Castlebay, perched precariously on the seaside cliffs, the lines between them were clearly drawn. Clare's only hope is to leave the town where time stopped, propelled by scholarships to Dublin, fueled by her own drive and brilliance, far from the insular, gossipy world of Castlebay and those in its thrall... Angela O'Hara, beautiful, isolated, a teacher trapped in the convent school, who risks everything to help Clare escape... Gerry Doyle, the town charmer who finds in Clare the woman he vows to have at any price... Caroline Nolan, the beautiful, rich outsider who comes to plunder...For Clare, that was before the wild freedom of Dublin, and love. And David.  Before fate drove them back to Castlebay, and the past...

The lives of four strangers are forever altered when they meet in a Greek seaside village in this compelling novel from #1  New York Times  bestselling author Maeve Binchy. Tourists enter the hilltop tavern, alone and in pairs, for a casual lunch. But a sudden tragedy in the harbor below causes these perfect strangers to become unlikely friends as their lives begin to entwine... Fiona left her nursing career in Ireland to be with the man everyone thinks is wrong for her. Elsa fled Germany and her high-powered television job once she learned what the man she loved was hiding from her. Thomas mourns his failed marriage and misses his young son in California, while David yearns to reconcile with his family in England without having to go into the family business. Chance has brought them together, and together they will find new ways of looking at the lives they left behind. “By the time the bouzouki players start up on the last page, you’ll feel you’ve known these people all your life.”— The Seattle Times   “The sort of book you should take with you on a trip to the Greek islands.”— The Boston Globe

Bir Maeve Binchy romanı okumak eski bir dostla sıcacık bir buluşmaya benzer. Aşk ve Çocuk, Maeve Binchy'nin en iyi romanlarından biri… "Maeve Binchy'nin en iyi romanlarından biri. Birbirinden farklı bir grup insanı ahenkle ele alıyor; İrlanda'daki yaşama özgü olaylar dizisi inandırıcı; romanın sonu da çok tatlı. İnsan, Frankie karakterini Binchy'nin bundan sonraki romanlarında da görmek istiyor." Susan Rogers, Newark Star-Ledger "Maeve Binchy hayranları ayakkabılarını bir tarafa fırlatacak, kendilerine güzel bir çay demleyecek ve koltukta kıvrılıp Binchy'nin sıcak dünyasına bir kez daha adım atacaklar. " Melinda Bargreen, The Seattle Times "Bir Maeve Binchy romanı okumak eski bir dostla sıcacık bir buluşmaya benzer. Binchy'nin klasik tarzıyla, küçük bir Dublin mahallesinde yaşayan ve aile, inanç ve topluluk bağlarıyla birleşen renkli ve eksantrik karakterler birbirlerinin yaşamına girip çıkıyorlar. Okurların bir kutu mendili hazır bulundurmaları gerekecek…" Margaret Flanagan, Booklist

From the New York Times bestselling author of Circle of Friends, The Glass Lake, and Evening Class comes a stunning collection of fifteen Christmas stories filled with Maeve Binchy's trademark wit, charm, and sheer storytelling genius.  In "A Typical Irish Christmas," a grieving widower heads for a holiday in Ireland and finds an unexpected destination not just for himself, but for a father and daughter in crisis. . . .  In "Pulling Together," a teacher not yet out of her twenties sees her affair with a married man at a turning point as Christmas Eve approaches. . . .  And in the title story, "This Year It Will Be Different," a woman with a complacent husband and grown children enters a season that will forever alter her life, and theirs. . . These stories, and a dozen more, powerfully evoke many lives--from step-families grappling with exes to children caught in grown-up tugs-of-war--during the one holiday when feelings cannot be easily hidden.  The time of year may be magical, imbued with meaning.  But the situations are timeless.  And Maeve Binchy makes us care about them all.

A society hostess invites her husband’s mistress to dinner. A country girl savours the delights of city life. A student faces the dilemma of unmarried pregnancy. A drink-ridden photographer tries to relaunch a shattered career. Dublin 4 has all of Maeve Binchy’s intimate grasp of human feelings, her marvellous ear for dialogue and her subtle sense of life’s confusion. The stories bubble with fun and wit — yet sometimes leave a taste of sadness.

