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A Keeper: The Sunday Times Bestseller

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Then”: 32-year-old “spinster,” Patricia Keane, having cared for her ailing mother for 14 years, places a “Lonely Heart” ad seeking male companionship after her mother finally dies. She receives a reply from one Edward Foley of Castle House, and what unfolds reminded me often of Stephen King’s ‘Misery’ - without the gore. Graham Norton has won 9 BAFTAs for Best Entertainment Performance, and Best Entertainment Programme. He presents The Graham Norton Show on BBC1, a show on BBC Radio 2 every Saturday, and is a judge on RuPaul's Drag Race UK. Norton won the Special Recognition Award at the National Television Awards in 2017. It's a sad and lovely book, brimful of tenderness and compassion, where the revelations of the past upturn the perceptions of the present.' SUNDAY EXPRESS This is the 2nd novel I have read by Graham Norton and once again I am so impressed with his writing. Don't be put off by his stage persona and read this book as you would any other author. This is a fabulous little book and I read it from start to finish in one sitting wanting to know more. The writing is superb. Even poetic in parts. The main characters' interior monologue was outstanding. Norton really captured the essence of the person.

I tend to wait at least a day after finishing a book to post a review, but I am highly annoyed right now and just want to put this book behind me. I maybe at one point while reading this ARC said are you serious and then started muttering to myself about just DNFing it. I don't like to do that with NetGalley reads though, so I may have to rethink on that in the future. This book was all over the place. I thought I was sitting down to read a solid mystery about a woman returning (Elizabeth) to her hometown in Ireland and finding out about her mother's (Patricia) past. Instead we don't really find out about it, we hear bits and pieces via other inconsequential secondary characters. The author throwing Patrica's POV in did nothing to help things. The plot with Elizabeth's son came out of nowhere and just made zero sense. Maybe if Norton actually spent time building up any of these characters I would have cared more. bright stars from me! I love Graham Norton's writing and I would have read it in one sitting if I could, but I needed some sleep in between. I wasn't bored for one minute, I thought the story unfolded very well , with new snippets of information added all the time. And I loved spending some time in Ireland, because that is how it felt. I hope GN is well on his way with his next book! The writing was not very good I found. I just think that there were too many things happening and that Norton didn't make sure that both POVs worked well. Maybe if there was no Patricia POV that would have helped flesh out Elizabeth's POV more. The book then could have been more reliant on the mystery aspect. I thought that whole thing fizzled out. Elizabeth finds out about things and just does nothing. I just had to shake my head on all of that effort to tell this story for no big pay off. There were quite a few skeletons rattling around in this family’s closet, goodness! I enjoyed both eras of this story, journeying along with Elizabeth while she balanced uncovering her family history with a family drama in the present. And Patricia’s story! There was a creepy ‘Rebecca’ feel to Patricia’s sections, the isolated house perched alongside a ruined castle on the wild coast – Ireland, not Cornwall, but still – a strange man, a crazed old woman, and secrets galore! But in amongst this, great tragedy too. This was powerful storytelling, with depth of both character and plot, the threads joining both eras all strongly interwoven. It's a sad and lovely book, brimful of tenderness and compassion, where the revelations of the past upturn the perceptions of the present. - SUNDAY EXPRESSGraham Norton has been on TV for years in the UK. He is a comedian who regularly host a chat show and the Eurovision Song Contest. This is his second novel. His first novel I loved so when I seen he had this new novel coming out, I just had to get myself a copy. It's set in Buncarragh, Ireland. The duel storylines gel well together. It's only while you are reading the book, you realise the significance of its title. A story of missed chances, love and loss. A well written book that at one point, i did find a bit far fetched. I did enjoy his first novel, Holding, a bit more than I did this novel. But I will be looking forward to reading more from this Graham Norton in the future. I had a couple of “eye roll” moments with this book, and I noticed several detail oversights, but this was an excellent read for me. There wasn’t a single character here I didn’t like, or at least sympathize with (including Edward’s deranged mother Catherine) and I loved the setting. Recommended to mystery fans or anyone looking for a riveting read on a rainy day. The story of a daughter returning to Ireland and discovering her identity is moving, but even more so is the story of her mother, who, now dead, brought up Elizabeth on her own in the society where single mothers were not accepted with open hands. Patricia defied the conventions and devoted her life to her daughter. No spoilers here, but the plot is intriguing, and the truth revealed proves that life sometimes prepares for us most extraordinary surprises, just like for Elizabeth.

years earlier, a young woman stumbles from a remote stone house, the night quiet but for the tireless wind that circles her as she hurries further into the darkness away from the cliffs and the sea. She has no sense of where she is going, only that she must keep on. Well this book was a surprise read. Recommended to me by my son. I had seen a few of his shows - but not to my taste. This is the second Graham Norton book I've read. My first was Home Stretch, which was such a fantastic read that it set the bar really high. And thankfully, this book lived up to the expectation. This novel will never be nominated for grand literary prizes, but I believe it makes an enjoyable read for those who like a good story with twists and turns. I know this is Norton's second novel (his first was soo much better!), but he really left a lot to be desired in this book. Maybe he needs a better editor as well, as there were so many points that could have used further explanation while working on the timeline.If you haven’t yet read a Graham Norton novel, do yourself a favour and hop to it. He’s a brilliant writer and each of his novels are so different from each other, yet instantly recognisable as his work, offering a reading experience that is both a comfort and good for your soul.

one of the more authentic debuts I've read in recent years ... in such an understated manner, eschewing linguistic eccentricity ... in favour of genuine characters and tender feeling ... this is a fine novel ' John Boyne, Irish Times This book is nothing like his first book ( ) which I also loved but it has some similar themes; small town Ireland, dark humour, real life.A gripping, thoughtful tale about the search for identity, belonging and self-possession. - OBSERVER The flow was not great. The POVs between Patricia and Elizabeth and the mini POVs for Edward and Rosemary just didn't hang together well. Now”: Only child Elizabeth Keane, a 44-year-old college instructor, divorcée and mother to 17-year-old Zach, living in a tiny apartment in Manhattan, travels to Ireland to finalize her recently deceased mother’s estate in Buncarragh. She finds a hidden box of letters filled with clues about the father she never knew. Norton is so skilful in his portrayal of Irish life in its best and worst. He recreates the atmosphere, the characters, the moods of times so well! This compelling new novel confirms Graham Norton's status as a fresh, literary voice, bringing his clear-eyed understanding of human nature and its darkest flaws.

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