Your heart would be broken with this book. It is a sad story of a 17-year old girl going missing and the impact it had on the life of the family, particularly the mother. It is hard to fathom how you could deal with this scenario, and the author is very empathetic and brings us through a very believable 8 or so years after her disappearance. Nothing is tidied up neatly, but it feels very real and thankfully hopeful.

Island of Longing

One unremarkable afternoon, Rosie watched her daughter Saoirse cycle into town, expecting to hear the slam of the door when she returned a few hours later.

But the slam never came.

Eight years on, Rosie is the only person who believes that her child might one day return home. Will this belief come at the cost of everything she has left?

My previous work in mental health and my counselling training always lead me towards books that either portray dramatic life events or feature characters that are deep and three dimensional, with a flourishing inner life. Anne Griffin does this and more, so I was interested to read this novel because it goes into the character’s reactions to a highly dramatic and distressing event. The worst thing that can happen to a parent is to lose their child and this happens to Rosie. Her daughter, Saoirse Dunne, disappeared eight years ago and since then she has been unable to think straight or get on with life. Her heart and spirit are broken, So she heads back home, an island off the coast of Cork. There she’s hoping to find solace and some sort of healing from the natural world around her and the community she knows on the island. Her husband Hugh have grieved differently over the last eight years, the loss has slowly separated them emotionally and now they continue to need different things. When we see a comparison of their relationship, before and after their daughter’s disappearance, the difference is stark.

Rosie still holds on to the belief that Saoirse might return and she isn’t ready to let go of this. She’s also taking her son Cullie with her and they share so those questions many people ask in grief - ‘what if I’d just…’ and ‘if only I had …’. There’s a sense of survivor’s guilt in these thoughts and I was hoping that they would both find some peace too. Rosie’s decision to return home to where she grew up and even her old work operating the ferry to the mainland, could be seen as a way of cutting out the most painful part of my life and returning to a time when life was more simple. When she’s operating the ferry she feels closer to her daughter than she has in a long while. Of course this gives her solace, but it’s also a barrier to her accepting reality.

I really enjoyed the sense of place created by the author and it’s meaning in the novel. I could visualise Roaring Bay Island completely and the surrounding sea even feels soothing. It’s a refuge, but only for the summer. I worried that after this idyllic interlude in her grief, going back to reality would be a terrible shock. The author acknowledges this, writing that it’s merely a chance to ‘step out of the world for a while’. I loved the freedom she feels while piloting the ferry, with the rocking motion of the waves like a cradle. It was wonderful to witness the kindness and thoughtfulness of the people on the island too. Is this something she isn’t getting in her current home. The place where Saoirse is still missing.

The author keeps Saoirse’s disappearance at the heart of the novel and the family’s experience of loss and pain is devastating but beautifully done. I have experienced loss and this was so raw and real, with incredibly authentic dialogue. I did feel tears coming here and there because Rosie’s feelings were so close to my own. It gives the reader a window into an experience they hope never to share. Please don’t be put off though, there are moments of lightness in the community, they really are an example of humanity at it’s best. There’s also such resilience in the characters, in the face of a loss that is unthinkable. When she returns from the island, she’s moved forward emotionally and Dublin feels like a dark place. It feels like the past. I loved the author’s addition of a sentence from Saoirse, on it’s own page and in a larger font. This lets us get to know Saoirse a little. It also seems to amplify that feeling that she’s gone, yet always there for those who love her. I won’t say this is an easy read. In fact some people may be uncomfortable witnessing the family’s grief. If people do push through that, they’ll gain an understanding of a universal human experience. We all experience loss. For people like me who have had their lives, like Rosie’s, divided into a before and after, this type of emotionally literate writing is a God send. A comfort and a reminder that we’re not alone.

The Island of Longing tells the story of Rosie, whose daughter vanished 8 years ago. She can't accept Saoirse has gone, and it's destroying her life.

It's taken me several weeks to read this because I knew that however it ended that I would not be happy. If all was put right, unrealistic. If Saoirse is dead, just unbelievably sad. If she's never found, then again, just so sad. I struggled with that.

But in fairness, this story isn't about the ending. It's about the journey. And along that journey, we're with Rosie as she rediscovers herself and a life beyond her search. It's emotional, tragic, and yet uplifting as well. A great read

I highly recommend this book Well where do I begin? I have been so excited about this one and it has delivered on every level. I have been so caught up in this one – I devoured the whole thing in just one sitting.

A fantastic read. I really enjoyed this story it centres around Rosie whose daughter Saoirse goes missing and as the years pass she is drawn back to the Island where she was born in West Cork and where her father still lives and stillworks on the family ferry and and where Rosie is happiest.Its a real page Turner that holds your interest from the beginning and its beautifully written with a very clever way of us finding out what happened to Saoirse. It's real emotional at the end but I found it quite comforting as well .Highly recommend this book

I must say that I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. Its writing was simply beautiful, painting vivid pictures of the settings and breathing life into the characters, who felt so authentic and real. The captivating story aside, it was the people in it that truly captured my attention. Even minor characters were fleshed out, with their own distinct quirks and flaws. Rosie, the protagonist, was not without her own shortcomings, but I found myself understanding her motivations nonetheless. This book was so engrossing that moving on to another one afterwards was a challenge. The people and places depicted in the story stayed with me for a long time, and I cannot recommend it highly enough. I will certainly be urging everyone I know to give it a read.

The Island of Longing by Anne Griffin was an excellent read. I read late into the night until the final page. It was so much better than Anne’s last book Listening Still, after enjoying When All is Said so much. I loved Rosie, I felt her every emotion. How Saoirse’s story was dispersed throughout was incredibly effective and really served to keep the reader entranced. Hugh too was such a likeable character, and Cullie and Danny too, indeed they all were, except for Liam, whose role required controversy as the story progressed. The story has given me a longing to holiday in the west once again. I truly enjoyed this book and highly recommend it.