Stoneybridge es un pueblecito de la escarpada costa de Irlanda que recibe gran cantidad de turistas en verano y fuera de temporada se queda prácticamente vacío. Pero los alrededores no están desiertos del todo, porque en Stone House, un viejo y precioso hotel sobre el acantilado, hay un grupo de huéspedes muy variopinto que durante una semana de invierno disfruta de su cocina espaciosa y cálida, de la chimenea de leña y de los elegantes dormitorios. Y aunque casi nadie es capaz de resistirse a los encantos del lugar, pocos son quienes conocen su historia, y menos aún la historia de su amable anfitriona Geraldine Ryan, Chicky, para todo el mundo.Una semana en invierno cuenta la historia de los diversos personajes que coinciden en este hotel tan especial, y la sorprendente influencia que esa estancia tendrá en sus vidas.«Un libro para guardar como un tesoro. Maeve Binchy en el territorio que mejor conoce, lleno de su calidez característica y de su cautivadora manera de narrar.» Hello«Binchy guía a sus personajes a través de todos [sus]problemas con mano firme pero amable, ayudándolos a conseguir un futuro mejor. Seguramente es por eso por lo que los lectores la aprecian tanto. Eso y el hecho de que siempre supo cómo contar una buena historia.» Irish Times

QUENTINS

Maeve Binchy once again brings us an enchanting book full of the wit, warmth, and wisdom that have made her one of the most beloved and widely read writers at work today. 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. Some believe it to be a place of true spiritual power, demanding protection; others think it’s a mere magnet for superstitions, easily sacrificed. Not knowing which faction to favor, Father Flynn listens to all those caught up in the conflict, and these are the voices we hear in the stories of Whitethorn Woods —men and women deciding between the traditions of the past and the promises of the future, ordinary people brought vividly to life by Binchy’s generosity and empathy, and in the vivacity and surprise of her storytelling. Maeve Binchy is at the very top of her form in this irresistible tale.

Among the many evening classes starting all over Dublin is an 'Introduction to Italian'. On the surface it could be just one of hundreds in which some students will succeed and some will fall along the way. the hopes and dreams of so many people are tied up in the twice weekly lessons. they are ready to set off on the promised trip to Italy at the end of the year, everyone's destiny has changed utterly.

Night after night the beautiful woman walked beside the serene waters of Lough Glass. Until the day she disappeared, leaving only a boat drifting upside down on the unfathomable lake that gave the town its name. Ravishing Helen McMahon, the Dubliner with film-star looks and unfulfilled dreams, never belonged in Lough Glass, not the way her genial pharmacist-husband Martin belonged, or their spirited daughter Kit. Suddenly, she is gone and Kit is haunted by the memory of her mother, seen through a window, alone at the kitchen table, tears streaming down her face. Now Kit, too, has secrets: of the night she discovered a letter on Martin’s pillow and burned it, unopened. The night her mother was lost. The night everything changed forever…

Evacuated from Blitz-battered London, shy and genteel Elizabeth White is sent to stay with the boisterous O’Connors in Kilgarret, Ireland. It is the beginning of an unshakeable bond between Elizabeth and Aisling O’Connor, a friendship that will endure through twenty turbulent years of change and chaos, joy and sorrow, soaring dreams and searing betrayals. Writing with warmth, wit and great compassion, Maeve Binchy tells a magnificent story of the lives and loves of two women, bound together in a friendship that nothing could tear asunder -- not even the man who threatened to come between them forever.

Set in contemporary Ireland, filled with warmth, wit, and drama, Scarlet Feather is the story of Cathy Scarlet and Tom Feather, their spouses, families, and friends, and the struggling new catering business that transforms their lives in ways big and small.

In the Irish town of Schancarrig, the young people carve their initials--and those of their loves-into the copper beech tree in front of the schoolhouse. But not even Father Gunn, the parish priest, who knows most of what goes on behind Shancarrig's closed doors, or Dr. Jims, the village doctor, who knows all the rest, realizes that not everything in the placid village is what it seems.From the Hardcover edition.

Every summer the four Ryan children play in the ruins of Fernscourt, the once-grand house on the bank of the river. But when the estate is bought by Patrick O’Neill, the wealthy Irish American, his grand plans for its development threaten to shatter the peace. A new luxury hotel promises to breathe new life into the village, and yet it could also spell disaster for the Ryan family. And as old values and traditions begin to crumble away, no-one – not even Patrick – can predict what his big dreams will do to the heart of their quiet village.

