The Living

An eerily atmospheric novel exploring peacetime Ireland and the realities of living under the shadow of a turbulent past

Cate Houlihan, recent Trinity graduate, is adrift in a life that doesn't feel her own. Struggling with a new job at an eccentric Dublin publishing house and stifled by overbearing parents, her one sanctuary is singing in the prestigious Carmina Urbana choir. When romance blossoms with the choir's newest member—the older, opaque, and British Matthew Taylor—it seems as if things might be starting to go Cate's way. But when her job brings her into contact with the recent Irish Republican past, and she fears she is being followed, Cate's entire world becomes confused. Tensions escalate and she finds herself drawn inexorably into a situation she barely comprehends. As the lines between Cate's work, family, and relationship begin to blur, she realizes that danger is much closer to home than she could have ever imagined.