I loved the scenes at sea, with the three monks helplessly drifting through open waters until coming upon an uninviting, rocky pair of islands – or as Trian calls them, skelligs. She paints a vivid picture of Ireland, its landscape, and its flora and fauna. Perhaps my favorite aspect of Haven is Emma Donoghue’s descriptive prose.

Although some of the complaints I saw in other reviews are accurate descriptions of the book… those elements didn’t bother me at all. In some ways it is an odd book, and it’s unlike most of the novels I read. While I have a particular love for Ireland and an interest in the regional history, I’m also an atheist, and so wasn’t sure how much I’d enjoy reading about three monks on a religious mission.Īll in all, I was pleasantly surprised: I really loved Haven. On the other hand, several early reviews for Haven were middling, describing the story as slow and uneventful. On the one hand, I’d loved the author’s 2016 novel, The Wonder. Going into Haven, I wasn’t sure what to expect. But how long can the island sustain them? Will their isolation really bring them closer to God… or farther away than ever? Review Despite its rough terrain and limited natural resources, the three monks make it their new home and sanctuary. The trio spend several days in a boat, making their way through Ireland’s rivers until reaching the southeastern ocean and eventually drifting toward a small, rocky island. Artt chooses Cormac (an old man who only became a monk 15 years ago) and Trian (a teenager whose parents sent him to be a monk six years earlier). in a monastery in Ireland when a priest named Artt receives a message from God in a dream: He and two other monks must travel to the Atlantic Ocean, find an uninhabited island, and found a new monastery there. Special thanks to NetGalley and Little, Brown for providing me with an ARC of this book! Summary This is a book I’ll be buying in physical form on release day! While Haven is rather different from most of the novels I read, I thoroughly enjoyed it. It follows a trio of monks as they attempt to make this harsh island their sanctuary.īack in early 2017, I had loved Emma Donoghue’s novel The Wonder, and for the past two years, I’ve been meaning to read her latest release, The Pull of the Stars. Set in Ireland, it takes readers back in time to about 600 C.E., onto small, isolated rock of an island. Earlier this year, I was thrilled to get an advanced copy of Haven by Emma Donoghue, due out in two weeks.

Haven review emma donoghue