Before The Fall by Orna Ross

eBook: 416 KB, Paperback has 231 pages.
Genre: Historical Fiction.
Publisher:  Font Publications (27 February 2012).
Source: The author in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.
First Sentence: Here comes Useless John skulking up the road.
Review Quote:  SUNDAY INDEPENDENT: "A highly ambitious, engaging and evocative novel and a hauntingly captivating read."
My Opinion: Love and grief intertwined with mystery.

It worked well reading this immediately after finishing 'After The Rising' 'After the Rising' as it follows on with events in Mucknamore seamlessly continuing the modern day (1995) story of Jo Devereux, who is still in Ireland researching into the family history and trying to deal with her feelings for her old love Rory O'Donovan.

As in the first volume of the trilogy the storyline jumps between locations and generations. Continuing the family dramas, though this time concentrating more on the characters of Peg and Norah and what happens to them in the 1920's. Besides being set in Ireland the contemporary part of the story also takes the reader to the USA where AIDS was starting to take a hold when Jo first went to live there in the 1980's. 
As Jo comes to understand exactly what freedom cost the families and how the past has haunted three generations, she realises that once can never truly break free from family.
There is so much love and grief intertwined with mystery, which if you have read the previous volume I do not think you can fail to be moved by. 

Just like the first volume this is written in a flowing expressive style and left me knowing a little more about Irish history. Still looking forward to reading the third title in the trilogy, recommended to fans of historical fiction. 


Author Profile

Orna Ross (Aine McCarthy) was born in Waterford, Ireland but is now living in London. She writes novels, poems, non-fiction and she also blogs about creative writing living. She has a dedicated belief in the power of the published word to transform and liberate. When she's not writing, you'll probably find her reading.

Orna has been published by Attic Press and Penguin, but she now publishes her own work. She is founding author & Director at 'The Alliance of Independent Authors',  for which she has been named "one of the 100 most influential people in publishing" by The Bookseller magazine.

ORNA SAYS: (Reproduced from her Amazon Profile)

"My NOVELS usually take the form of family-based dramas. Often they are historical fiction and usually there's a murder mystery or other buried secret from the past causing chaos in the present. I enjoy writing emotional twists and surprises around big themes -- identity, family loyalty, truth, sex and death, the struggle between freedom and belonging.

My POEMS are simple and accessible and tend towards the inspirational. I think everyone should read a poem a day (keep a poetry book in the bathroom is my advice).

My NONFICTION is about applying the creative process to everything in life. We've all been educated to neglect our creative capacities -- a big mistake, as the Creative Age overtakes the Information Age. Thankfully, like any other muscle, creative ability is strengthened by being flexed and used. The 'Go Creative!' books show how to become more creative.

ORNA'S INSPIRATIONS: (Reproduced from her Amazon Profile)

1: HISTORY: I agree with Mr Hartley that the past is, indeed, another country and it's my favourite place to travel -- reading and writing historical fiction is my favourite thing to do. I'm especially drawn to bohemian times and places where shackles are thrown off and creativity flourishes -- fin de siecle Paris (1890s); literary revival and revolutionary Ireland (1910/20s); hippy (1960s) and gay lib (1980s) San Francisco...

2: GENDER: I write the kind of women's fiction that explores what it is to be a woman, in various times and places. But I think both men and women have feminine and masculine dimensions. We are all seeded by man and born of woman and we all carry 'male' and 'female' characteristics. How these play out, in an individual life and in different societies, is endlessly fascinating to me.

3: IRELAND: I don't only write about Ireland but it is a strong influence. Because so many millions have emigrated from there, its stories reach beyond its own shores. There is always a particular flavour to Irish writing and readers tell me they experience in my books too.

4: THE SEA: Everything I really needed to know, I could have learned by watching the waves.

5: THE SPACE BETWEEN THE WORDS. About which the less said, the better.

How Orna got her writing name and more interesting biographical details can be found in the about me section on her website.

The biographical information and photo used in this post are with thanks to the following websites, where you can also find more information about the author and her writing.

