This was not my favourite book by this author, I found the main character unlikable, however it is a good read with some twists and turns that will keep you reading. I really liked the interesting facts about the rag tree which I found intriguing.
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC of Into The Storm by Cecelia Ahern in return for my honest review.

I love Cecelia Ahern books and this one did not disappoint. The opening chapters really draw you into the story. As with all her books it allows you time in a busy life to escape reality and switch off. I would highly recommend it.

Cecilia Ahearn is the type of author you know is just going to hit that spot. You know when you need something familiar because life is just lifing a little too hard?

Into The Storm follows Enya, a mother, who lost her own mother at a very young age. This death has haunted her ever since and the anxiety around her upcoming birthday on which she will become the same age her mother was when she died has taken complete control of her life.

When we meet Enya, she is driving home during a terrible storm. Making Christmas plans on the phone with her sister when BOOM. She comes across a hit and run. Her Dr instincts kick in and she does everything she can to save the victim's life. This night sparks a chain reaction that changes the course of Enya'd life forever.

While it is not my favourite of her work, it was good enough for a very stressed out and overwhelmed brain so it did the job in taking my mind off all of that. I particularly enjoyed the setting and the appreciation for the earth and nature's wisdom which came through some of the characters beliefs and ways of living. I did not appreciate the way annoying men kept turning up at Enya's door but to be honest, who would?

Read if you appreciate:
· Books set in Ireland
· Familial relationships
· Mother-son dynamics
· Too many annoying men
· Mental health rep
· Female friendship

Great great opening section really builds the tension
The rag trees are really creepy
The author really does know how to manipulate your emotions and I felt very tense reading the novel. I’m not usually much of a fan of thrillers because of this. Even so I felt that this book was atmospheric.
What is it about the pouring rain that is so sinister and lends such an atmospheric feeling to the novel?
I love the significance while swimming is given in this novel literally the calm and release after the storm
Making the main character doctor as an interesting additional level of complexity to the story the lead character Enya faces double Jeopardy in that as well as facing the police she must also face the medical council
The book is set in Ireland and is firmly ground there and it’s in the rural tradition. The isolated setting makes the story feel increasingly claustrophobic and contained.
I read a copy of the novel or NetGalley UK in return for a review. The book was published in the UK in October 2024 by Harper Collins UK Harper publishing
This will appear on NetGalley UK, Goodreads, and my book blog bionic SarahSbookswordpress.com. It will also appear on Amazon UK.
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INTO THE STORM

An emotional mystery that keeps you gripped up until the very end.

Intensely moving, this book definitely keeps you thinking as the author weaves through different themes and the exploration of grief.

The who story is brought to life through Cecelia Aheren’s evocative writing.

Thank you #Netgalley for my eArc copy of #IntoTheStorm in exchange for my honest review, Into The Storm will stay with me for a long time.

#author #CeceliaAheren #intothestorm #mystery #thoughtprovoking

A family already troubled all have relationship and trust issues. After stopping at the scene of an horrific hit and run to administer CPR Enya’s life spirals downwards and into a decision to save herself she needs to move to the a remote area in need of GP services.

There are some interesting themes touched on especially around the Rag Tree and how to integrate into a small close-knit community.
In parts the story rolls along nicely, in others it drags. It has left me unsure as to whether I enjoyed it or not.

I received a free copy of this novel from NetGalley in return for an honest review.

A great atmospheric book with a brilliant setting that was both gothic and creepy. Enya is an on call doctor and is driving through a horrific storm one night when she becomes involved in the hit and run of a teenage boy. The story follows Enya as she struggles to come to terms with the accident and her ever increasing distance from her husband and son and she decides to leave the family home and take a job in a little rural village. Lots of interesting characters and side stories intertwine making this a fantastic read.

I love Cecelia Ahern’s writing style and the characters she weaves. Having read all of her stories I wasn’t sure what theme this one would take, I enjoyed the slight suspense, though I felt it was quite a slow burner. The main character’s growth was good, but I wanted her to have a bit more ‘getupandgo’ rather than stating quite passive. I love Margaret!
Thank you so much for this arc

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Into The Storm

I wish I knew Cecelia Ahern’s secret, as all of her books have me hooked within the first few pages; I emerge hours later, elated and having experienced so many emotions.

This book follows Enya who finds herself traumatised and going through an array of troubles after saving a boys life after a hit-and-run. Unhappy in marriage, her job and nearing a milestone age she never pictured herself hitting, an escape to a rural Irish town is just what she needs…but secrets never stay hidden for long.

