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Nesting
A Novel
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On a bright spring afternoon, Ciara Fay makes a split-second decision that will change everything. Grabbing an armful of clothes off the clothesline, she straps her two young daughters into her car and drives away. Head spinning, all she knows for certain is that home is no longer safe—and that this time, when she leaves, she must stay away.
On the surface, she has a perfect life: her husband, Ryan, is a good provider, sometimes even kind and attentive, from a nice Irish family, and they have another baby on the way. But he also monitors Ciara’s every move, flies into unpredictable rages where he convinces her she can do nothing right, and has isolated her from work, friends, and her beloved family.
Was fleeing the right thing to do? With no job and no support, Ciara struggles to provide a sense of normalcy for her little girls. Facing a broken housing system, they move into a hotel room on a floor reserved for women like her, eating takeout, washing their clothes in the bathroom sink, and building a community with the other residents. Ryan, meanwhile, wages a relentless campaign to win her back, and Ciara wavers. He never hit her, after all, and don’t the girls need a stable home?
For fans of Claire Keegan and Louise Kennedy, Roisín O’Donnell’s extraordinary debut creates a devastating and suspenseful portrait of gaslighting and emotional abuse—and even better, a triumphant story about family, love, and finding a new place to nest.
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"Nesting is a perfect portrayal of the insidious nature of intimate partner abuse where the bruises are not physical, but violently emotional. I fell in love with the voice of Ciara as she sets out to create a new life against all odds for herself and her children. A story of bravery, love, and redemption, chock full of emotional suspense—I couldn't look away. A high-wire act of a debut."Chelsea Bieker, author of Madwoman and Godshot
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"Nesting is a haunting, deeply affecting debut novel—a gripping and unflinching exploration of coercive partner control, societal inequality, motherhood and the terrifying reality of a world closing in fast when you have no options left. An incredibly compelling tale of survival. It is as emotionally charged as it is brutally real, the writing is flawless. I was profoundly moved."Elaine Feeney, Booker-longlisted author of How to Build a Boat
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"What an extraordinary debut! I clutched this book tightly as I read, and rooted for Ciara from page one. Nesting is an unputdownable story of love, courage, and survival. I look forward to whatever comes next for Roisín O’Donnell."Mary Beth Keane, New York Times bestselling author of Ask Again, Yes and The Half Moon
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"Striking... The mounting tension and suspense as Ciara struggles to stay free and safe make the pages fly. O’Donnell gives us a great character to root for and a portrait of her situation that is both terrifying and ultimately inspiring. An afterword confirms the impression that it’s based on research into real women’s experiences. A propulsive, nuanced, achingly real novel that will appeal to both Colleen Hoover fans and devotees of Irish fiction."Kirkus Reviews
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"Irish writer O’Donnell debuts with a wrenching and scrupulously realistic narrative... Ultimately hopeful, the narrative steers away from melodrama, offering instead a close examination of Ciara’s daily struggles and hard-won triumphs, all of which are depicted in crystalline and lyrical prose. It’s an unforgettable portrait of an all-too-common dilemma."Publishers Weekly
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"Such a moving, heartfilled, urgent book."Jan Carson, author of The Raptures
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"Delicate and forceful, this is a novel of constant, intelligent suspense about a broken marriage with traces of danger in it. All its characters feel justly and vibrantly true, as its plot resists cliché at every turn. A rare and outstanding work.Joan Silber, bestselling author of Improvement
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"O’Donnell tackles the unsettling cruelties and manipulations of coercive control with insight and emotional complexity. The voice is authentic, vivid and important. The final dedication to ‘anyone trapped in a place that does not feel like home’ says everything. Emotionally charged, psychologically nuanced and full of compassion and possibility, I read with my heart in my mouth."Una Mannion, bestselling author of Tell Me What I Am
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"A dazzling debut, pin-sharp in its depiction of the insidious hooks of behind-closed-doors coercive control. O'Donnell handles her heroine's pain and potential power with nuanced, page-turning aplomb. I was gripped to the end."Cristín Leach, author of Negative Space
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"Such a beautiful and real portrayal of contemporary Dublin."Ana Kinsella, author of Look Here
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"A gorgeous, maddening, thrilling and compassionate book. Roisín O'Donnell so expertly captures the dull thud of dread and the frailty of hope. Nesting shows us that the quietest voice in the room can also be the most powerful."Sheila Armstrong, author of Falling Animals
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"Nesting is a triumph of a novel. It raced through it. A beautifully crafted, unflinching portrait of the lengths a mother must go to make a home for herself and those she loves. It will speak to so many."Louise Nealon, bestselling author of Snowflake
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"Paced like a thriller, Nesting is a deep, beautiful, hopeful meditation on trauma, healing and love."Jessica Stanley, author of Consider Yourself Kissed
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Previous Praise for Roisín O’Donnell:Irish Independent, on Wild Quiet
'A beautiful collection from an interesting new author who handles space and time – those two bugbears of the short-story writer – with uncanny ease, fluidity and absolute grace.'
- On Sale
- Feb 3, 2026
- Publisher
- Algonquin Books
- ISBN-13
- 9781643755717
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