Acknowledgements

Many thanks to my first readers, Aoibheann McCann, Saoirse McCann-Callanan, James Martyn Joyce, Alan McMonagle, Lisa McInerney, Caroline Moran, Claire-Louise Bennett, Nicole Flattery, Mike McCormack and Conor O’ Callaghan.

Very special thanks to my mum, Catherine Feeney, who introduced me to books, understood their significance in a world where a woman’s voice was often unheard, and for her close reading of each draft.

Unconditional love and gratitude to my husband, Ray Glasheen, and to our sons, Jack and Finn.

This book would not exist without Sinéad Gleeson, who is utterly selfless in her promotion of other writers, particularly women, and has done Trojan work to recover and uncover women’s voices in print.

To my kind and lovely agent, Peter Straus, who loves poetry as much as I do, and to all at Rogers, Coleridge and White, especially Matt Turner, Eliza Plowden and Laurence Laluyaux.

Thank you to all at Harvill Secker, Vintage and Penguin Random House Ireland who worked on any part of this book. In particular, many thanks to Mia Quibell-Smith, Aimée Johnston, and to Rosie Palmer for her bold and brilliant jacket design.

And finally, to Kate Harvey, my editor and friend. For her patience and dedication with this novel, and her love of its characters. Here’s to the great mad journey we went on! x

VINTAGE – home to the world’s greatest authors and books. Where new writers are discovered, bestselling books are found and yesterday’s classics revived for a new generation of readers.

Our authors represent the very best in creativity and quality and have won the most prestigious prizes the book world has to offer including the Man Booker, the Samuel Johnson and the Nobel.

Born in New York in 1974, and arriving in London in 1990, VINTAGE publishes beautiful books with the very best design for people who love to read.

@vintagebooks

penguin.co.uk/vintage

This ebook is copyright material and must not be copied, reproduced, transferred, distributed, leased, licensed or publicly performed or used in any way except as specifically permitted in writing by the publishers, as allowed under the terms and conditions under which it was purchased or as strictly permitted by applicable copyright law. Any unauthorized distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s and publisher’s rights and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly.

VINTAGE
20 Vauxhall Bridge Road,
London SW1V 2SA

Harvill Secker is part of the Penguin Random House group of companies whose addresses can be found at global.penguinrandomhouse.com.

Copyright © Elaine Feeney 2020
Hand lettering © Lily Jones
Author photo © Julia Monard

Elaine Feeney has asserted her right to be identified as the author of this Work in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988

First published by Harvill Secker in 2020

penguin.co.uk/vintage

A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

ISBN 9781473569775