Marriage, Friendship and Midlife Choices Cut Deep
Kathleen MacMahon's Irish novel examines marriage, friendship and the compromises that surface around fifty. Justine and Iseult's changing lives give the story its bite, making it perfect for readers who enjoy beautifully observed fiction about loyalty, regret and midlife choices.
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Other People’s Lives
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Marriage, Friendship and Midlife Choices Cut Deep
Kathleen MacMahon's Irish novel examines marriage, friendship and the compromises that surface around fifty. Justine and Iseult's changing lives give the story its bite, making it perfect for readers who enjoy beautifully observed fiction about loyalty, regret and midlife choices.
- Book Synopsis
-
A brilliantly observed, funny, poignant and utterly real portrait of a mid-life woman and her family. I loved it.' Claire Fuller
'An elegant and beautifully-observed novel by one of our finest contemporary writers' Louise Kennedy
'I found myself taking screenshots to send to friends because MacMahon nails it over and over again' Claire Kilroy
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'Marriage was the biggest decision of their lives and yet they made it so lightly it was barely a decision at all'
As schoolgirls, Justine and her best friend Iseult dreamed of a future that revolved around marriage. They saw it as a happy ending, never imagining for a moment that the reality would be more complicated.
Coming up to fifty, they're still best friends. Justine has been married to Iseult's brother for twenty-five years and lives in her childhood home.
Iseult has spent her adult life abroad, her marriage clearly unhappy for reasons she won't discuss.
When Justine's daughter suddenly announces her engagement, Justine is thrown into planning a big family wedding.
Afraid that her daughter is making a mistake, she finds herself questioning the choices she and Iseult made decades earlier. This crisis of confidence tests Justine in new and unexpected ways.
From the Women's Prize longlisted author of Nothing But Blue Sky and The Home Scar, Other People's Lives is a captivating story about the decisions we make in a heartbeat, and their lifelong consequences.
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'A book to inhale' Belinda McKeon
'Warm-hearted and relatable, perfectly captures the messiness of modern family life' Aingeala Flannery
'MacMahon is an astute chronicler of modern life' David Park
'A tender-hearted portrait of modern life, told with MacMahon's trademark wit and warmth. I flew through it' Louise Nealon
'Beautiful' Hilary Fannin
'Incisive, witty and tender, there's not a woman in the country who won't relate to this fine and thought-provoking novel.' Christine Dwyer Hickey
'Thoughtful and provocative, a beautifully narrated story of friendship and marriage' Anna Fitzgerald
'Simply exquisite. MacMahon is one of Ireland's finest writers.' Anne Griffin
'Perceptive, tender, astute, beguiling' Martina Devlin
'I really and truly loved this tender, deeply satisfying novel' Orla Mackey
'So beautifully observed, so penetrating, so coolly aware of the texture of people's lives.' Neil Hegarty
'This wise, truthful novel explores brilliantly all the complexity of women's lives' Anne Tiernan
'Thought-provoking and utterly absorbing' Sinéad Crowley
Ideal for readers who:
- Prize beautifully observed fiction about marriage, friendship and midlife uncertainty.
- Reach for domestic comedy when the awkward details feel painfully exact.
- Gravitate toward contemporary Irish novels that are elegant, funny and quietly devastating.
- Notice the unspoken tensions around family rituals, weddings and old choices.
- About The Author
- The Home Scar is Kathleen MacMahon's fourth novel. Her debut, This is How it Ends, spent five weeks at the top of the bestseller lists in Ireland, and was a Richard and Judy Book Club choice in the UK. It was followed by The Long, Hot Summer, also a bestseller in Ireland, and Nothing But Blue Sky, which was nominated for the Women's Prize for Fiction in 2021. Kathleen is a former radio and television journalist with Ireland's national broadcaster, RTÉ, and she lives in Dublin with her family.
- Product Details
-
- ISBN
- 9781844886746
- Format
- Paperback
- Publisher
- Sandycove, (07 May 2026)
- Number of Pages
- 320
- Weight
- 364 grams
- Language
- English
- Dimensions
- 215 x 134 x 30 mm
- Categories: