What a moody and evocative novel this is. It's a rumination on guilt and grief. Enya is struggling with her mental health and still grieving as she approaches her 47th birthday -her mother's age when she died. Enya, a small-town GP, attends an accident on a stormy night and the aftermath unravels her life.

I loved Enya. I understood the circularity of her grief and how it overwhelmed her even though her mother died over 30 years ago. Her feelings of being trapped and her sense of panic were so visceral and authentic. It made sense to me how the accident unmoored her, how she needed to leave her husband but didn’t want to leave her son Finn. Enya feels a "cauldron of anxiety … boiling her alive". Even in her darkest moments though, she still has a strong bond with her sister Flora, a new friend in Margaret, a new community in Abbeydooley and the comfort of her mother's writings.

The novel is infused with her mother Brigid, and Irish folk tales and traditions - the Rag Tree is wonderful. I loved the seasonality of it, the Wheel of the Year, Irish names, and the kindnesses for Enya, even as she fell apart. It's a beautiful, thoughtful and evocative novel - and essentially hopeful - redemption is always a possibility. Recommended reading.

Thank you so very much Cecelia Ahern, Harper Collins Australia and NetGalley for the ARC. This review is all my own opinions.

Thank you to Harper Collins Australia, via Netgalley for the advanced reading copy of Into the Storm by Cecelia Ahern, in exchange for an honest review.

This book follows protagonist Enya, who is a GP grappling with multiple personal crises; specifically the breakdown of her marriage, an encounter on a highway which sees her resuscitating a teenage boy, and the looming dread of her 47th birthday, the age when her own mother died. In a state of anxiety, confusion and grief Enya moves to a small town, away from her husband and son, to create some space to collect her thoughts and work through the issues that are impacting her.

This book is a mystery which cleverly interweaves through the fractious and fragile nature of mental health. The inclusion of the Rag Tree, an old folk tradition in Ireland, adds an interesting cultural dimension to the story and also progresses the suspense, as Enya focuses on the detail of the additions of rags, and the how they relate to her own circumstances.

Overall I think the story was well written and it had me guessing right up to the end. This was the first book I have read from Cecelia Ahern, and I will be looking out for for of her books in the future

Suspenseful, intriguing story about a woman - mother, wife, sister, daughter, doctor, friend - who helps to save the life of a teenage boy struck by a car on a wild, stormy night, and whose own sense of impending death is starting to cripple her.

I found most of the story interesting and engaging, but it lost me a few times with reactions and events that didn't seem to fit. A few things were a bit repetitive, but they may be edited out in the final version. I thought the characters were fairly interesting, but not especially likeable (including the MC). I think I'd have to say Margaret would be my favourite, if I had to choose. This is the second book I've read about rag trees and I enjoyed that aspect of the story.

Overall, it was a good read though and I would be interested in reading more of this author's books in time. Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins Australia for allowing me to read it and review this one.

Into the Storm by Cecelia Ahern is an incredibly emotional read. Heartbreaking and yet uplifting. Out of bad things goods things can come.

This story is set in Ireland and embodies a lot of Irish folklore. At the centre of the story is Dr Enya Pickering and The Rag Tree - both embedded with emotional baggage. Enya is complex and so is her story. It is also about the love of mothers, mental health especially dealing wth trauma and the search for ones true self.

The plot is complex with a lot of unexpected twists and turns. The characters felt real and believable and add depth to the storyline.


Highly recommended read.


This review is based on a complimentary copy from HarperCollins Publishers Australia via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

#IntotheStorm #NetGalley

This was about secrets, mental health, stalking and Irish Folklore.
Set in Ireland. Enya Pickering and her husband are doctors, working together in a medical practice, they have a teenage son. Enya is approaching the age of 47 years. Enya’s mother Brigid died when she was 47 years. Enya is afraid of living past 47. Since she turned 46, Enya has become increasingly distant from family and work as she worries about turning 47.

One stormy night Enya is driving, and she comes across an accident where she helps save the life of a young teenager. Enya has secrets about why she was travelling through the storm that night and others threaten to reveal her secrets.

Enya leaves her husband and travels to Abbeydooley, a remote village to work as a rural GP. Enya moves into a house but is soon troubled by a hawthorn tree that is close to her house. The hawthorn tree is a rag tree and people tie rags to the tree to help heal sick family members or friends.

Margaret lives above the medical practice where Enya will be working and is also responsible for any maintenance issues for Enya’s house. Margaret explains why the hawthorn tree should not be removed.

Lots of twists and turns. Margaret tries to help Enya but Enya becomes increasingly troubled especially as strangers appear and place items on the hawthorn tree.

I loved Margaret’s personality, and the way Margaret tries to help Enya. I also loved the way Enya takes solace in reading articles her mother Brgid wrote many years earlier and all the different symbolisms used throughout. Enya wears her mother’s St Brgid Cross.

