3.5* Old God’s Time is a beautifully written novel from
Sebastian Barry.

Tom Kettle is a retired detective and widower, enjoying a recently found life of solitude in the annex to a castle overlooking the sea. His apparently idyllic set-up is disturbed by the arrival of 2 detectives who seek Tom out to discuss an old case.

The prose is incredible, as is always the case with Barry. I enjoyed the book when the plot was progressing but the subject matter is difficult (almost every character has a deeply unhappy background or ending) and Tom is such an unreliable narrator (and the language can verge n the overworked) that it wasn’t always a satisfying read.

Thanks to Faber and Netgalley for an advance copy.

Mixed views on this novel. It’s technically excellent- moving, poetic sentences, at times almost a stream of consciousness as you get deep inside the mind of Tom Kettle, with surprising revelations both to himself and the reader.

However, and it’s quite a big however, whilst I could admire it, i didn’t really enjoy it. I could see the intended impact but couldn’t feel it myself, so as the various tragedies are revealed it felt to me like an academic exercise. Perhaps I just wasn’t in the mood for it, but it left me cold.

Worth reading, it’s all very well done and will emotionally chime with others I’m sure

A deeply sensitive and steady unfurling of one man's life story, combined with a story of the shocking historic abuse within the Catholic Church. I found myself unexpectedly compelled to uncover Tom Kettle's story, as more facets of the truth gradually come to light over the course of the book. It almost felt like reading a crime novel in parts - but a supremely well-written one. This was my first experience reading Sebastian Barry's writing, and every sentence was so beautiful and so considered.

This book was a great read. The writing is stunning - poetic, rich and full of imagery. Though the story spans only a few days, it takes the reader through a whole life filled with the breadth of human emotion, from love and joy to loss and fear. The story revolves around historic child abuse and how the main character, now an old man, processes his memory of his family and the abuse suffered. An enchanting book with brilliant description and dialogue. Recommended.

Not all books have to be cheerful all of the way through or have you hanging on the edge of your seat.
This book by Sebastian Barry is apparently about normal life in a pretty part of Ireland.
There are lots of dark issues addressed, and some things occur that if we are honest we would love to have the courage to do even though they are not legal.
It was from the start good reading, with as in real life passages of pleasant times and times of trial and tribulation.
I thoroughly enjoyed it, and would recommend it to anybody who likes to read something a little out of the ordinary, what is the point of reading the same stuff over and again anyway.
Congratulations to the author and my thanks to the publisher for an advanced copy for honest review.

I've said the following before but it bears repeating: Barry writes sentences as good as any contemporary author. This was a thoroughly absorbing read from a modern master.

This novel, set in Ireland, is one of the most beautifully written I have read. The prose is lyrical, with dazzling descriptions of landscape and weather that reminded me a little of those in Ted Hughes' poem Wind.
By contrast, however, the subject matter is fairly bleak. The reader has not only to deal with the faltering, unreliable reminiscences and day-dreaming of a retired policeman but also with his main preoccupations, namely the loss of his family and the terrible effects of abuse on children, notably those in the "care" of Roman Catholic institutions.
The plot develops into a detective story as the main protagonist is drawn out of retirement to help solve a gruesome cold case.
Although this is not an easy read, the wonderful prose and the pull to discover the outcome of the story made it a compelling read, one to be revisited, preferably in the company of others in a book group.

This is one of those books that makes you feel like being punched with every discovery and turns but you want more.
It's a wild ride told by a gentle narrator, a voice that makes the punches hit harder.
Sebastian Barry is a master storyteller and this is one of the most intriguing and thought provoking book I read in quite a long time.
A literary story that makes rediscover the pleasure of complex stories and characters.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this arc, all opinions are mine

This is such a powerful read and comes with all sorts of trigger warnings for abuse. Set in 1990s Ireland, Tom Kettle, a widower, is a retired policeman now living by the sea and doing nothing - which is what retirement is all about. This novel deals with the abuse of children by priests years before, Tom being one of those children. It looks at the way that the trauma of the past will ripple throughout adult life, about how we keep some memories so deeply hidden that we forget we have them. Yet this is also a novel about love as Tom finds love with June, a woman whose dreadful childhood at the hands of priests mirrored his own. They find love together and have two children, Winnie and Joe. Then Tom is visited by two policeman who want to pick his brains about a 30 year old case and this reopens the box of memories that he has locked away and we are plunged into almost a stream of consciousness as Tom picks through his memories. However, Tom is not reliable and some of these memories turn out not to have happened - they are dreams - but ultimately we eventually learn Tom's story and it is harrowing and stays with you. This is not a bleak novel - yes, it is a difficult read at times and you feel a sadness for the way the cruel childhoods of Tom and June have affected their adult lives but the love and devotion of Tom and June shine through - their love for each other and for their children. Barry's artistically drawn descriptions of the coast where Tom lives are beautiful. I am so glad that was allowed to read this advance copy.

