A story about three men, all connected in some way.

- Farouk, his wife, and their daughter are putting their lives in grave danger to escape their war-torn country in search of a better life in Europe.
- Lampy (Laurence) is 23, and feels like his life is going nowhere. All around him he sees his friends graduating from college, while he's still living at home with his mother and grandfather, mourning the loss of the woman who broke his heart.
- John is coming to the end of his life, and is confessing to the sins he believes he committed throughout his lifetime. He's reminiscing about regrets, choices, and the bad things he has done.

I'm a sucker for Donal Ryan, as I've probably said every other time I've reviewed one of his books. I think this is his best yet. When I realised how the men were all connected, I felt that tug at my heart, that sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach, that punch to the gut that Donal is so good at delivering. He sneaks up on you and hammers your soul.

You'll regret nothing by reading it, and if you've never read anything by this author you're missing out, he's wonderful and he's one of the best at writing about the scourges of rural Ireland.

3.5 stars. This book was completely different to what I was expecting. It was like 4 short stories that slightly connected at the end, I did really enjoy it though. The writing was beautiful, and the first story in this book had me tearing up.
I loved the way Donal Ryan examined three very different characters in three very different circumstances and both the good and bad within them. It was also refreshing reading some very Irish characters, something that you don't often read in books by popular publishers.
If you enjoy a good character studies with some beautiful writing, then I'd recommend this book.

From a low and Quiet Sea tells us the stories of three men. Farouk is an immigrant who has risked everything and suffered a lot to escape from Syria and make a life for himself in Ireland. Lampy is a heartbroken young man still living at home with his mother and grandfather and finally we meet John. He was greatly affected by the death of his brother when he was still a child but has gone on the be very successful, we are also told about an affair he had. They are given a section of the novel each rather than their stories being interwoven throughout. However in the fourth and final part of the novel we learn what links them together.

What I love about Donal Ryan's work is his ability to tell us so much about his characters in very few pages, they are well developed and convincingly brought to life, not a word is wasted. Having said this I did struggle to connect with John a lot more than the others although this may well be down to me as I've been in a reading lull of late.

From a Low and Quiet Sea is definitely worth a read if you enjoy well written, intelligent fiction. If you haven't tried any of the authors previous work then perhaps read one of his first two novels before giving this a go, links to my reviews of those are below:

Thanks to Netgalley and Transworld for a review copy.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

This was the first book of Donal's I read and I was very impressed! Beautiful, lyrical writing and gripping characters. I will definitely read more of his work.

I am a huge fan of Donal Ryan’s writing. The three separate stories engaged me completely, but I had a niggling feeling all the way through that they were going to link up in ways as yet unknown and kept wondering how. The final section does contain the links and it was a relief to have been reading an e-version of the book so I could check back easily. The links are a little confusing. That said, this is another showcase for his considerable talent at showing the reader characters with all their flaws. I think Lampy (and his mother and grandfather) touched me most and the ending is especially poignant for him.

One example that struck me particularly is the definition of the activity and the verb ‘to lobby’: ‘The word often puts me in mind of a hand or a fist being drawn back and flung forward repeatedly to lend physical force to a position, to better deliver an argument, to ask for something with a hint of a threat’. I visualise one of those punching balls you see in boxing clubs and it is a perfect image.

Recommended without hesitation.

3.5 stars. Small spoilers ahead in review.

This is a book that has been broken down into 4 parts. In three of them, we follow three different men from very different backgrounds, in the final part, it shows how these men are connected.

In Farouk's story, this book captured the want for safety whilst also being concerned about leaving all you know and the fear of making such a treacherous journey with loved ones.
"Farouk, my love, this is better than sitting and waiting for death."

In Lampy's story, it captured his want for a better life for himself, wanting to enjoy a life that has opportunities, but finding that his loyalty to his family held him back. It showed the way Lampy was torn in his feelings about family, particularly his 'Pop', his mother's father. Lampy was also wanting love, but found himself getting his heart broken in the carpark for McDonald's and 'settling for less' with another girl.
"He had a pain in his crotch and in his heart, and he knew he was in love."