Author Goodreads Profile   Orna Ross - Twitter Profile    Amazon Author Page - Orna Ross

Orna Ross - Official Author Website   Orna Ross - Google Plus

After The Rising by Orna Ross

eBook: 674KB, Paperback has 296 pages.
Genre: Historical Fiction.
Publisher:  Font Publications (16 Dec 2011).
Source: The author in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.
First Sentence: The thick double door beneath the sign - Parle's Bar and Grocery - is shut.
Review Quote: SUNDAY INDEPENDENT: "One is immersed in this epic story immediately and effortlessly... The main characters are so well-drawn that you feel you have heard about them in your own life. The novel's strength is that it puts culpable, fragile flesh and blood - lots of blood - on a defining moment in Irish history... Of particular delight are the many unexpected twists and turns. When you think you've figured out the secrets, you may have got it all wrong. Orna Ross has written a highly ambitious, engaging and evocative novel and a hauntingly captivating read." 
My Opinion: Flowing and expressive.


This novel was Orna Ross's début, originally published with the sequel as 'Lovers' Hollow' by Penguin in 2006. The title has recently been reissued by the author. It is the first time I have read anything by Orna Ross and I feel very guilty that it has taken me so long to read and review 'After The Rising' and the sequel 'Before The Fall' which I read immediately after this one, so will publish the reviews simultaneously. The author was kind enough to provide copies for My Kindle via Amazon a long time ago. A problem I do find with eBooks is that they can easily get lost amongst the many other titles, a case of out of sight out of mind! I must be more careful in future.
The titles mentioned are I and II of an Irish Trilogy and I will certainly be hoping to read the final volume one day, I learnt so much about Irish history following the trials and tribulations of the Mucknamore families.

What a wonderful name for a village, Mucknamore, a fictional village set in the Wexford countryside of Ireland, but the events that took place were real events in Ireland's history.  The female protagonist is Jo Devereux who has returned home to Ireland after twenty years away to attend her mother's funeral. Through dealing with her mother's affairs after her death, she finds herself coming into contact with Rory O'Donovan, a man she had a teenage love affair with. Probably the only man she ever truly loved but he is now married. A conflict between their families split them up and she fled to the USA. 
Now though back in Ireland reading the family history that her mother has left to Jo, she discovers some surprising truths about her mother and grandmother. She learns about the role of the women in the Irish Civil War of 1923 and about a mysterious incident involving the death of Rory's uncle in the same war. It is these events that have caused on going conflict between the families continuing with each new generation. Probing for the truth Jo is astonished by the similarity to her own life where she has endeavoured to balance love and freedom. What will happen between her and Rory, if anything and how will learning about the past impinge upon her decisions? If you want to find out you will have to read the book.

Written in a flowing expressive style this story left me knowing more than I did about Irish history and looking forward to reading the third title in the trilogy, recommended to fans of historical fiction. 


Author Profile

Orna Ross (Aine McCarthy) was born in Waterford, Ireland but is now living in London. She writes novels, poems, non-fiction and she also blogs about creative writing living. She has a dedicated belief in the power of the published word to transform and liberate. When she's not writing, you'll probably find her reading.

Orna has been published by Attic Press and Penguin, but she now publishes her own work. She is founding author & Director at 'The Alliance of Independent Authors',  for which she has been named "one of the 100 most influential people in publishing" by The Bookseller magazine.

ORNA SAYS: (Reproduced from her Amazon Profile)

"My NOVELS usually take the form of family-based dramas. Often they are historical fiction and usually there's a murder mystery or other buried secret from the past causing chaos in the present. I enjoy writing emotional twists and surprises around big themes -- identity, family loyalty, truth, sex and death, the struggle between freedom and belonging.

My POEMS are simple and accessible and tend towards the inspirational. I think everyone should read a poem a day (keep a poetry book in the bathroom is my advice).

My NONFICTION is about applying the creative process to everything in life. We've all been educated to neglect our creative capacities -- a big mistake, as the Creative Age overtakes the Information Age. Thankfully, like any other muscle, creative ability is strengthened by being flexed and used. The 'Go Creative!' books show how to become more creative.

ORNA'S INSPIRATIONS: (Reproduced from her Amazon Profile)

1: HISTORY: I agree with Mr Hartley that the past is, indeed, another country and it's my favourite place to travel -- reading and writing historical fiction is my favourite thing to do. I'm especially drawn to bohemian times and places where shackles are thrown off and creativity flourishes -- fin de siecle Paris (1890s); literary revival and revolutionary Ireland (1910/20s); hippy (1960s) and gay lib (1980s) San Francisco...