Enya is very troubled; she does a lot of stupid things and is not very likeable. At first the pace is slow but quickens up after Enya moves to Abbeydooley.

Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins Publisher for a chance to read this E-Book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins Australia for this advanced digital copy to read and review before release on 24th October.
I was so excited ro read this as I’ve loved most of Cecelia Ahern’s books for their moving stories and character development.
Unfortunately this story fell a bit flat for me as I couldn’t connect with the main character, Enya, and found her controlling and manipulative.
It’s a story of secrets, family, complicated relationships and the notions of rebirth and fresh starts.

A chronicle of a doctor's descent into madness after attending a hit and run accident on a stormy night

Read if you enjoyed the Yellow Wallpaper. Dr Enya Pickering is a flawed and deeply unlikeable character with obvious mental unwellness, whose life goes entirely off the rails after a trauma that reminds her of past loss and her own crumbling domestic circumstances. She runs away to rural Abbeydooley but her problems seem to chase her there, relentlessly

'Despite her attempt to escape to a remote place, everything is chasing her'.

It's a cold, stormy night, with near zero visibility when Dr Enya Pickering rounds the bend and sees flashing lights and a taxi driver desperately waving her down. A teenage boy, a victim of a hit-and-run lies on the road with critical head injuries. While they wait for the ambulance to arrive, she administers CPR and saves his life. But rather than feeling like any type of hero, she shakily returns home, unable to get the accident off her mind. Enya's so affected, she dramatically leaves her husband and son, moving to a rural practice in the mountains of Ireland, hoping to find enough peace to quell her anxiety and increasing paranoia, 'I'm trying to find my sanity. I am on my hands and knees crawling in the dark looking for it'. However, that Hawthorne tree, the rag tree, in her new backyard won't stop tapping on her window, it won't give her peace, 'There are two reasons why people tie their emblem around the limbs of the tree. One for healing. The other for forgiveness'.

I thought 'Into the Storm' was a good read but I while I found some of the story suspenseful and intriguing, other parts of it, for me, seemed somewhat disconnected - they didn't enhance the main drama. This is the second story I've read from Ahern - I loved 'In a Thousand Different Ways' - and although this one didn't resonate as strongly, I'll definitely still read more from her in the future.

Cecelia Ahern creates real, flawed characters who have struggles. While this isn’t my favourite of her books it is well written.

Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins Publishers Australia for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book!

This was a good book, don't get me wrong I liked it, I just didn't love it! It took me a while to get into, and I would say until around the 60% mark I wasn't really hooked on it! It was a great story; it just took a long time to get to that point where you needed to continue on!

Irish author Cecelia Ahern’s Into The Storm (2024) is a tale of a doctor’s stopping to provide first aid, and the impact such a moment has on her life. One stormy night, Dr Enya Cruagh is driving in a heavy downpour, when she is flagged down to assist a young man injured on the roadside. This one action sets off a chain of events, with Enya separating from her husband and moving to a small village as its medical practitioner. Intially, she upsets the locals when she begins to cut down a rag tree, a culturally significant landmark. Whilst beginning as a gentle crime mystery, the narrative had a clunky feel, with a compositry of story elements that never quite jelled, making it a somewhat listless read, with a three star rating. With thanks to Harper Collins and the author, for an uncorrected advanced review copy for review purposes. As always, the opinions herein are totally my own, freely given and without any inducement.

This is a book that grabbed my attention from the start and kept me on edge throughout. There is so much going on in the book and story, a lot of drama, emotion, tension and of course family dynamics. There are twists and turns and the characters are all have there own personalities which come through on the pages of this book.

Intriguing, interesting and a book you can't stop reading. A great read.

Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins Publishers Australia for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

My rating:

Plot: 3 out of 5 stars
Writing: 4 out of 5 stars
Character development: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Overall: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Recommended for readers of:

General Fiction



Review:

This is the story of Enya Pickering, doctor, wife and mother whose live starts to spirals out of control after she saves an injured person’s life after a hit and run on a stormy night. When her relationship with her son and husband is on the verge of falling apart she decides to move to a small Irish town to get away from it all in order to try and find herself again.

The main character Enya is very complex, deeply damaged by the unprocessed grief of her mother’s death when she was a young girl. The book deals with subjects such as mental health, ageing, life’s changes and grief. Her actions were described in great detail this made her very realist albeit sometimes a bit annoying. The plot flows well but because of the subject of mental health it feels a bit heavy and gloomy at times. The end of book felt a little rushed and I would have liked it more if Enya’s process of healing was described with a bit more detail.

Overall:

This is a well written book, with an interesting plot and realistic characters.

I love Cecelia Ahern's writing style so as soon as I say she had a new book I was thrilled!
And this sure doesn't disappoint.

I was hooked from the start, right there with Enya in the storm, tending an injured boy in the middle of the road.
Then her move to Abbeydooley to try and sort herself out with all the wonderful characters she meets.