De Ierse Ria en de Amerikaanse Marilyn lijken niets gemeen te hebben, behalve een tragische gebeurtenis in hun leven. Als ze door toeval in contact komen, grijpen beiden de kans om voor een zomer van huis te ruilen. Ria vertrekt naar Amerika en ontdekt dat er een wereld voor haar open ligt, terwijl de gesloten Marilyn in het huis op Tara Road trekt en opgenomen wordt in Ria’s Ierse vriendenkring. Hoewel de vrouwen elkaar nooit hebben ontmoet, leren zij elkaars leven kennen met alle opmerkelijke gevolgen van dien, waarbij ieder een schokkend geheim over de ander ontdekt, dat nooit naar buiten zal mogen komen... Met deze unaniem geprezen, nu al klassieke roman, laat Maeve Binchy opnieuw zien over een groot inzicht in menselijke relaties te beschikken.

Signora, die drieëntwintig jaar geleden de man van haar dromen achterna ging in Italië, keert terug naar haar geboortestad Dublin. Hier gaat ze Italiaanse les geven op een avondschool. Elke week komen er mensen met een zeer verschillende achtergrond naar de les. Maar ze leren niet alleen daar waar ze voor gekomen zijn. Tegen de tijd dat de leerlingen op reis gaan naar Rome, is ieders leven dramatisch veranderd.

Big, generous-hearted Benny and the elfin Eve Malone have been best friends growing up in sleepy Knockglen. Their one thought is to get to Dublin, to university and to freedom... On their first day at University College, Dublin, the inseparable pair are thrown together with fellow students Nan Mahon, beautiful but selfish, and handsome Jack Foley. But trouble is brewing for Benny and Eve's new circle of friends, and before long, they find passion, tragedy - and the independence they yearned for.

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. John, the American movie star, thinks he has arrived incognito; Winnie and Lillian are forced into taking a holiday together; Nicola and Henry, husband and wife, have been shaken by seeing too much death practicing medicine; Anders hates his father’s business, but has a real talent for music; Miss Nell Howe, a retired schoolteacher, criticizes everything and leaves a day early, much to everyone’s relief; the Walls are disappointed to have won this second-prize holiday in a contest where first prize was Paris; and Freda, the librarian, is afraid of her own psychic visions. Sharing a week with this unlikely cast of characters is pure joy, full of Maeve’s trademark warmth and humor. Once again, she embraces us with her grand storytelling. This is the last book that Maeve Binchy wrote before her sudden death. As are all her stories, it is her trademark warmth, humor and the kind of characters that will make her books live on. It is a privilege to be able to share this book with readers.

If you are a fan of Maeve Binchy's works, you already know these characters, and the plots. You know the place - only a small part of the book is set in Dublin; most of it is in the West, in a village on the coast. As usual, there are a mis-matched group of near-strangers, brought together for an arbitrary occassion - this time it is the opening of a small inn - each with a life problem that must be confronted (or, notably for one character, avoided) and how that plays out. The pleasure is in spending time with these people as they face up to their problems, or fail to, and the understanding (and compassion) for people that Maeve always shows.

_________________________________________Another unforgettable novel from the bestselling author of Light a Penny Candle and Circle of Friends Desmond and Deirdre Doyle will have been married for twenty-five years in October. It falls to the Doyles' eldest daughter, Anna, to decide how best to commemorate her parents' Silver Wedding. No use asking her sister Helen, living in her London convent, or her brother Brendan, who has chosen another form of exile on a bleak farm in the West of Ireland. But it is unthinkable not to have a party, even though for the Doyles, family occasions are more difficult than for most. For each of them is keeping up a front, nursing a secret wound, or smarting over a hidden betrayal. And as the day draws nearer, so the tension mounts, until finally the guests gather at the party itself...

Clara Casey has more than enough on her plate. Her daughters Adi and Linda were no problem during the usually turbulent teens. Now Adi is always fighting for or against something: the environment or the whale or battery farming; while Linda lurches from one unsatisfactory relationship to the next. As if this wasn't enough, Clara, a senior cardiac specialist, has a new job to cope with - and now her ex-husband wants something from her... For Ania, meeting Clara Casey is a miracle. She never intended to leave Poland - but perhaps a new job in a new country will mend her broken heart? Declan is looking forward to joining the clinic - but what should have been a straightforward six-month posting brings him far more than he expected. Then there's Father Brian Flynn, whose life is turned upside down when his reputation is threatened; and the beautiful, cheerful nurse, Fiona, who can't leave her troubled past behind...