A short story but not one I was able to see through to the end. I knew this was a book based on religion but that wore thin quite early for me and I wasn't feeling engrossed enough in the story of enjoying spending time with the characters. Not for me this time!

The Island of Mist and Miracles by Victoria Mas

Translated from the French by Frank Wynne

Sister Anne arrives on an remote Island off the coast of Brittany believing she is destined to receive a vision of the Virgin Mary. But it’s not Sister Anne that sees the apparition, it’s Isaac, a stoic young boy living with his father after the tragic loss of his mother years earlier.

On paper a story of faith and religion should not appeal to me but the delicate storytelling, the claustrophobic feeling of the island community, the grief of a young motherless boy and the effect the visions have on his father, the devout Islanders and the non-believers, despite myself worked.

The concept of animism, where the lifeless is given spirit, is a favourite of mine. Anything that isn’t human given attributes of human form and I’m completely on board with the storytelling and for a non-believing humanist this Island was alive and uncanny well before the arrival of The Virgin Mary. Mas created some fascinating characters that I could admire and condemn and through the power of identification, sympathy and antipathy I could conceive how an event like this changes a community until it becomes unrecognisable.

A short novel at only 211 pages the translation by Frank Wynne is seamless. I requested the book purely because of the author and her previous book The Mad Women’s Ball and I thought I might struggle with the plot but I didn’t. Definitely an author I will be following and would recommend if you enjoy the writing styles of Hannah Kent or Charlotte McConaghy.

Thank you to the author @netgalley and @randomhouseuk for an advance reader copy in return for an honest review.

Sister Alice longs to see a vision of the Virgin, like the founder of her religious order. She goes to a small island in Brittany certain that this will be the place. She joins a Sister that is quite happy to be left alone. However it is not Sister Anne who sees the vision but a lonely boy called Isaac. His vision creates ripples that completely disrupts the island & causes the people to rethink their beliefs & views

This is a difficult book to review. I did enjoy it as a read it & felt part of the island created but it wasn't a story that stayed with me, I'm not sure why. Thanks to Netgalley & the publisher for letting me read & review this book

I could start with "TRust me, I grew up CAtholic and attended a privated school managed by nuns.
Grewing up catholic you are taught about apparitions of the Virgin and the strange expectations and people who are waiting for someting to happen.
This is a short novel but it's alsoa well plotted and intriguing description of a community who's looking for a sign and what happens when something unexpected happens.
There's humour but there's also a well developed and rounded characters.
I appreciated it even it's a bit too slow at times.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Sister Anne arrives on the small island of Batz, certain she is destined to receive a vision of the Virgin Mary. As it turns out, someone else on the island receives the vision, leaving her disappointed and bitter, wondering what her purpose is. We get to know lots of characters on the island as the story unfolds, and it's easy to imagine how life is on this quiet island. I'm not religious but I enjoyed this book, and I would definitely read more by this author. It was well written and descriptive, and also made me think.

On the 18th of July 1830, Sister Catherine Labouré, a young novice within the Convent of The Daughters of Charity, experiences a miraculous sighting of The Blessed Virgin.

Fast forward to the present day, another Sister is dispatched to the tranquil island of Roscoff in the Finistère region of Brittany, Northwestern France. Filled with hope and longing, she anticipates witnessing a similar divine apparition.

Meanwhile, in Roscoff, resides Isaac, a sombre boy living with his father following the tragic loss of his mother a decade earlier. Unbeknownst to the Sister, it is Isaac who encounters the ethereal presence of The Blessed Virgin.

This short but poignant tale unfolds against the backdrop of Roscoff, delving into the aftermath and repercussions of Isaac's encounter with the divine.

The Island of Mists and Miracles is a succinct yet impactful tale delving into the depths of faith and the intensity of human emotions. Within its pages, readers confront the raw manifestations of jealousy, frustration, and anger, fuelled by unwavering beliefs and heightened sensitivities.

The E-Book could be improved and more user-friendly, such as links to the chapters, no significant gaps between words and a cover for the book would be better. It is very document-like instead of a book. A star has been deducted because of this.

This is a first for me by the author and one I enjoyed and I would read more of their work. The book cover is eye-catching and appealing and would spark my interest if it were in a bookshop. Thank you to the author, publisher and Netgalley for this ARC.

Couldn't get into this. The narrative perspective switched around too often and I couldn't really connect with any of the characters. One minute we were inside the head of a character then seemed to jump to viewing the person from another's perspective. It didn't settle anywhere for long enough for me to enjoy the journey. DNFd at 29%.
This honest review is given with thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this book.