The twists and turns of this story certainly keep you guessing.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins Publishers Australia for the digital ARC. All opinions are my own.

Thank you to Harper Collins and NetGalley for this book. It was a very easy read but at times the story got lost on things that didn’t overly impact on the storyline. The main character Dr Enya was frustrating at times and confusing at times, but then there were times you really felt for her. The story focuses on her and the aftermath of driving home on a wet and miserable night and coming across a teenage boy who was hit by a car and left to die. At times I really enjoyed the book, but other times it confused me.

Thank you to Netgalley and HarperCollins for my Advance Reader Copy of 'Into The Storm', by Cecelia Ahern. 

Dr Enya Pickering is a GP in Ireland, second on the scene of a serious accident. Rocked by the event and consumed with the grief of losing her mother as a young girl, which has become the backdrop of her entire existence, she leaves her unhappy marriage and her teenage son, Finn, and moves to a rural town several hours away called Abbeydooley. Here, she is viewed as the respected town saviour but her life is crumbling down around her.

The story is told in parts - each one a different observance in the pagan calendar: Beginning with Winter Solstice and wrapping up with Samhain. Throughout, related passages penned by her mother offer words of wisdom. There is a lot of metaphor, which I always love, and I learned a thing or two about old Celtic practices, such as rag trees. 

The book is easy reading, as per the author's style. At times I found myself questioning whether I cared enough about Enya, and also questioned her IQ after making some very questionable choices. I thought she was quite selfish at times. Quite naive. Quite regressed in her trauma responses. But in the end I realised I was invested in her, and her flaws just added to her humanity. Along the way we meet a cast of problematic men and loyal women and develop a soft spot for Enya's snarky property manager Margaret. 

There are twists in this tale that are so cleverly handled I genuinely didn't see them coming. At times it seemed to be dragging a little and the ending, while giving the sought after closure, could possibly have made more sense as an epilogue, because 'Samhain' only clearly pertains to the first chapter in that part, while the remaining chapters are moving through time. 

Over-all 'Into the Storm' is another great read from the novel-producing machine that is Cecelia Ahern.

Thankyou to NetGalley + HarperCollins Australia. For the ARC!!!!
Sooooo, mixed thoughts on this one. It was really boring to start off with and I only bumped up to 3 stars towards the end.
I think this was a case of good book, wrong reader.
It had a good story but I just felt like it took a long time to go nowhere 🤷‍♀️
All in all, it wasn’t terrible, it just wasn’t for me. This book would suit a reader who loves to jump deep down into the turmoil and emotions this book gives you.

In one night, in a wild storm, everything changes for GP Enya. Driving in the (driving) rain she comes across a young boy who has been hit by a car, and saves him.

Her marriage, already rickety, falls apart and she leaves the city to work in a country GP practice. There she deals with her new life, new neighbours and new expectations. And we gradually learn what happened on the stormy night.

I liked reading this book, though I found it somewhat stressful (I probably was meant to - after all, she is not having a great time in her mind). The ending was surprising, and satisfying.

I struggled with this book, I found the story to be a little lacking. It was just something that I found I could not get into.

Cecelia Ahern’s Into the Storm is a raw and emotional exploration of trauma, resilience, and the transformative power of nature. Enya, a GP, finds herself at the epicentre of a life-altering event when she saves the life of a teenage boy on a stormy night. This harrowing experience becomes a catalyst for her to break free from her unhappy marriage, seeking solace in the remote Irish countryside as a rural GP.

Cecelia Ahern masterfully weaves a tapestry of grief, guilt, and the search for meaning. From the beginning, it is apparent that Enya is hiding something, perhaps even more than one thing. She’s emotionally fraught, her reactions to the accident and the injured young man, whilst understandable, were also extreme. Her distress over what has happened and the subsequent move away from her family lead her to a prickly start in her new home, a tiny rural Irish village. I enjoyed this aspect of the story though, everything to do with the village and its inhabitants was so quaintly and wryly Irish, it was good reading and very entertaining.

The exploration of Irish folklore and mythology through the rag tree added and element of depth and intrigue, Enya’s initial rage at the tree giving way to an understanding of its deeper meaning, and in turn, an inner discovery of self and getting down to the bones of the grief she was carrying for her mother and its intertwining with her fears for her own mortality. I felt that Enya was an incredibly complex character and the unhinged and extreme volatility of her emotions and actions all slid into place as the novel progressed and I was left feeling an immense sense of compassion and understanding for her.

While the novel delves into profound themes, it never loses sight of its characters’ humanity. Enya’s vulnerability is both relatable and inspiring, making her a compelling protagonist. The supporting cast, though limited, is well-developed and contributes to the overall richness of the story.

Into the Storm is a poignant exploration of healing and rebirth. Cecelia Ahern’s evocative storytelling and richly drawn characters create a compelling narrative that lingers long after the final page.

Thanks to the publisher for the review copy.