Nesting – A Powerful and Unforgettable Debut from an Award-Winning Irish Writer
On an ordinary spring afternoon in Dublin, Ciara Fay makes a split-second decision that will change her life forever. Grabbing an armful of clothes from the washing line, she straps her two young daughters into the car and drives away. All she knows is that home is no longer safe.
What begins as an escape soon turns into a battle for survival. With little money, no job, and her family across the sea, Ciara finds herself trapped in a broken housing system, forced to raise her children in a hotel room. As the seasons shift from summer to winter, she faces an impossible choice—rebuild her life from scratch or return to the husband who refuses to let her go.
Tense, beautifully written, and deeply moving, Nesting is a story of resilience, hope, and the lengths a mother will go to protect her children. But can Ciara truly break free—and at what cost?
Perfect for fans of powerful contemporary fiction, this extraordinary debut introduces a striking new voice in Irish literature.
LONGLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION 2025
THE INSTANT SUNDAY TIMES AND IRISH TIMES BESTSELLER
A BBC RADIO 2 BOOK CLUB PICK
AN OBSERVER BEST DEBUT NOVELIST OF 2025
'Tense, forensically realistic and compulsively readable. A real achievement' SUNDAY TIMES
‘Here is a novelist who has powerful news to tell, and an impressive range of narrative gifts with which to tell it’ IRISH TIMES
‘Should become essential reading for all. Nesting is a novel that truly matters’ SUNDAY INDEPENDENT
'A moving portrait of life inside the housing system and the courage it takes to try to build a home in society’s cracks' GUARDIAN
