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A review by travelseatsreads
Trespasses by Louise Kennedy
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I wasn't sure what to expect when I read the blurb for Trespasses but what I got was a gripping, haunting & deeply evocative story of love & loss amidst The Troubles in 1970s Ireland.
Louise Kennedy's writing throughout these pages is quite simply flawless. From the first few lines I was captured & taken straight to 1970s Northern Ireland. The prose is so entrancingly evocative & effortless that I could smell the putrid thick smoke in the air, feel the hard bar stool pinching at my thighs & almost taste the oaky amber liquids swirling in Michael's glass.
Every single character Kennedy has written is very much their own distinct individual with contrasting beliefs, morals & quirks. What they all have in common is that they are so raw & real & are not pretending to be anything that they aren't. There are characters that I absolutely hated, to the point where I almost snarled as they appeared on the pages, there were characters who simply broke my heart & left me crushed by the situation they were in & then there were those that I just couldn't get a hold of, so slippery just like in life when you don't know what to make of someone.
The book overflows with extreme emotions & I feel that's down to Louise's ability to depict the true reality of events & festering atmosphere of 1970s Ireland so realistically that it is hard not to feel the intense fear terror & anger that was bubbling within the people at the time.
Often when I'm reading, I simply just read & enjoy the story & maybe try to figure out the plot. However, with Trespasses I was so engrossed within the words that I found myself visualising every scenario playing out in my head in vivid detail, to say I was caught within the flow of the storyline would be an absolute understatement. I found myself so enthralled that when it came to the ending it honestly felt like a punch to the stomach, which inevitably kept on coming. It is a long time since I've been so enthralled by a book that I simply just experienced it & enjoyed it without wondering what was coming next.
A beautifully raw & brutal piece of writing which stirred huge emotions & will stay with me for quite some time to come.
Louise Kennedy's writing throughout these pages is quite simply flawless. From the first few lines I was captured & taken straight to 1970s Northern Ireland. The prose is so entrancingly evocative & effortless that I could smell the putrid thick smoke in the air, feel the hard bar stool pinching at my thighs & almost taste the oaky amber liquids swirling in Michael's glass.
Every single character Kennedy has written is very much their own distinct individual with contrasting beliefs, morals & quirks. What they all have in common is that they are so raw & real & are not pretending to be anything that they aren't. There are characters that I absolutely hated, to the point where I almost snarled as they appeared on the pages, there were characters who simply broke my heart & left me crushed by the situation they were in & then there were those that I just couldn't get a hold of, so slippery just like in life when you don't know what to make of someone.
The book overflows with extreme emotions & I feel that's down to Louise's ability to depict the true reality of events & festering atmosphere of 1970s Ireland so realistically that it is hard not to feel the intense fear terror & anger that was bubbling within the people at the time.
Often when I'm reading, I simply just read & enjoy the story & maybe try to figure out the plot. However, with Trespasses I was so engrossed within the words that I found myself visualising every scenario playing out in my head in vivid detail, to say I was caught within the flow of the storyline would be an absolute understatement. I found myself so enthralled that when it came to the ending it honestly felt like a punch to the stomach, which inevitably kept on coming. It is a long time since I've been so enthralled by a book that I simply just experienced it & enjoyed it without wondering what was coming next.
A beautifully raw & brutal piece of writing which stirred huge emotions & will stay with me for quite some time to come.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, Gun violence, Hate crime, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Racial slurs, Violence, Police brutality, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, War, and Injury/Injury detail