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  • Published: 18 March 2021
  • ISBN: 9780241986653
  • Imprint: Penguin General UK
  • Format: Paperback
  • Pages: 320
  • RRP: $26.00

Nothing But Blue Sky




A wise, thoughtful, beautifully observed and impossible-to-put-down portrait of a marriage

Is there such a thing as a perfect marriage?

David thought so. But when his wife Mary Rose dies suddenly he has to think again. Figuring out who Mary Rose really was and the secrets that she kept - some of these hidden in plain sight - makes David wonder if he really knew her. Did he even know himself?

Nothing But Blue Sky is a precise and tender story of love in marriage - a gripping examination of what binds couples together and of what keeps them apart.

'Touching and enthralling' Sunday Times

'A beautifully written and powerful tale' Woman & Home

'Not only my favourite novel of the year, but possibly of the decade' Sunday Independent

  • Published: 18 March 2021
  • ISBN: 9780241986653
  • Imprint: Penguin General UK
  • Format: Paperback
  • Pages: 320
  • RRP: $26.00

Also by Kathleen MacMahon

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Praise for Nothing But Blue Sky

Kathleen MacMahon's prose could not appear more effortless or beautiful

Sunday Independent

Kathleen MacMahon writes with a confidence and ease and with an unerring sense of timing

Maeve Binchy, Irish Times

What a beautiful novel ... elegant, understated, subtly powerful, and rings so perfectly true ... Beautiful, poignant moments, drawn with such quiet power. And that quiet power is alive and at work on every page

Donal Ryan

Gentle and triumphant, MacMahon offers us a novel steeped in beautiful prose and poignant tenderness

Anne Griffin

Insightful and deeply moving, this is a story of one man's grief that somehow manages to hold onto its sense of humour. I loved this book

Christine Dwyer Hickey

Kathleen MacMahon has written an absorbing, grave, and emotionally resonant study of a marriage, of a life, of masculinity and of grief. A marvellous achievement

Neil Hegarty

It's rare to read an account of a happy normal marriage and she does it brilliantly

Sue Leonard

Stunning

Henrietta McKervey, via Twitter

The most beautiful prose I have read in years ... Not only my favourite novel of the year, but possibly of the decade

Margaret Madden, Sunday Independent

Sure and subtle, MacMahon holds the reader in her spell. She is a born storyteller

Mike McCormack

Kathleen MacMahon sensitively explores the complexities of the human heart and reveals how even in the depths of grief, unexpected light can emerge from the darkness

David Park

Touching and enthralling

Sunday Times

Heart-rending ... a tender and beautiful [love story] ... MacMahon's words ring with the honesty of truth, offering genuine insight into the human condition

Business Post

A beautifully written and powerful tale

Woman & Home

A tender dissection of marriage

Independent

Full of humour and brims with the warmth of family, friendship and the possibility of second chances

Irish Sunday People

Skilfully written with a wonderful lightness of touch ... An acutely observed portrait of a relationship ... filled with astute observations of human behaviour

Irish Times

A piece of perfection - a subtle, thought-provoking investigation of a marriage. It rings true. It's the best book I've read all year

Irish Examiner

An elegantly written and moving account of one man coming to terms with the sudden death of his wife

Irish Times Magazine

Beautiful ... A gentle but deeply affecting read, and the perfect reminder of how sadness and hope can sometimes live side by side

Woman's Way

Excellent (and darkly funny) ... A sensitive, nuanced, and ultimately hopeful exploration of grief

Eimear Ryan, Irish Examiner

Heart-wrenching ... Almost a parable, it's a cautionary tale for those failing to appreciate just how short life can be

RTÉ Culture

Full of humour and brims with the warmth of family, friendship and the possibility of second chances

Sunday Mirror

A tender portrait of a marriage and how we are formed by our closest relationships

Good Housekeeping

This elegant, tender novel is an absolute pleasure

Best

A poignant, gentle and astutely observed novel about marriage and the evolution of love

Sunday Times, Novels of the Year 2020

I've been recommending Nothing But Blue Sky to anyone who'll listen ... It's about grief and eulogising and getting into the "habit of happiness" and I just loved it

Emer McLysaght, Irish Times, Best Books of 2020

Beautiful and moving

Claire Fuller, author of Unsettled Ground

Nothing But Blue Sky is quiet and thoughtful and very moving - Claire Fuller

Claire Fuller