First published 1995
Cal lives in Belfast during the Troubles, caught between nauseating work at a slaughterhouse and joining the unemployment line. The young Catholic has been drawn into the violent conflict between Catholics and Protestants against his own wishes. He finds himself attracted to Marcella, a beautiful widow whose husband died in the sectarian violence. Cal carries a terrible secret about her loss that makes his feelings for her both compelling and torturous. He must decide whether to dwell on the guilt of his past actions or risk building a future with a woman whose grief he helped cause. The choices before him seem devastatingly simple on the surface, but each path leads to its own form of destruction. Cal's story unfolds against the backdrop of a community torn apart by religious hatred, where personal desires collide with political realities and moral consequences.
Genres: fiction, literary-fiction, historical-fiction, 20th-century
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, moral-dilemma
Setting: Belfast
Period: 20th-century
153 pages · Paperback · W. W. Norton & Company
Content warnings: violence