So many aspects of this book are devastating, so beautifully raw and real combined with the gripping drama within the plot; all equate to this outstanding story.

Enya struggles so deeply with grief, years, decades even after the passing of a loved one she struggles intensely with the emotions that come from losing someone. It manifests itself as another being almost; causing her to behave in a way she would never usually.

She finds a way to eventually see the light through the darkness that had engulfed her. Being along for the tumultuous ride with Enya, as a witness to the lowest of her lows was intimate and heartbreaking, but enlightening at the same time.

The plot will sink its claws into you, the characters are intense, multi-dimensional and so varied; the writing is moreish with short sharp chapters, and amazing twists that make you gasp, sigh and cry.

Thank you endlessly to @official_ceceliaahern and @netgalley for providing this book to me, I feel lucky to have read it.

Cecelia Ahern has written another fantastic novel that will have you hooked. Into the Storm is a contemporary, emotional novel that explores themes of healing, grief, trauma, complex family relationships and self-discovery. The story will keep the reader guessing with twists and turns and will have you hooked. I could not put this book down.

The story begins on a stormy night of winter solstice, the longest night of the year on a mountain road in Dublin. Dr Enya Pickering is a GP and after a life-changing moment during that night she saves a teenage boy and this event continues to haunt her. From this night she starts to feel as though her life falls apart. She is also reaching the age her mother passed away at 47 years of age and her emotional grief resurfaces, as she is dealing with the trauma of the way her mother died and she cannot see herself outliving her mother’s age.

I really liked the writing style, character development of Enya and the complexities of her relationships. I liked the emotional, thought provoking, honest, descriptive language of Enya’s feelings and inner dialogue and I felt very immersed in the story and the emotions of the characters.
The novel deals with mature themes of Enya’s complicated relationships with her family, loveless marriage, grief, anxiety, trauma and emotional scars of the death of her mother, hope and healing inspiration from the wisdom of an ancient rag tree that becomes symbolic of her healing journey.
Thank you to the author, publisher Harper Collins UK and NetGalley for sending me an ARC copy.

Dr Enya Pickering feels like she's cracking up. Ever since she turned 46, and knowing her mum died in the sea of a heart attack aged 47, she's scared. One very stormy pre Christmas night she arrives at the scene of a road accident and saves the life of young Ross, a schoolmate of her son, Finn. Soon she's tied up with the taxi driver who was first on the scene and possible witness Mark who she was secretly meeting that night. Finally leaving her controlling husband, Xander, Enya becomes the village GP in a distant part of Ireland. Her only regret is leaving 16 year old Finn with his father. Enya is making a new life for herself in Abbeydooley although still haunted by the effect of that awful night. The rag tree in her new garden is a strange and wonderful thing, bringing feelings and memories to the fore. A gripping read and I wasn't prepared for the outcome. #intothestorm #ceciliaahern #netgalley

INTO THE STORM - CECELIA
AHERN - ARC
I have been a massive Cecelia Ahern fan over the years but this one just hasn't done it for me! I LOVED the idea of the story and where it was going I just think the whole I did, just kidding, no I did it, false confession, real confession thing was too much! I loved the idea of Enya finding herself after leaving her husband and her reconnecting with her son and sorting herself out. I think one of the actual suspects should have been a better choice. The book was all about forgiveness and connections but it just ended up making no sense to me. Also I hated her husband with a passion I'm glad she left him!
Release date - 10th October
@rachaelmcreads

This is a heavy family drama which is different to the light romantic feel of previous novels I have read by this author. There are some complicated storyline’s which are ok to follow and some wonderful characters. Different does not mean any less, I would defiantly recommend fans of Cecelia to try this darker but satisfying. Novel.
A really enjoyable book.

Into the Storm is a very dramatic family drama mystery full of well rounded characters thet you actually feel you know, It's full of intrigue, emotion and twists and reels the reader in from the outset.

I was expecting this to be a light romance, in the vein of other novels by Cecelia Ahern that I had read previously.

This is, however, more of a drama about a middle-aged woman who, after helping a teen victim of a hit-and-run the same age as her son, ends up leaving her husband and loving to rural Ireland to work as a GP.

With this in mind, I really enjoyed this book. I particularly found the main character, Enya, to be very relatable and appreciated the supporting cast around her, particularly her sister and son.

A recommended read for fans of Where'd You Go, Bernadette, The Authenticity Project, and MFCs who uproot their lives.

Thank you to Netgalley and Harper Collins UK for providing me with a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Hugely enjoyable book. It's a slow burn novel that drew me right in. A much darker novel that books I've previously read by Cecelia.

