Felicity Hayes-McCoy

audio fiction (~9 hrs 43min) - mobile librarian builds a life for herself after her kids are grown, no thanks to her asshole ex-husband, in a fictional coastal small town community of Ireland (book 1 in series, works fine as a standalone).

This is a gently drifting story with not a lot of surprises--a mild-mannered potential love interest Brian Morton does show up in the middle third of the book, but the main conflict appears to be looming budget cuts (halfway through the book). Overall I enjoyed the Irish lilt of the narrator and the well-meaning (if nosy) cast of characters.

2024 reading challenge: takes place in a library; takes place in a small town; construction project (a dilapidated old house left in an inheritance)… (más)

I am increasingly reminded of Alexander McCall Smith's idyllic Botswana, as I get deeper into the stories of Finfarran. Lissbeg is a lovely little town where, sure, people have troubles, but they don't let them rule or ruin their lives, and they pull together to pull through. Hanna the librarian continues to work at engaging her community, this time through a book-and-film club, even as her future and past are both crowding into her consciousness. Conor the library assistant and his fiancee Aideen cope with the planning for a double wedding that may be turning into someone else's fantasy, and not fulfilling their own. Jazz, Hanna's daughter, finds herself adrift after a relationship ends, and starts wondering whether Finfarran is the right place for her to be. And Rasher, a marginalized kid, turns up under Saira Khan's wing, and struggles to overcome his past and the prejudices that have kept him from thriving. All these stories are told with light, engaging language, the characters realistic and charming, and the setting as beguiling as ever. I'm totally in love with this place!… (más)