The much anticipated new novel 'Old God's Time' by Sebastian Barry is very much worth the wait. At its core is the struggle of good versus evil, evil incarnate in the guise of religious clergy members responsible for the most depraved acts of abuse on children in institutional homes. Unreservedly then the themes are dark and deeply troubling but this represents the Ireland that raised both the main character retired detective Tom Kettle and his wife, June. Their love is the kind that saves them both and heroically they build a life together finding home in one another and making a pact to raise their two children, Winnie and Tom, with only love and tolerance, to protect and provide for them in a way that was denied of them. Therein lies the goodness and Tom and June show just how titanic a task it is to leave the trauma of a cruel, cruel childhood behind to function everyday in this world. In fact, there is a purity and devotion to their relationship that serves to provide light and hope in this story and just about keeps the darkness from overwhelming the reader from what is very difficult subject matter.
The story is told from the point of view of Tom whose memory can no longer be trusted. What is absolutely beyond doubt though is the lasting legacy of the torture inflicted on him as a small child. In Tom, Sebastian Barry explores the very depths of human nature and the struggle of a tortured soul to just survive. Issues of justice are also raised when his former colleagues open a cold case and start asking questions about a day Tom would rather forget. In fact this storyline, in a novel slow of pace, provides the element of suspense and kept me turning the page to discover what exactly happened. At least that was until I approached the last 30 pages or so and met a grief so raw and tragic I had to take time to process before finishing. When I find the strength of mind again I will return to this book for it is some accomplishment, Barry's finest.

Sebastian Barry could hold my attention though his extraordinary use of language alone but ‘Old God’s Time’ gives us his many storytelling gifts in abundance.
Retired policeman Tom Kettle has all the time in the world to look back on his personal and professional life. He lives alone by the sea, reminiscing, leading a solitary life. One day, visited by two policemen who hope he’ll help them with an old case, he cannot help but feel that, ‘You are bringing me back to I don’t know where. The wretchedness of things. The filthy dark, the violence. Priests’ hands. The silence.’
This is a novel about the power of memory: the pure delight in remembering some and the necessity of burying others. Tom is lonely yet he is nurtured daily by memories of his marriage. He can conjure an image of his adored wife, June, readily; is she a ghost or a figment of his imagination? Nevertheless, alongside the comfort that his love for her still brings, the trauma of June’s terrible descriptions of her sexual abuse as a child remains with him. Barry reminds us that the ripples of such damage spread wide.
Barry’s depiction of seascapes invokes a painterly otherworldliness, suited to a story that takes place for much of the telling in one man’s mind. Whilst this is a novel about evil and cruelty, it is also one about love and devotion. This is a harrowing yet wonderful read. Highly recommended.
My thanks to NetGalley and Faber and Faber Ltd for a copy of this book in exchange for a fair review.

'The best things in Ireland were the work of unknown hands. And sometimes the worst crimes.'

Sebastian Barry's latest novel is haunting and harrowing, the sins and horrors of child abuse committed by Irish Catholic priests, and the repercussions experienced by the victims throughout their lives. 66 year old widower Tom Kelly is a retired police officer, now living at Queenstown castle, the niche tiny lean to flat, enjoying the apparent idyll of the sea, the garden, for 9 months. He has lived a solitary life, with only visits from his daughter, Winnie, a chill wind is set to blow a great reckoning into his life when his former boss, Chief Jack Fleming, sends 2 police officers, Wilson and O'Casey, to his home, requesting his help on a case involving the church, with documents that Tom has no intention of reading. The 3 of them in Dalkey eat Welsh rarebit, there is a storm with his visitor staying overnight.

Exquisitely written, this is a wretchedly heartbreaking story that illustrates the powers of the Catholic Church in Ireland, the terrors and trauma inflicted on countless numbers of children, boys and girls, a time when justice was little more than a pipe dream, could this begin to change? Tom, and his beloved wife, June, are both examples of those who suffered, finding understanding, solace and a measure of happiness in each other, having 2 children, Winnie and Joe, a remarkable feat, given their pasts. Yet we are left to reflect on just how much we can rely on Tom's unreliable memories, a man with his shattering personal history, dementia, his family, the love, losses, the ghosts, with ambiguities littered throughout.