2: GENDER: I write the kind of women's fiction that explores what it is to be a woman, in various times and places. But I think both men and women have feminine and masculine dimensions. We are all seeded by man and born of woman and we all carry 'male' and 'female' characteristics. How these play out, in an individual life and in different societies, is endlessly fascinating to me.

3: IRELAND: I don't only write about Ireland but it is a strong influence. Because so many millions have emigrated from there, its stories reach beyond its own shores. There is always a particular flavour to Irish writing and readers tell me they experience in my books too.

4: THE SEA: Everything I really needed to know, I could have learned by watching the waves.

5: THE SPACE BETWEEN THE WORDS. About which the less said, the better.

How Orna got her writing name and more interesting biographical details can be found in the about me section on her website.

The biographical information and photo used in this post are with thanks to the following websites, where you can also find more information about the author and her writing.

Author Goodreads Profile   Orna Ross - Twitter Profile    Amazon Author Page - Orna Ross

Orna Ross - Official Author Website   Orna Ross - Google Plus

Little Lies by Liane Moriarty

Paperback: 450 pages

Genre: Contemporary Fiction 
Publisher: Michael Joseph 2014
Source: Lovereading Reviewer Panel
First Sentences: "That doesn't sound like a School Trivia Night," said Mrs Patty Ponder to Marie Antoinette. "That Sounds like a riot."
Favourite Quote:“It had never crossed her mind that sending your child to school would be like going back to school yourself.” 
Review Quote: Here at Company HQ we're all obsessed with Little Lies by Liane Moriarty. This juicy seaside-town murder mystery will be one of the biggest books this autumn (Company Magazine
My Opinion: Entertaining and compelling read

Please note this title is published as 'Big Little Lies' in USA and Australia.

Although you know right from the opening paragraphs that something dreadful has happened in Pirriwee, this compelling story keeps you guessing.  Tragic yet hilarious, so much more than a murder mystery this novel kept me reading well into the night, as I kept telling myself just one more chapter!

The protagonists Jane, Maddie and Celeste are all mothers of children at Pirriwee Public School, all very different but drawn together by events at school. Jane is the single parent, new to the area, with nothing to say about her son's father. Celeste is the happily married one, also wealthy and beautiful, the envy of all the other Mums. Maddie or Madeleine is the lively one, having problems with her teenage daughter from a previous marriage. The scene is set, disaster has struck, but to find out exactly what the author takes us back to the start of the school year to tell us the whole story. The characters and their relationships are all very realistic and sadly totally believable.  I say sadly as these are everyday situations that readers are going to be familiar with. Nobody's life is quite as it seems and as we are taken behind the scenes of the characters relationships with their partners and families one is pulled into the complicated webs of deceit.  Bullying both mental and physical is a sad fact of life, the added drama is that all through the book you know the result is catastrophic but you do not know exactly what happened until the very end!  

In conclusion an entertaining and compelling read, which gains pace as the dreadful facts emerge. Another good choice for book clubs as the story raises plenty of subjects for discussion. Fans of  Sophie Hannah and Jojo Moyes will probably find they like Liane Moriarty's writing.

LITTLE LIES by Liane Moriarty: One fateful night -- can you unravel the truth?       No spoilers.

Link to my review of  The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriarty

Author Profile

Biography mainly courtesy of Goodreads Author Profile  To read even more about Liane click here

Liane was born on a November day in 1966 in Sydney, Australia. A few hours after she was born, she smiled directly at her father through the nursery glass window, which is remarkable, seeing as most babies can’t even focus their eyes at that age.

Her first word was ‘glug’. This was faithfully recorded in the baby book kept by her mother. As the eldest of six children, Liane was the only one to get a baby book. 

As a child, she loved to read, so much so that school friends would cruelly hide their books when she came to play. She does not go to sleep at night without first reading a novel for a very long time in a very hot bath.

She can’t remember the first story she ever wrote, but she does remember her first publishing deal. Her father ‘commissioned’ her to write a novel for him and paid her an advance of $1.00. She wrote a three volume epic called, ‘The Mystery of Dead Man’s Island’

After leaving school, Liane began a career in advertising and marketing. She became quite corporate for a while and wore suits and worried a lot about the size of her office. She eventually left her position as marketing manager of a legal publishing company business called The Little Ad Agency. After that she worked as a freelance advertising copywriter, writing everything from websites and TV commercials to the back of the Sultana Bran box.