And finally, in John's story, it follows him confessing his sins. He tells of losing his brother, and the guilt he felt around that. Of how he came to be a wealthy accountant. Of his experience in having an affair.
"My father lost his first and best son and shortly after started buying land. As though to allow accommodation for the breadth and expanse of his sorrow."

I personally really enjoyed the first two stories, but found John's to drag a little, though that may fall as my fault as I was distracted when reading his spart. The final part neatly wrapped up the endings of the men's lives through the eyes of three women that knew them

Overall, this book was written with great warmth and really showed the emotional conflicts that humans feel.

From A Low and Quite Sea, Donal Ryan’s latest novel is an outstanding addition to his previous amazing novels. The book is broken into four parts, the first three telling very diverse stories from three male characters with very differing backgrounds and experiences in life. The fourth and final section of the book masterfully ties the connections and associations together. Each story within the book was so engrossing and interesting that a stand-alone novel for each was definitely possible however by using them as shorter stories within one novel worked wonderfully. Each story left me wanting more. Although this is a short novel it is a book that the reader needs to read and digest slowly, savoring every detail, not only because of the different stories but also to truly value and cherish the author’s superb writing style.

I adore Donal Ryan’s novels and this latest one is most beautifully written. The sentence structure and style of writing shows Ryan’s exceptional skill and ability as an author. Words and sentences just flow on and on in such a remarkable way and certain descriptions and phrasing within the book outline the extraordinary lyrical and poetic talents of this author. Another hit for 2018!

My thanks to Random House UK, Transworld Publishers Doubleday and NetGalley

From a Low and Quiet Sea is a difficult book to categorise. Is it a novel? Is it stories? Does it matter?

In this case, I think it does.

Most novels have a clear narrative arc. There is a beginning where we are introduced to characters and situations, then there is a quest where someone is looking for something, and then there's the end - usually when that something has been found (a happy novel) or irredeemably lost (a tragic novel). There will be a major plot development at exactly half way through, and mini-changes at one and two thirds of the way through. It makes for a satisfying, if somewhat predictable pace.

Sometimes great novels depart from the formula in spectacular style. But attempting this is a gamble; it can make a novel feel tricksy and badly paced. Despite some brilliant writing at the sentence level, I fear that Low and Quiet Sea is a bit of a busted flush.

Basically, we have three stand-alone stories.

Farouk is a man fleeing an unnamed war-torn country by boat in the Mediterranean. Probably Syria, but possibly Libya. This is written in a highly stylised manner, conveying an exotic culture and working as a proxy for a different values system to the anticipated reader. It feels quite like Mohsin Hamid's Exit West, but dealing with the journey as much as the before and after.

Lampy is a man who might be quite bright, but his ambition exceeds his prospects and right now he is driving a bus for an aged care facility in the West of Ireland. He lives at home with his mother and (possibly senile) grandfather and spends his time trying to find the woman of his dreams.

John is a wealthy accountant who speaks in religious tones but who seems to have had a pretty earthly life.

In each of the stories, the focus is on the character with details unfolding slowly to create a ruler picture. Each is written in a quite distinctive voice with perfect tone and a poet's attention to detail. Truly these are gems. And they represent about 80% of the book.

Then, there's a final section that follows three women - the breaks between these three sub-narratives is intentionally un-signposted. From these narratives, we see how the three male characters fit together (and they don't fit together terribly much, if the truth be told) and we see enough external perspective to make us reassess (although not completely revise) our estimation of the three male characters. This section is terribly hard to follow; the reader has to have pretty close recall of the earlier sections and hold a lot of oblique references together to really create a map of how everyone fits into the somewhat scant story.

The conclusion, at least for this reader, is that this is a work of technical brilliance and innovation, but one where the pace and balance feel all wrong. Yes it is enjoyable, but it's not that satisfying. So how do you score a book that has probably achieved the author's objectives completely, but where the author's ambition does not quite coincide with the product the reader desires? If ever there were a case for three and a half stars, this is it.