Tom finds himself missing the company of the police officers, leading him to get involved with the case, and has him getting to know his neighbours, the cellist, Ronnie McGillicuddy and fearful actor, Mrs McNulty, with her son, confiding the dangers she faces to Tom. Tom has little inkling of just how brave, resilient and courageous he is, he is mired in feelings of shame and cowardice, common amongst victims, and, even where a supposed form of 'justice' might have taken place, we see it brings little in the way of redress or peace to those with hearts irretrievably missing since childhood. I know that there were a huge number of children of abused by priests in Ireland, a shameful history that Barry brings to life, illuminating the lifelong and generational damage endured through the life and family of Tom Kelly. Incredible storytelling that I highly recommend. Many thanks to the publisher for an ARC.

A slow moving novel with interesting characters and I found the writing style somewhat lyrical and mesmerising however the story itself didn’t hold my attention and wasn’t really my cup of tea.

Some reviews are easy to write. Some are hard.

This is the latter.

Old God’s Time by Sebastian Barry combines dark, heavy and upsetting topics with beautiful writing. It’s a tale of traumatic childhoods full of abuse while at the same time exploring finding love, finding your soulmate, and being able to build something from the ashes of your past.

Our main character and narrator is Tom Kettle, a retired policeman hoping for nothing other than being able to find peace. Set against a subplot of two detectives opening an old murder case, Tom’s life and past – and that of his family – is gradually unravelled.

But it’s more complicated than that. Tom is an unreliable narrator, almost to the extreme. There are times when events and meetings unfold, then you’re pulled back to reality as Tom realises that he’s dreaming. He meets people, has conversations and insights, only for the reader to later discover those events couldn’t have happened.

The narration style is more like a stream of conscience than any other style I’ve read. This is a book you have to concentrate with. Not only is it impossible to tell what is real or not, Tom’s thoughts go off on random directions before coming back to the initial point. These rambles of a man who has seen a lot and been through even more are beautifully written and poignant in their own way, but do bring you out of the story.

Old God’s Time is full of deep topics that touch you in an emotional way. There’s no justice, no sense of a happy ending and everyone getting what they deserve. It’s an intense read throughout, but the last 10% or so messed with my emotions. I finished the book feeling despondent, wrecked by what this man had gone through, despite it being a piece of fiction.

Barry’s writing is what makes this an intense read. He gives Tom a voice that you can’t help but stay with, despite the content. You feel the unfairness of his world and you want him to be able to find the peace he’s so desperately seeking. There’s beauty in Barry’s descriptions, in the way he portrays this world, and you’re transported to Ireland, to this village where Tom Kettle lives.

This is no easy read. The content has so many warnings and could easily be triggering for a lot of people. There were particular passages I found difficult to read – even more so than the book as a whole. It’s harrowing in its own way and doesn’t leave you feeling uplifted at all.

That being said, Barry’s writing is incredible and you easily see why he’s won awards for his work. I’d recommend the book for the writing, but not for the content. I’ve been keen to read more of his work since The Secret Scripture so in some way, I’m glad to have read it. It’s a book that will stay with me, but not an easy read.

Conflicted feelings here.

*Link coming nearer publication date

Sebastian Barry's writing and his use of language and sentence structure is so evocotive and compelling. This book is a story without a real plot. It's sometimes confusing and sometimes upsetting (I don't like reading about child abuse and this touches on the sexual and non-sexual abuse by priests).but it is well worth reading. Not an easy story but one that will no doubt stay wth me. With thanks to NetGalley, the publishers and the author for the opportunity to read and review an advance copy of this title.

Literary work about a retired Irish policeman and his life

Tom Kettle, a retired Irish police detective, lives in a coastal village and reminisces about his life, job, family and gets involved with his neighbours and old colleagues. There’s also a lot about the abuses of the Catholic Church and subsequent cover-ups. This is a modern literary offering, evident from the writing style. There’s little action and a good deal of introspection. It’s not uplifting, even depressing. If you’re a fan of the author, this may be just your cup of tea. Unfortunately it wasn’t mine. received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Sebastian Barry is one of my favourite Irish authors; he writes beautifully and I’ve loved some of his previous books – in fact, the only one I’ve read that I didn’t like much was Days Without End, mainly because the subject (army life in the American West during the Indian Wars) didn’t really appeal to me. His new novel, Old God’s Time, has a very different setting – Ireland in the 1990s – and I hoped it would be another good one.

