Book picks similar to
Cocktail Bar by Norah Hoult


ireland
short-stories
fiction
west-classiques-old-nonfiction

Blood Ties


Jennifer Lash - 1997
    It tells of Violet Farr and her loveless marriage, her wild, unfathomable son and his illegitimate son, all of them bound together in a repeating pattern of exile and homecoming, rejection and, finally, acknowledgement and love. As Elizabeth Buchan wrote in the London Times, "Jennifer Lash is a Lawrentian in so far as she mines her material for the blood and thunder roaring between spouses, and between parents and children."

The Other Side of the Story


Marian Keyes - 2004
    A former NYPD cop, she now lives in London making million-dollar book deals while trying to make partner at her firm . . . all the while sleeping with the boss man. Lily Wright is an author who believes in karma, and is waiting for the sky to fall after stealing her former best friend's man. Though her first book failed to sell, her life turns upside down when her most recent book becomes a huge bestseller. Gemma Hogan is an event designer extraordinaire, but her personal life is nonexistent after losing the love of her life and her best friend in one fell swoop. To make matters worse, her father has just left her mother. While taking care of her mother, she e-mails a close colleague about her frustrations, who in turn forwards the hilarious e-mails to a famous literary agent named Jojo Harvey, who just happens to represent her former friend, now enemy, Lily Wright. . . . Written in the charming and chatty voice that has become Marian Keyes's signature style, this hilarious and heartwarming novel proves there are three sides to every story . . . especially in the world of publishing!

January


Kerry Wilkinson - 2015
    But is it a mistake, where does the money come from, and can Kitkat get through New Year's Day without its owner asking for the money back?This is a 7,000-word short story.

The Summer Visitors


Fiona O'Brien - 2017
    He's hoping that three months researching an old cable station in a remote village on the south-west coast of Ireland will help him and his traumatised son finally move on from the accident that killed his wife.Meanwhile local hotel owner's daughter Annie Sullivan has communication problems of her own to deal with. Home on sabbatical from her life in London, she's keeping a secret from her dysfunctional family and trying to save them and the hotel from their latest drama.As summer draws to a close in Ballyanna, both Dan and Annie are forced to confront the pasts they've been escaping. But will they be able to grasp the future that lies ahead? The Summer Visitors is a heart-warming story about love, second chances and moving on.

The Persephone Book of Short Stories


Susan GlaspellElizabeth Berridge - 2012
    The use of metaphor is delicate and subtle; often the women are strong and capable and the men less so; shallow and selfish motives are exposed.The dates of these stories range from 1909 to 1986 and there are thirty in all. The ten stories which are already in print in Persephone editions of their work are by Katherine Mansfield, Irène Némirovsky, Mollie Panter-Downes (twice), Elizabeth Berridge, Dorothy Whipple, Frances Towers, Margaret Bonham, Diana Gardner and Diana Athill. The ten stories which have already been published in the Quarterly and Biannually are by EM Delafield; Dorothy Parker; Dorothy Whipple; Edith Wharton; Phyllis Bentley; Dorothy Canfield Fisher; Norah Hoult; Angelica Gibbs; Penelope Mortimer; and Georgina Hammick. And lastly the ten stories which are new are by Susan Glaspell, Pauline Smith, Malachi Whitaker, Betty Miller, Helen Hull, Kay Boyle, Shirley Jackson, Sylvia Townsend Warner, Elizabeth Spencer and Penelope Fitzgerald.

Molly


Teresa Crane - 1982
    Fleeing her fanatical republican family, Molly O’Dowd arrives nearly penniless in London at the end of the nineteenth century. Plunged into the world of East End gambling houses and brothels, Molly invests what little money she has in a typing course, her only way out. This investment will lead her on the path to establishing herself as a woman of power and means.From the rough-and-tumble world of the London docks to the luxurious hotels and restaurants of the fashionable West End, Molly captures the temper of the times – the unrest of the labouring classes, the courage of the suffragette movement, the ravages of the First World War. Molly wins and loses in the tempestuous world of the capital but her energy and determination never flag and tides change when she meets a man who could match her in business… and in love. This rags-to-riches historical romance is perfect for fans of Lily Graham, Natalie Meg Evans and Fiona McIntosh.

After the Wake


Brendan Behan - 1981
    When he died, at the age of 41, he was arguably the most celebrated Irish writer of the twentieth century.After the Wake is a collection of seven prose works and a series of articles. It includes all that exists of an unfinished novel, 'The Catacombs', and pieces together items whose comic and fanciful accounts evoke Flann O'Brien. Also featured are works of acknowledged excellence, 'The Confirmation Suit' and 'A Woman of No Standing'. This writing bears all the hallmarks of the author's talent - an ability to bring characters to life quickly and unforgettably, a sharp ear for dialogue and dialect, and a natural vocation for story-telling.This diverse collection is a delightful and entertaining windfall from one of Ireland's most colourful writers. An essential complement to Behan's master works.

Season of Second Chances


Aimee Alexander - 2020
    A novel of family, love, and learning to be kind to yourself by award-winning, bestselling Irish author, Aimee Alexander. Grace Sullivan flees Dublin with her two teenage children, Jack and Holly, returning to the sleepy West Cork village where she grew up. No one in Killrowan knows what Grace is running from - or that she's even running. She'd like to keep it that way. Taking over from her father, Des, as the village doctor offers a real chance for Grace to begin again. But will she and the family adapt to life in a small rural community? Will the villagers accept an outsider as their GP? Will Grace live up to the doctor that her father was? And will she find the inner strength to face the past when it comes calling? Season of Second Chances is a heart-warming story of friendship, love and finding the inner strength to face a future that may bring back the past. Perfect for fans of Call The Midwives, The Durrells, Doc Martin and All Creatures Great and Small. The villagers of Killrowan will steal into your heart and make you want to stay with them forever.

