I haven't read any of the author's books before and was settling in for rather more of a cosy read than some of the dark stuff that the pages contained. To begin with I really wanted to read something else as it was a little too realistic in places to enjoy.

There are three stories told - Rea, Stella and Skye. I wasn't sure where the story of Skye fitted in and kept trying to second guess it. I think on balance I enjoyed this part of the book the most, although again it had a gritty true to life side to it I thought it was very well written and truly conveyed the horror of the situation that developed.

Towards the end the stories all come together in a surprising way - one I thought I had partly guessed. After lots of outloud "oh no's" from me and cheering on the supporting characters, I was pleased with the ending, which was delayed slightly from where I would have thought it might have been.

Such realistic writing, which at times I found hard to read so I'm giving this book 5 out of 5 stars. My thanks to Netgalley for an ARC to review.

When a book can stir your emotions as much as this one how can you not give it the praise it deserves.

It’s definitely a 5* from me.

The author not only writes fluently but with emotion. You can feel it within the pages.

We all can inprison ourselves in a heap of ways.

Stella has.
We learn why.

Rea too but for different reasons.

The couple next door seem the perfect loving couple. I’ve always said, take the food of of peoples houses or peek in from outside and discover nothing is how it seems.

I really thought this was going to be a contemporary read, but, it was so very much more.

I’ve read 2 other of this authors books. I think it’s time for me to read more.

My thanks to Harper Collins UK

I have just finished reading The woman at 72 Derry lane by Carmel Harrington, I was given the chance to read this book by the publisher for an honest review.

The story is told by Rea, the woman at 72 Derry lane, Stella who lives next door and Skye whose story begins about 14 years previous. Rea suffers from agoraphobia and doesn't leave the house, Stella lives next door, she lives with her abusive husband and is very isolated. The have a chance meeting and soon become friends and help each other. Sky's story is slightly different, when we first meet her she is a teenager who lives with her loving family, she goes on holiday and the dramatic events of the holiday connect the 3 people.

I have read two of Carmel's books before but this is definitely my favourite. It covers so difficult subjects but is very well written, I would highly recommend this book.

Wow! This is a very powerful novel. One minute I was smiling then next minute I was crying. It takes a brilliant book to do this to me. The story deals with agoraphobia, a battered wife and survivors of the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami in Phuket. Every subject is beautifully written and I thoroughly recommend this book which is in a Maeve Binchy style.

This book is so much more than just your average women's fiction. Set mainly in Dublin, the reader follows multiple perspectives. To begin with, the reader meets two ladies who live next door to each other, and yet have never spoken to each other before this novel takes place. We have Stella, who lives with her abusive, yet charming husband. Everyone thinks he is handsome, and envy Stella and her life, as of course they can't possibly know what goes on behind closed doors. Her next door neighbour Rea, is considered a crazy old woman. Rea is battling problems of her own though, and suffers from Agoraphobia, and has no one to turn to. Their paths finally cross, and this leads to them both developing a much needed friendship. More than this though, the reader is left constantly wondering how a third narrative voice fits into this story.

I loved this book, and found it impossible to put down. This is the second novel I've ever read to cover Agoraphobia, and so I'm no expert at how well the topic was covered, though as a reader who hasn't suffered with this awful illness, I thought it was dealt with well. I do have more experience with the domestic abuse though, and I personally thought this was incredibly accurate and well portrayed. The fact that the husband could control Stella in every aspect and abuse her, while still appearing as a charming man to many, was frightening and yet accurate for many people who suffer at the hands of abusive partners.

Due to the subject matter of this novel, it doesn't always make for easy reading. Yet, it wasn't heavy with it and made me want to keep turning the pages to see how things would develop. This especially became true once the third narrative was thrown in. I couldn't work out how things were connected for quite some time. Even when I did think I'd guessed correctly, I was never sure. It turns out what one of my guesses was correct, but I wasn't ever sure of this guess right up until the moment it was confirmed in the story.

This book covers so many heartbreaking subjects, so expect to need a box of tissues at some point. I personally only cried once, but when I did, it was quite the ugly cry. I love when a writer is able to get you to connect to characters on such a level. That is one of the strengths of this book for sure. I connected to each of the main characters, and laughed when they laughed, and so indeed cried when they did too. This isn't a miserable read, and far from it. It's possible to laugh along with the characters on multiple occasions.

I loved how this book showed that women can be strong alone, but also how friendship can make us even stronger. Friendship is a big theme through this novel, and an important one, along with family. Secondary characters that represent family and friends are just as fleshed out as the main characters.

I honestly have nothing bad to say about this book at all, and I adored it with all my heart. I highly recommend this book to anyone, but especially people who are, or have been in an abusive relationship. Maybe this book will be the help you need.

Proving once again that Carmel Harrington is the queen of the thought provoking emotional read, this book is unputdownable, but equally quite tough reading in places.

It follows three different stories, although it take a while for the one involving Skye to become apparent how it links up with neighbours Rea and Stella.

All three of these amazing leading ladies, are dealing with something big. It is only fair to warn that themes included in this book include abuse, agoraphobia and the Boxing Day Tsunami, which may affect your responses to the various characters.

I thought they were all rather brave, learning to face fears, and it becomes apparent how imporant just small acts of kindness can be to a person.

I read this in an afternoon, barely pausing for breath, and was hooked on the superb emotional writing, impressive descriptions, and general connections I felt with all three ladies.

This really is another example of Carmel Harrington at her best, and I am just wondering how long it will be before this book becomes a film, as I think it certainly would make a compelling hard hitting drama to watch too, as well as read.

Thank you to Netgalley and Harper for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4 Stars

I’m being generous with the 4 stars as it’s Christmas 🎄

To be fair this isn’t my usual sort of book but I felt like something different to read. This is a book where there is one implausible coincidence after another and they are all intended to make you ‘feel’ either happy or sad. But it works well.

What starts as a book about domestic violence and agoraphobia turns into Pretty Woman makeover style then turns into tragedy which somehow works!

It pulls at those heart strings and makes you root for all the characters.

There was so much promise in this novel but I felt cheated. The characters were too stereotyped, ie the gay hairdresser and the friend with agrophobia and when it came to promoting Zara I was so completely underwhelmed. Such a shame as the novel could have been so good. The descriptions of the Thai tsunami were excellent and I feel for anyone involved in this. There were twists that could have been written, but weren’t which would have made this more compelling. A decent three star read.

This is my first read with this author and I wasn't disappointed. This book provoked all kinds of emotion in me. I laughed at the Irish humour, I was angry at how some people have to live and I cried at the very sad parts of the story. The book tackles domestic abuse,agoraphobia and a live changing disaster.
My favourite character was Sky,I was amazed at the strength and compassion she found when she needed it. Rea's story was sad but fixable and only she knew how to fix it. My heart went out to Stella and I willed her to stand up for herself. Charlie was hilarious, kind,lovable and an asset to anyone's life. Matt? Well the less said about him the better although I would have liked to have known a bit more about his back story.

My only complaint would be that the author seemed to think that sixty was old ! How very dare she!
I must say she made me feel old when she described Rea at sixty, but I'll give her that that might have just been because of Rea's problems.
I enjoyed this story, couldn't put it down and shed tears,what more can you ask from a book?

Out now for kindle or paperback.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Woman-72-Derry-Lane-emotional-ebook/dp/B01N4ABVSU/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8

My first book by this author and definately NOT my last. Stunning.

What a brilliant book and so very well written. The plot is superb, the characters excellent and I assure you this book will make you laugh and cry. I would highly recommend this book.