Renewal, Birth, Regrowth
Dr Enya Pickering’s life is turned upside down when she is the second person to come across a hit and run accident. This young boy reminds her so much of her own son as she performs CPR on him. He survives but his life is changed forever, as hers is too.
Enya is going through some deep emotional issues as she comes to terms with the fact she is nearing the age that her beloved mother drowned, after suffering a heart attack when Enya was just 12 years old. She starts to re read her mother’s diaries to be close to her but she starts to lose her grip on life and reality.
I loved this book, it was quite an emotional read for me and I wonder if that was because my mother passed away in her forties too and I could relate to it when reaching the same age as her.
There are a few complex story lines surrounding Enya but easy to follow. Loved the relationship between Enya and Margaret and all in all a journey towards hope. I haven’t resinated with a couple of the authors’ latest books but this one hit the spot.
Thankyou to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy to review,

Not what I was expecting from Cecelia Ahern. I do not proclaim to be an expert on Ahern’s writing but having read some of her earlier work, I am yet to experience similar themes that run throughout her stories. I don’t know, maybe I’m not looking hard enough, but then again, maybe Ahern is just skilled at being a master of all trades. There is certainly nothing amateur about what she presents.

Forty-six-year-old Enya is struggling with family life. Living in a sterile home environment that echoes her husband’s (Xander) lineage, whilst working as an urban GP alongside her husband at their practice, she is haunted by her own ghosts. As her irrational fears linked to her mother threaten to consume her, Enya finds herself at an emotional distance from her family, including her fifteen-year-old son, Finn. Following one fateful stormy night that will have a profound effect on so many lives, Enya decides to leave Xander for rural Abbeydooley where she is forced to examine who she is and how she does things in more ways than one. Huge discoveries are made through the reading of her late mother’s columns, and her relationships with the people around her, i.e., her sister; Flora, her newfound friend; Margaret, and Finn, which leave us wondering whether Enya will, in fact, survive the storm.

On the one hand, I give myself credit for anticipating the end, particularly as the pacing of the novel ebbed and flowed in a way that could cause a reader to stall in their reading. However, I was totally bowled over by the way the end came about. There were as many twists and turns culminating in a climax as there were in the roads Enya was driving along throughout the novel.

The blurb had already painted a strong picture of what to expect at the beginning of the novel. This first segment progressed quickly and set a tone for the rest of the book. However, the pace slowed drastically once Enya moved from the fast-paced city to the slower, yet busier life in the country. I questioned why we were there and the entire point in the move. I was not in the market for a ‘chick lit’ genre. However, as quickly as I formed this assumption of the book, the story took a shift and entered a ‘whodunnit’ phase. I found myself backtracking and examining characters and the reason for their existence.

Overall, the book was a curious read. I loved the portrayal of lesser-known Irish traditions. Rather than the stereotypical leprechauns and rainbows, a focus on names, seasons, and rag trees took center stage. I would say that this book was highly devoted to overcoming trauma in a subtle way. It did not need to behave in a triggering fashion to deliver a tale of healing and redemption. Readers of cozy mysteries, and people who do not thrive on a book that is 95% drama, instead preferring less Hollywood spectacle will enjoy this book. It is not a difficult read but it has rich characters whose characteristics are thought-provoking. If you are not in need of magic and sparkle, this is a really enjoyable book to curl up in front of the fire with on a cold, stormy night, or just a lazy day. Take the time to really read, rather than race through, a book that contains very real characters that represent some of the sadder, more mixed-up souls of our society.

This book turned into an epic read. It started small and then turned into something huge and absolutely mental!
Looking back, the plot is really quite simple - but the way Cecilia Ahern writes, she turns it into an epic story with twists and turns. She also has a way of creating characters that are so real. They're not always likeable, but they are always believable.
Epic book and it completely gripped me from start to finish!

Enya a character with so many twists and turns in her story
She is first of all a Doctor a GP alongside her husband Zander who have a thriving business but upon his mother recent death they have almost without her consent moved into her huge mansion
She feels like she doesn’t belong in it and the only concession he has made is for their son Finn he has converted the whole loft area for his sole use
Enya meanwhile finds solace elsewhere one night but that night she also comes across a road traffic accident involving a young lad Ross a taxi driver has found him in a terrible storm Enya has to perform cpr to keep him alive
Enya is now living apart from zander but he won’t let her see her son
She is suffering severe mental health issues
Some of which are related to people tying items onto a tree in her new house a rag tree - she has to have someone explain what a rag tree is !
Despite all twists I really enjoyed this book loved Enya and her family
Real Irish storytelling