Review: Lagan Love

If you know something about passion, and desire, and giving everything to live your dreams then leave your world behind for a while. 

Come with Janice to Dublin, in the mid nineteen-eighties when a better future beckoned and the past was restless, whispering in the shadows for the Old Ways. Janice has grown tired of her sheltered existence in Toronto and when Aidan leads her through the veils of the Celtic Twilight, she doesn’t hesitate. In their love, Aidan, Dublin’s rising poet, sees a chance for redemption and Janice sees a chance for recognition. 

Sinead tells her that it is all nonsense as she keeps her head down and her eyes fixed on her own prize – a place in Ireland’s prospering future. She used to go out with Aidan, before he met Janice, so there is little she can say. And besides, she has enough to do as her parents are torn apart by the rumours of church scandals. But after a few nights in Grogan’s, where Dublin’s bohemians gather, or a day in Clonmacnoise among the ruins of Celtic Crosses, it won’t matter as the ghosts of Aidan’s mythologies take form and prey on the friends until everything is at risk. 

I have to be honest.  When I first started reading LAGAN LOVE, I wasn't too sure that I would care for it.  I tend to really shy away from authors that are too descriptive because I would prefer to build my own images from their words. And yes, that means that I don't care for Tolkien. 

The book started off rather slow and I had problems really relating to any of the main characters.  Both Janice and Sinead are likeable enough characters but there was nothing about them that really made me care what happened to then.  And Aiden... well if I was to list the top ten things that I don't care for in a man, he would hit every point.   I do want to give the author kudos though.  He did a fantastic job of portraying them.  I just didn't care enough about any of them to anxious or happy about the situations that they find themselves in.

This book does raise some interesting questions and they say the sign of a good book is if you continue to ponder them after you are finished.  In that case, LAGAN LOVE is a good book.  And I am sure that many readers will absolutely love this book for the wonderful descriptions of Ireland and perhaps even for the characters.  It just didn't hit the spot for me so the rating is probably lower then the book actually deserves.  If you read it, be sure to let me know that you think of it.

I rate this book a 3.5.