I am fascinated by the Irish, the popular Luck of the Irish, bells in their voice, the solid, handsome hunks, the spunky women. These maybe clichés for some but there’s a whole lot I associate with Irish Fiction, it’s mesmerising from the geographic scenery to the glamour and strength of the characters. This particular story is a mixed bag with oodles of old time charm, glamour and the unavoidable fickleness of human nature. I reviewing the story as part of the Blog Tour organised by the publisher Head of Zeus. Don’t forget to check out what my fellow book bloggers also, have to say about this lovely Irish story.
Book
Title: It was only ever you
Author: Kate Kerrigan
Publisher: Head of Zeus
Published: Paperback Publication Date: 13TH July 2017
Locations: Ireland and New York.
Buy it here ~ Amazon India
Profession of main characters: Singer, Artist, music manager, socialite.
Book Accolades: Winner of the Historical Romantic Novel of the Year, 2017
Book Praise: ‘A beautifully wrought love story… Kate’s style deftly weaves believable characters and romantic longing with the everyday dramas that bind and divide local communities’ Irish Daily Star
‘No one does lavish vintage romance like Kate Kerrigan…Emotional drama, with fabulous characters.’ Daily Mail
Story
Set, like Maeve Binchy’s early bestsellers, in late 1950s Ireland and New York, this is the story of three women and the charismatic man with whom their lives are interwoven.
Patrick Murphy has charm to burn and a singing voice to die for. Many people will recognise his talent. Many women will love him. Rose, the sweetheart he leaves behind in Ireland, can never forget him and will move heaven and earth to find him again, long after he has married another woman. Ava, the heiress with no self-confidence except on the dance floor, falls under his spell. And tough Sheila Klein, orphaned by the Holocaust and hungry for success as a music manager, she will be ruthless in her determination to unlock his extraordinary star quality.
But in the end, Patrick Murphy’s heart belongs to only one of them. Which one will it be?
My thoughts
It was only ever you’ is about 4 lives entwined with each other from Ireland to New York. Patrick and Rose are the golden couple whose passion, art, talent and love for each other sees them fly across seas from rural Ireland to the glamorous 50’s New York. New York where the love birds who arrive separately have Ava, Sheila and the strong immigrant Irish community waiting to see them through their trials and passions. As the love birds find their way back to each other they break hearts theirs and of the people who cross their paths.
Ava and Sheila are the strong American women with European roots who provide the glamour in the story. These 2 are some fantastically written characters who have a certain charm, joie de vivre about them. It is their sensitivity, smarts and outlook towards life that helps the lost love birds find each other after being insensitively separated by family and their own blunders.
What I loved:
The 50’s New York with its glamorous, busy and full of life dance halls.
The sheer beauty of the women in the story – not just the way they look but what’s inside them. Their integrity, boldness, will powers and intelligence.
It was only ever you is a charming story with bold, romantic streaks running through the story.
Author
Kate Kerrigan lives in County Mayo, Eire, with her husband and children. Her novels include Recipes for a Perfect Marriage, shortlisted for the 2006 Romantic Novel of the Year Award and Ellis Island, which was a TV Book Club Summer Read.
Reviewed by Bharti (Bee)
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