Robbie Brady’s astonishing late goal takes its place in our personal histories


Sally Rooney - 2017
    

The Lesser Bohemians


Eimear McBride - 2016
    She struggles to fit in—she’s young and unexotic, a naive new girl—but soon she forges friendships and finds a place for herself in the big city.Then she meets an attractive older man. He’s an established actor, 20 years older, and the inevitable clamorous relationship that ensues is one that will change her forever.A redemptive, captivating story of passion and innocence set across the bedsits of mid-1990s London, McBride holds new love under her fierce gaze, giving us all a chance to remember what it’s like to fall hard for another.

Line


Colleen Charles - 2017
    I'm a filthy rich, playboy workaholic that doesn’t have time for a relationship. Women equal fun, and I cut them loose once I’m through. Lucky for me, the corporate climbers in this fast-paced city are just as cutthroat as I am. We keep it light and tight. That way, no one gets hurt. Why buy the cow when you can get the milk for free? Until I want to buy the cow. She slays me. My talented, beautiful Lydia. It’s too bad she’s one of those airhead creative types just like my douche bag actor brother. Always climbing, striving, manipulating. Then turning into a stage five clinger. If it wasn’t for that, I’d make her mine. Lydia Charming NYC playboy, Callum Markham, is completely unexpected. He's trying to chase away the ghosts of his past with work, work and an extra helping of work. Nothing is more important to him than closing the next billion dollar deal. I just started dating his brother and I care about Tristan. So why do I see Callum’s face every time I close my eyes? I have to resist this blazing lust I feel whenever he’s near. And I will. Because I'm not the kind of girl that betrays another, even if I’d like to throw Callum down and devour him. I’m a famous romance author and he’s a hot shot lawyer. On the paper I love, Tristan is the obvious choice. He’s an edgy and arrogant actor who gets me. Why bark up the wrong tree? Until I want to let out a little yelp. Callum’s brought me to my knees. He’s so compelling he’d make the perfect hero for my next novel. Sexy, intelligent, magnetic. It’s too bad he’s not interested in anyone employed in the creative arts. If it wasn’t for that, I’d let myself fall. This full-length alpha billionaire romance by best-selling author Colleen Charles is meant for mature audiences. For a limited time, a FREE copy of Colleen's #1 Firefighter Romance novel, Wasted Heat, is included. Colleen's books are always FREE with Kindle Unlimited.

Hostages


Oisín Fagan - 2016
    My heart is broken and my failure is total.A bomb is born, lives and dies in a rural secondary school; Ireland becomes a dumping ground for corpses; one family’s genealogy begins in tragedy in 1574 and ends in something far worse in 2111; a strange tribal matriarchy on the banks of the River Boyne is threatened with extermination.Over the course of these stories, the world breaks down in an endless cycle of hunger, desperation, violence and domination, and we find a humanity left tender, collapsed, and full of a beautiful, primeval innocence.Fagan’s raw blend of verve, humour, imagination and warmth surges through these pages, revealing a world rendered both hopeful and disturbing, human and other, that is at once familiar and extraordinary.

Violence in the Blood (The Crime Syndicate #1)


Mark Newman - 2016
    He's got everything he ever wanted, except his health. The knives are out. His rivals sense blood. Their time is now. But Thompson's not going down without a fight. Violence in the Blood documents Thompson's rise to power from the backstreets of Glasgow to the industrial heartland of the Midlands. Join the rampage as Malkie and his crew blaze a trail of mayhem and destruction north and south of the border.

The Duke of York


Patricia Finney - 2014
    Four physicians have failed to bring the young lad back to health, and his nurses seem unable to bring him comfort. Sir Robert decides that he and Elizabeth Lady Carey should have the keeping of the child – despite the disgrace that will come to them if he dies in their care. It’s not long before Sir Robert begins to suspect that foul play lies behind the young Duke’s condition. Is there a poisoner at Court? If so, will Sir Robert find the miscreant in time to save the Duke? Patricia Finney is the author of six novels featuring Sir Robert Carey, all of them written under the pseudonym P F Chisholm and all available on Kindle. Patricia Finney’s latest Elizabethan crime novel, Do We Not Bleed?, features the ambiguous James Enys, his elusive sister, and a young playwright, Will Shakespeare. Do We Not Bleed? is also available on Kindle.

SCANDALOUS AFFAIRS


LADY LEGACY - 2017
    Maceo has overlooked the vow of “forsaking all others”, so it’s hard for him to stay faithful. Maceo is extremely sexy, and women are always throwing their goodies at him. He loves his beautiful wife Chrissy, but he keeps a hot thot on standby. He has a weakness for fine, freaky women. Their marriage seems to be perfect from the outside looking in. However, everything that glitters ain’t gold. Big trouble is brewing and Maceo is creeping out the bed to meet up with different mistresses. It’s just sex to him and nothing more; but, what happens when one of his side chicks fall in love? She’s willing to do whatever it takes to make Maceo her man. Chrissy has overlooked her husband’s cheating over the years; but, after learning of a particular mistress, Maceo might have crossed a line she can’t forgive. Maceo is scandalous, but he’s not the only one hiding secrets. Chrissy’s past ain’t pretty, and both of their secrets will be exposed. ​When life changing secrets are revealed…..can Maceo and Chrissy forgive each other? Or will the cheating, lies, and secrets be too much to save this troubled marriage?