She also wrote short stories and many first chapters of novels that didn't go any further. The problem was that she didn't actually believe that real people had novels published. Then one day she found out that they did, when her younger sister Jaclyn Moriarty called to say that her novel, Feeling Sorry for Celia was about to be published.

In a fever of sibling rivalry, Liane rushed to the computer and wrote a children’s book called The Animal Olympics, which went on to be enthusiastically rejected by every publisher in Australia.

She calmed down and enrolled in a Masters degree at Macquarie University in Sydney. As part of that degree, she wrote her first novel, Three Wishes. It was accepted by the lovely people at Pan Macmillan and went on to be published around the world. Her latest books are published by the equally lovely people at Penguin in both the US and the UK. Since then she has written two more novels for adults, as well as a series of books for children.

Liane is now a full-time author. She lives in Sydney with her husband, her daughter Anna and son George.


The biographical information and photo used in this post are with thanks to the following websites, where you can also find more information about the author and her writing.


Goodreads Author Profile      Liane Moriarty - Amazon Page  

Author's Official Website      YouTube - Little Lies

Facebook Profile - Liane Moriarty        Wikipedia - Liane Moriarty

Finding You by Giselle Green

eBook: .648KB 410 pages in print edition.

Genre:  Contemporary Fiction.
Publisher: Yule Press (28 Mar 2014)
Source: The author in return for an honest and unbiased review.
First Sentences: 'When I call out to my son, walking ahead of me along the sandy shore, he does not stop or look back at me.
Review Quote: The Sun. 'A genuinely heart-wrenching and thought-provoking read.' 
My Opinion: Emotional family drama.


The sequel to Finding You and although it stands perfectly well alone if you have not read 'Little Miracles' personally I felt that I got much more from the story knowing what had gone on before. Sadly children disappearing is a fact of life these days and we all know the cases that have received a lot of media attention in recent years. Reading this emotional family drama and its prequel you cannot help but find yourself thinking of these incidents.

As the novel opens Julia and Charlie are delirious with happiness to have their son Haydn back with them. He had disappeared from a beach in Spain a year previously and they had been terrified that he would never be found alive. The three of them are trying to readjust to family life which brings its own problems for them all. Julia and Charlie both alternate in recounting the storyline, which adds to the interest and understanding of how both partners react differently to the situations they are presented with. Life is definitely not turning out as it should be for them as it seems that the abduction has affected Hadyn far more than the couple realise. Will they be able to return to the happy family life they had together before all this, or will it be impossible to move on? No spoilers from me so you will have to read the novel if you are interested in finding out about all the issues they faced and if they can be resolved. 

As mentioned in earlier reviews, Giselle Green is an author that I wish I had discovered way back in 2008, when her her first novel Pandora's Box was  published. So many books and so little time meant that unfortunately I did not read it until a few months ago! Making up for lost time now I am catching up and enjoying her writing style, enough to say that I would now recommend her to anyone that appreciates stories with a moral basis. I have seen her referred to as the UK's answer to Jodi Picoult, there are similarities, the strongest being that both of them cover emotive issues in their novels. The motive storylines are a reason that she is an author that is a good choice for Book Club selection as her novels evoke a whole range of subjects for discussion. Apart from being a recommended read for fans of Jodi Picoult and contemporary fiction, any parent will also empathise strongly with the storyline.

Link to my earlier reviews Pandora's Box  Falling For You   Little Miracles   

Author Profile

Born in Chiswick, London, UK.  Giselle Green was brought up in Gibraltar from the age of seven to eighteen when she returned to the UK to study Biology at King's College London, followed by an MSc in Information Science at the City University. She is also a qualified Astrologer, with a particular interest in medieval astrology.

Her début novel Pandora's Box won the Romantic Novelists' Association New Writer's Award in 2008. Her third novel, A Sister's Gift achieved best-selling number one slot on Amazon Kindle in 2012.

Her fifth novel, the sequel to Little Miracles - Finding You - was released on Kindle on the 30th March 2014 and will be published as a paperback later in the year.
Giselle now lives in Kent with her husband and their six sons.

A fuller biography appears on her website here

The biographical information and photo used in this post are with thanks to the following websites, where you can also find more information about the author and her writing.

Goodreads Author Profile       Amazon Author Profile     Giselle Green - Twitter

Author's Official Website - Giselle Green   Facebook Profile - Giselle Green Author