Old God’s Time is the story of Tom Kettle, a recently retired police detective who lives in the annex of a castle in Dalkey, a coastal resort to the southeast of Dublin. The castle overlooks the Irish Sea and Tom is finding some contentment in the quietness and solitude of his retirement…until, one day, two younger policeman arrive at his door. They are reopening an historic case Tom worked on in the 1960s and they want to hear his thoughts on it.

Forced to confront moments from his past that he would have preferred to forget, Tom begins to remember. He remembers his beloved wife June and his two children Joseph and Winnie, all now dead, in separate tragic incidents. He remembers his career as a detective and his time in the army. And he remembers that terrible, disturbing thirty-year-old case, linked to one of the darkest episodes in Ireland’s recent history.

When I first read the synopsis of this book, it sounded like a crime novel, but being familiar with Sebastian Barry’s work, I knew it would probably be something quite different! In fact, the crime element is pushed into the background until much later in the book, and instead we spend time inside Tom’s head, watching him go about his daily business while memories fleet in and out of his mind, almost at random. The memories don’t come to him chronologically, but in a haphazard, disordered way and sometimes it is unclear whether he is even remembering things accurately. This doesn’t make for easy reading and I spent the first half of the novel feeling very confused. ‘Stream of consciousness’ writing is not my favourite style at the best of times and although it does usually work for me in Barry’s novels, this time I wasn’t won over until the second half of the book. From that point, I was gripped.

The story that does eventually unfold in Old God’s Time is very sad and very grim. It’s a subject that is painful and difficult to read about, but it’s one that needs to be discussed and not ignored. My heart broke for Tom, June and the other characters, but at the same time it’s not a completely miserable book and the beautiful descriptions of the Irish landscape provide a bit of respite from the sadness of the story. I didn’t like this book as much as The Secret Scripture or On Canaan’s Side, but it’s a powerful novel and one I’m pleased I read.

Old God's Time by Sebastian Barry is an utterly compelling and atmospheric tale. The descriptions of the setting (both the physical environment and the weather) were beautiful yet elusive, almost ghostly. The writing was poetic and sensitive, and the story itself was poignant and haunting. I've found myself thinking about this story days after I finished it - Barry is a gifted storyteller.

Tom a retired policeman is surprised when two officers visit his home to ask him about a case that he previously worked on.
A slow moving story with some good characters.
Thank you to NetGalley and Faber and Faber Ltd for my e-copy in exchange for an honest review.

Newly retired detective Tom Kettle is living out his final years in Daleky, an affluent suburb of Dublin overlooking the wild unpredictable Irish sea….”he was quite content just to gaze out. Just to do that. To him this was the whole point of retirement, of existence- to be stationary, happy and useless”... His life takes a rather unexpected turn when he receives an uninvited visit from 2 of his old colleagues, dispatched by former boss Chief Fleming. It is thought that Tom might be of assistance in helping to solve an historic case in which he had direct involvement…..”I’ll send you out to Tom Kettle, good sane clear headed Tom, with a whole citadel, a museum of experience in his head, he’ll set this to rights, give us a heads-up, a way forward, a good steer, a helping hand”.....

What follows is one of the most heart wrenching stories I have ever read, brought to life in such a lyrical and emotional way by the much revered author Sebastian Barry. Tom is a quiet man with a sad past that is slowly revealed to the reader as the novel progresses. This is a book that deals with the legacy of abuse within the church, this is a book about memory and our ability or not to recall events from the past, this is a book that deals with the human desire and need for love, but above all it is an emotional ride as painful thoughts and long forgotten events emerge to disrupt and disturb this quiet man in his final years…..”Things happened to people, and some people were required to lift great weights that crushed you if you faltered just for a moment. It was his job not to falter”...Towards the end of the novel, Tom has cause to notice his neighbour Ronnie McGillicuddy a cellist who could often be heard practicing. Accepting an invite to visit, Tom is at once transported to another dimension by the virtuosos musical skill……what follows made me cry…..”Ronnie McGillicuddy sawed his cello into sweetness, into a thousand sweetnesses, an old Jewish tune being injected into Tom, injected into Ronnie himself - swaying and even muttering , like a lunatic, a poor assailed person, you would think, away with the fairies. They were both away with the fairies and June was alive, she was alive, beautiful and wise, and she would always be there, bursting with life, calm as any old painted Madonna, as long as he did not open his eyes. He lifted both his hands and reached out to hold that longed-for face. To hold it, the soft cheeks, the dark skin, to hold it,to hold it.

Many thanks to the good people at net galley for a copy of this delightful novel in return for an honest review, and that is what I have written. Highly recommended.