After receiving a sign that she was to witness the appearance of the Virgin Mary, Sister Anne travels to an island off the coast of Brittany to await her vision. However it is not Sister Anne who is visited but Isaac, a young motherless boy. As news of Isaac's visions spreads there is belief and also scepticism wich leads to tragic events.
This is a very short novel but a very powerful one. The claustrophobic nature of society on a small island is explored as well as human tragedy. It is beautifully written and the last sections are both shocking and deep.

With thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for an advance review copy.

I quite enjoyed this curiously old-fashioned story. It is set in Brittany, a part of the world that holds its historic identity dear and is still quite traditional in terms of its culture and religion. A prologue set in the 1830s sets the scene, with a vision of the Virgin Mary appearing to a young novice in a convent in Paris. Its veracity is accepted unquestioningly by the convent and community as a sign of great grace. 200 years later, Sister Anne, a troubled nun from the same order, travels to Brittany hoping for the fulfilment of a fellow nun's prediction that she will witness another apparition by the Virgin there.

The prediction comes to pass, but not quite in the way Sister Anne expected. And the early 2000s are not the 1830s in terms of faith and acceptance of divine appearances and messages. Sister Anne is forced to confront her own long-suppressed demons, while the little community, for all its outward expressions of faith, is torn apart by its narrow-mindedness and bigotry. As is pointed out, visions of the Virgin always portend troubled times to come...

This is a very good translation, to the extent that I never once felt I wasn't reading the story in the original language. The idea of religion as a comfort blanket in the face of great grief or suppressed trauma is touched upon but not explored in any depth, which was a missed opportunity. The story itself doesn't reveal anything especially insightful about human nature, but the contrast between attitudes to faith between the 19th century and the present is effectively highlighted, as is that between faith within a religious order versus its manifestation in even quite a traditional lay community. Brownie points for even tackling this topic in a contemporary fictional work, even if the treatment remains quite superficial.

18th of July 1830, Sister Catherine Labouré a young novice within the Convent of The Daughters of Charity witnesses a sighting of The Blessed Virgin.
Present day a Sister is sent to the Island, she thinks she is to witness a sighting of The Blessed Virgin. Is desperate for this to happen.

Set in Roscoff in the Finistère region of Brittany in Northwestern France.
This short storied book follows the Sister going to Roscoff for what she has spent her life praying for to see, The Blessed Virgin.
Issac a sad boy living with his father after the tragic loss of his mother some ten years prior is the person who witnesses seeing The Blessed Virgin.
The story follows the aftermath and consequences of the tale.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Publisher for an advanced e-book copy. Opinions about the book are entirely my own.

Leaving behind her French convent Sister Ann arrives on a tiny island just off the coast of Brittany. On the island she prays for a miracle to happen, a sign that the Virgin Mary has a special message for her, however, it is not Sister Anne who receives the heavenly vision but a troubled young islander called Isaac. With intense scrutiny focused on the Île de Batz, and religious fervour reaching fever pitch, emotions run high with disastrous consequences.

The cast of characters who flit into and out of the story bring their own particular angst. They are not always very likeable as people however, as their individual stories start to emerge so an understanding comes of why they act in such a troubled way. Some of it due unrelenting grief which, over time, has altered their perspective. I enjoyed the way in which the author allowed the story to evolve at its own unhurried pace.

Beautifully written, with a lyrical quality to the narrative, The Island of Mists and Miracles is a short but powerful story about the starkness of belief and of heightened emotions which result in unreasonable jealousy, thwarted frustration and unleashed anger.

Disappointing
I enjoyed reading this novel but found the cast of characters a little ordinary – the lonely boy and his over-achieving religious dad, the motherless dreamer and his kindly dad, the wholesome and faithful grandmother, the no-nonsense nun and the nun who dreams of being granted a vision. To some extent it seems likely that a vision being granted to one of these characters would inevitably lead to confrontation and tragedy; another often used theme. While the novel seemed to have deeply religious intentions, I am not drawn to religious themes and I never felt convinced by the way it was presented. There was lots of emotional extremeness and conviction which I found irritating rather than believable.
The writing was good and the descriptive parts were enjoyable but I just felt as if it was the wrong kind of subject and treatment for me. I think if you are the kind of person who enjoys a strong religious faith element in your reading this would be very interesting.

4.5

I was really quite surprised by the low ranking for this wonderful little book. I thought it was beautifully written, a heart wrenching tale with characters who are so clearly draw you feel like you could just reach into the page and comfort them.

