The Stolen Child

Starred review from December 1, 2016
The story of a bleak, isolated Irish island where everyone believes in, and justifiably fears, fairies.St. Brigid, a saint often conflated with a druid goddess of the same name, chose the remote (and fictitious) isle that bears her name as a haven for her order of nuns. In 1960, a prologue reveals, St. Brigid's, which lacks electricity, telephone, or any other modern convenience, is about to be evacuated, its inhabitants--women, children, and one elderly man--resettled in council housing on the mainland. The main plot begins a year earlier, when a "Yank" named Brigid arrives to claim her late uncle's cottage and land. Brigid plans to stay despite the fact that the islanders still live as their ancestors have for centuries: fishing, farming, heating and cooking with peat fires. The first to welcome Brigid are Emer and her young son, Niall. Emer, who, as a child, tried to consort with fairies and lost an eye as a result, needs a friend: her pervasive aura of gloom has alienated all but her closest kin. Brigid inherited her gift of healing hands from her mother, who was, like Emer, reputed to be "touched" by fairies. Back stories swirl, heightening the stakes: Brigid, who has been an orphan, a midwife, and a child bride, is now nearly 40, infertile, and desperate to be a mother. She hopes to locate the spring of St. Brigid, which is said to work miracles--but the islanders keep the location of these waters a secret. Emer's sister Rose married Austin, the man Emer loved, and has a large brood, while Emer had to settle for Austin's brother Patch, a loutish drunk. Her biggest fear is that the fairies covet Niall and, as is their wont with certain children, plan to steal him when he turns 7 and leave a changeling in his place. Vividly and soulfully described, love and curses, roiling in a supernatural stew, bring about the large and small calamities that will render St. Brigid's uninhabitable. Magical realism of the best kind, utterly devoid of whimsy.

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January 1, 2017

St. Brigid is a small island off the Irish coast steeped in magic and folklore. Inhabitants barely eke out an existence from the sea and are suspicious of strangers. American Brigid is made to feel even more unwelcome when the island women learn that she is searching for St. Brigid's Well--a secret spring of water that is rumored to heal wounds and give barren women a child. Emer is a lonely housewife who lived briefly in the twilight world of myth, but her expulsion left her with scarred hands that leach happiness from all she touches. Convinced her son must be protected from the fae, Emer obsesses about shielding him from harm. In an unlikely friendship with the new stranger, Emer finds comfort and love in Brigid's healing hands. However, after Emer is betrayed, her vengeance endangers the entire island and the magic that dwells there. VERDICT Returning to the magic found in Carey's The Mermaids Singing, her newest release will enchant readers. Reminiscent of works by Susanna Kearsley and Lauren Willig, this is a good choice for those who are interested in Irish lore and the feminine mystique.--Melissa Lockaby, Univ. of North Georgia Libs., Dahlonega

Copyright 2017 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

January 1, 2017
Even in the middle of the twentieth century, Saint Brigid's Island, 12 miles off the Irish coast, is steeped in the otherworldly and in lore related to fairies and the legends surrounding the saint who gave the island its name. It's a hard place, and the government has plans to evacuate and resettle the island's handful of inhabitants. Among these are Emer and Rose, twins who couldn't be more different. Rose is cheerful and sensible; Emer is a snarled-up fist of a woman who longed to be stolen by fairies as a child and is now terrified that the fairies will steal her son, Niall. Into their lives comes Brigid, an American whose mother grew up on the island and who has come in search of a well said to have special powers. A midwife with healing gifts, Brigid is the only person besides Niall who doesn't recoil from Emer's touch, and the two women develop a fierce bond that leads to tragedy. Carey (Every Visible Thing, 2006) has written a mesmerizing tale about motherhood, superstition, betrayal, and the porous boundary between the real and the magical.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)