If I could use one word to describe Anne Griffin's books, it's gentle. I enjoyed When All is Said, loved Listening Still, and really enjoyed The Island of Longing, her third novel. Her books take you by the hand and lead you to their inevitable, and often heartbreaking conclusion. They're emotional without ever feeling exploitative, eloquent and heartfelt.

Rosie grew up on the island of Roaring Bay off the coast of Cork (inspired, I think, by Cape Clear), skippering her father's boat Aoibhneas (meaning happiness). She marries and moves to Dublin, but when her 17 year old daughter Saoirse goes missing many years later, the island and the wheelhouse of Aoibhneas is the only place Rosie can find any solace. She never wants to give up searching for Saoirse, but her marriage is falling apart under the strain.

I read this at the same time as Kala by Colin Walsh, another Irish novel about a missing teenage girl and it made for an interesting counterpoint. Kala was gritty and violent, The Island of Longing gave a much gentler, more anodyne impression of rural Irish life, Neither story completely captured me, but I enjoyed both and on balance, enjoyed The Island of Longing more for its nuanced and compassionate portrayal of grief and the importance of community, 3.5-4/5 stars

What a beautiful book. I really love this author and always find such compassion for and relatability to the characters. Thoroughly loved it thanks.

Beautifully written with some wonderful characters but absolutely heart breaking. I've read both of Anne Griffin's previous books and absolutely loved them and this is full of the same charm, eloquence and truly evocative language. An incredibly talented author

What a gripping and emotional story. I loved it from start to finish,I was even going to bed earlier so I could read more.I needed to know what happened to Saoirse and would happen to Rosie and her family. Everything was described in such detail that I felt I was there, especially anyth8ng on the islands or ferry. I would highly recommend this book, even though it isheartbreaking at times.

Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced copy.

The disappearance of Saoirse has a devastating effect especially on her mother Rosie.After 8 years , following her mother's death Rosie returns to the Island to help her father.Her life had been completely taken over by the search. It is a very sad and emotional story which I throughly enjoyed .

Another brilliant read from Anne. A heartbreaking story of a daughter who goes missing and the relentless search by her family to fund her especially her mother Rosie who does not give up even when others have lost hope. Some lovely descriptions of island living too.

It’s been a while since a book consumed me so completely as this one. And I mean consumed, as in took possession of me, captured my soul and squeezed it through an emotional wringer. It’s still teasing at my consciousness weeks later.

If you’re a parent, the premise strikes a fearsome chord.

Eight years on from their teenage daughter’s abduction, Rosie and Hugh still have no answers. Clinging to the belief that Saoirse is still alive, Rosie has campaigned ceaselessly to keep her disappearance in the public eye. Hugh wants to accept the inevitable and move on with their lives. With their marriage — and Rosie’s mental health — cracking under the strain, Rosie retreats to her family home on Roaring Bay Island to seek the balm she so desperately needs.

What follows is a sensitively wrought tale of loss, grief and healing. Sadness predominates; but in a beautiful combination of light and shade, it is cut through with moments of great tenderness and gentle humour. Rosie’s grief is palpable, but the succour she receives from being home and surrounded by happy memories adds a building swell of hope to the darker undertones of this story.

Griffin’s prose is exquisite, suffused with a lilting cadence that evokes both compassion for the protagonists and a visceral connection with the Irish island setting. I loved the portrayal of home as a haven, a place that gives untethered Rosie an anchor. It’s where she feels closest to Saoirse, where skippering the family ferry boat reminds her of a passion long forgotten, and where an unexpected friendship lightens her load.

What made this novel extra special for me, though, were the haunting snippets of Saoirse’s abduction that were woven into the story. No more than a couple of sentences at a time, these sent shivers down my spine. As a complementary POV, I found them an incredibly powerful driver of the narrative.

By the closing pages of this compelling story, I was undone. Undone, but delighted to add another name to my list of go-to Irish authors.

A poignant story. Anne is a master of her craft. I'm utterly bereft after finishing this book. Absolutely beautiful.

Thoroughly enjoyed from start to finish.
The hints to what happened to Saoirse throughout were uniquely delivered and very compelling.
Rosie's character was so relatable and believable and as a parent her pain resonated with me immensely.
Superb from Griffin and the fictional setting was so easy to imagine and only added to an intense storyline.

My only complaint would be the unnecessary paranormal-ish aspect with the islander who 'feels' things.

This is a beautiful book . It deals with the heartache and also hope a family have when their daughter goes missing Anne Griffin is such a talented writer, and each word on every page is carefully and perfectly selected. I I cannot recommend this book enough and recommend it to everyone

I absolutely love Anne Griffin books and was delighted to get an early copy of her newest book The Island of Longing. As expected, I was not disappointed and simply could not put the book down once I started! Another triumph from Griffin and eagerly look forward to reading more from the author in the future.

I would love to give this book five stars because so much of it worked so extremely well for me. Unfortunately though I have to be honest and admit I was tempted to whiz through some of the more tedious passages about all that had happened between Saoirse going missing up to present time which could have been much shorter. It’s difficult to introduce tension into a section of a book where the reader already has been told the outcome.
However the one liners at the start of every new chapter has the hairs on the back of my neck standing up once I realised what was being told.
Amazingly there was lots of humour too in the book and small island life was made very real.

A great story, well told. This is - in essence a family story -involved and intriguing.
The lead femaile character returns to her 'home' island after struggling with the disappearance of her daughter years before.. That is only the beginning. This book has you needing to know how life turned out for all the characters held within. Read on and enjoy...