The story itself revolves around a tiny island off the coast of Britanny. Into the close knit community arrives Sister Anne who has been told that she will witness a visitation of the Virgin while she is there. Anne has had her own childhood issues leading her to take holy orders and longs for this honour.

On the island are a disparate group of villagers all with their own problems. Not least of these are Madenn who runs the restaurant and worries for her grandson Isaac, a strange child whose quiet ways are often misunderstood by the villagers. There is also Hugo, a boy the same age as Isaac, who lives in his brother's shadow and is not loved by his father, Michel. Michel, in turn, spends his time worrying about the health of his daughter and his anger at Hugo and the world often gets the better of him.

Unfortunately for Sister Anne, she has misunderstood the prophecy of her seeing the Virgin and it is Isaac who, one evening, is stunned by the vision of Mary. From this point on the lives of the whole island are changed.

This book took me completely by surprise with the delicacy of the language and the sparseness of the prose. Victoria Mas manages, with very little, to conjure a whole world. Nor does she spare the emotions. I'll admit I ended this book almost weeping.

It is a beautiful novel. I'd highly recommend it to fans of excellent prose.

Thankyou to Netgalley and Random House for the advance review copy. Most appreciated.

The novel revolves around Sister Anne, who is waiting for a sign. This search for a sign leads Sister Anne to accept a mission to a secluded and isolated island off the coast of Brittany and follows her encounters with various individuals on the island. However, it is not her who experiences the sign but teenager, Isaac who experiences the vision.

I loved The Mad Women's Ball so was really excited about The Island of Mists and Miracles. However, it didn’t have the same effect on me as her other book did.

This might be a short story but it really manages to pack quite a punch. I found this story quite thought provoking. The story is set over a short period of time as you join the characters on the Island. It is quite an intense story that manages to keenly observe many key issues of life during that time including, grief, friendship, love, religion and family. The Island itself also has a personality of its own as it provides an evocative background to the story. I’ve thought about this since reading this book, and I think because this story is shorter it has a greater impact as my imagination had to work to fill in some of the details about the Islanders lives both past and present.

I don’t give up easily on a book and I should have probably stuck it out, but I just could not see it going anywhere worthwhile. A third in, and still the threads and tangents and the many characters did not come together enough to keep me engaged. Nice Breton island scenery, though.

"The Island of Mists and Miracles" by Victoria Mas is a novel that delves into the realms of faith, mystery, and the unseen. The story revolves around Sister Anne, a young nun in search of a sign, who is sent on a mission to a secluded island off the coast of Brittany. Accompanied only by a cynical and chain-smoking older nun, Sister Delphine.

The characters Sister Anne encounters on the island are diverse and intriguing. There is Hugo, a young man who seeks solace in the stars; Madenn, a grieving grandmother who finds comfort in routine; Isaac, a peculiar teenager who befriends Hugo and seems to exist in a different world; and Julia, a sickly child in need of a miracle. As the story unfolds, it is Isaac who experiences a vision, forever changing the lives of those around him.

The atmosphere in the novel is atmospheric, and the author's descriptive prose adds a lyrical quality to the narrative. However, despite the promising premise and beautiful writing, I found myself disappointed with "The Island of Mists and Miracles." The story seemed overly complicated, attempting to justify its simplicity. It felt as if the novel was trying too hard to be profound, leaving me disconnected from the characters and their journeys.

Overall, while "The Island of Mists and Miracles" possesses an atmosphere of intrigue and beauty, it fell short of my expectations. The story, though seemingly straightforward, lacked coherence and failed to engage me on a deeper level.

An isolated community.
Anne a nun with an abusive past goes to the island to assist Sister Delphine at the convent.
A variety of people live on the French Island, among them the very devout Michael, he lives with his family and has a troubled relationship with his effeminate son Hugo, he also has a badly asthmatic daughter Julie. Isaac lost his Mother when he was young and lives with his reclusive Father Alan. Hugo and Isaac feel a connection between them, the local café owner looks lout for Isaac and worries about him.
There is a prophecy about a vision, Anne thinks it is intended for her but it turns out that Isaac is the chosen one, the other people on the island at first turn to him and ask to be shown proof, but when disappointed they turn against him.
The consequences are unforeseen and far reaching.
Thank you NetGalley and Victoria for this atmospheric and haunting story

This had potential but struggled to hold my interest throughout. A tad too religious for me to fully enjoy the story. Loved Mad Womans Ball but sad to say that this just didnt quite meet the mark for me.