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A review by whatstavreads
Before My Actual Heart Breaks by Tish Delaney
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
my first book of '24 turned out to be a five star page-turner that almost broke my heart.
northern ireland in the '70s. mary rattigan grows up in a society shaken up by the troubles, while her home life is being terrorized by a deeply religious mother and a kind, but emotionally distant father. mary learns to taste the the bitter absence of love early on. driven by her hunger for love and affection she finds herself pregnant at sixteen and so all of the dreams she made for herself and her future in america seem to evaporate.
mary had spent her adulthood chasing the what if's of her youth, that she almost lost sight of all the love that surrounded her right there in the life she found herself forced upon her. it shows the silent sorrows of a generation that where emotionally starved.
the prose and usage of irish slang was so well done. even though the end seemed somewhat anticlimactic, it was a beautiful story about the hunger for love and it's absence, the resentment, and the quiet forgiveness that follows if one is willing to claim it.
northern ireland in the '70s. mary rattigan grows up in a society shaken up by the troubles, while her home life is being terrorized by a deeply religious mother and a kind, but emotionally distant father. mary learns to taste the the bitter absence of love early on. driven by her hunger for love and affection she finds herself pregnant at sixteen and so all of the dreams she made for herself and her future in america seem to evaporate.
mary had spent her adulthood chasing the what if's of her youth, that she almost lost sight of all the love that surrounded her right there in the life she found herself forced upon her. it shows the silent sorrows of a generation that where emotionally starved.
the prose and usage of irish slang was so well done. even though the end seemed somewhat anticlimactic, it was a beautiful story about the hunger for love and it's absence, the resentment, and the quiet forgiveness that follows if one is willing to claim it.