Into the Storm is the first of Irish author Cecelia Ahern's books that this reviewer has read. While it always takes time to become acquainted with an author's style, the book offers a quick showcase of Ahern's capability to shape her female characters by building conflicts into them.

The story's main character, Enya, is dreading the approach of her 47th birthday because it is the age at which her mother died. Already fearing for her mortality, she is also emotionally vulnerable due to a suffocating marriage and what she feels is an increasingly remote relationship with her teenage son.

Right on this juncture, Enya, a medical doctor, becomes involved in a shocking event on a remote mountain road. She saves the life of the victim of an apparent hit-and-run – a teenager who very much reminds her of her own son – but the incident leaves her deeply shaken.

As the story develops, we delve into Enya's mind and slowly gain an understanding as to why Enya feels she has to flee her old life. And it takes some convincing – why this rational, professional woman chooses to leave her family behind and move to a rural practice in the mountains. Specifically – why she desperately tries to find some peace that will put an end to her anxiety, confusion and increasing paranoia, but only ends up making a bigger mess in the process.

Enya often seems clumsy and self-contradictory, and her attempts to confront life's many inconveniences are not always successful. Her numerous troubles are mainly her own doing, piling one lie on top of another in her efforts to avoid the truths and their consequences – until the whole castle in the sky collapses.

In other words, she is just an ordinary human being.

Which is an indicator of the author's considerable skills in laying bare the complex nature of seemingly simple concepts such as love and responsibility. We cannot help but like Enya, so much so that when we finally learn the reason why she is fleeing, hiding and lying along the way, it no longer matters. What matters instead is the PROCESS in which she learns to be true to herself, including and especially all her flaws, mistakes and insecurities.

Enya's relationship with her mother and sister is perhaps the most endearing part of the story. Also eye-catching is the character Margaret, whose life is similarly burdened by her love and responsibility for her family. An equally brilliant character is Enya's mother, whose transformation from Brigid to Brighid is both informative and inspiring.

In comparison, the male characters in this story are rather peripheral and one-dimensional. They are there as threats and shadows throwing Enya's life into disarray. Even Finn, Enya's beloved son, turns out to have his own agenda, although he does serve as the source of her strengths.

Ultimately, Into the Storm is about women's self-empowerment and mutual support, about facing the consequences of their own decisions, and accepting the fact that they are far from perfect. There is no vanity in this story. Instead, it shows us it is never too late to admit our weaknesses, faults and failures.

Into the Storm - Cecelia Ahern

Into the Storm is a powerful story, so brace yourself for a raw emotional journey dealing with trauma, resilience and Mother Nature.

On a wild December night, during a storm, Dr Enya performs CPR on a young teenage boy in the middle of the road. He is a victim of a hit and run, but it stirs up emotions of Enya’s son, leading her to make some changes in her life.

The boy survives, but Enya’s life spins out of control and she leaves her husband, her son and her life to start anew in a remote and rural town in Ireland. Enya has to fight her demons, find herself and build the strength she has buried inside her.

The storm of that fateful night, haunts her. Running away won’t solve the emotions she is trying to hide from. She needs to face her demons and renew her resolve for a peaceful and rested life, before it consumes here totally.

Into the Storm published by HarperCollins Publisher Australia. It is worth a read if you are wanting to go on a raw, emotional and inspiring journey to the heart of despair and find hope.

 #IntotheStorm #NetGalley #books #booktok #bookgram #bookish #fyp #booknerd #CeceliaAhern #emotionalread #

I found Into the Storm to be such a compelling and emotional read.

The writing was beautiful and I felt immersed in the story of Enya as she grappled with issues of grief, mortality, morality and motherhood. While deeply flawed, there were elements of her character that were both endearing and relatable. At times the story felt so claustrophobic, and the writing was beautiful and engaging.

While part mystery, I think this is also a story of self discovery, family, female friendship and trauma. I feel somewhat conflicted about the ending, but did find it through provoking, and I think this is a story that will stay with me for some time.

Thank you HarperCollins Australia for a copy of this book. Opinions expressed are my own.

This book challenged me in so many ways, including in setting a path that had so many twists and turns that I hadn’t expected. Filled with the depths of mental anguish and suffering, the torments of paranoia, the bonds of friendship and a glimpse into the richness of Ireland’s history there was plenty to tease out within this story. In a story that had Enya as the main character; it was instead her friend Margaret who kept catching my attention with her perfectly timed sharp wit and her offered friendship despite her own brokenness.

While reading this book, I did find it fascinating to learn a little more about the rag tree and the significance it plays, and the way that this and the storms helped shape the story. Other details like leaving a place at the table for dead relatives, and the stories shared in Brighid’s columns also gave rich insight into things I know little about.

Meanwhile lies, deceit and confusion feature heavily within this story and it did make me hope to avoid ever having a GP like Enya or her husband. Scary really thinking of what conditions some practice under when really they are needing more help themselves than what they can offer, and hints at the possibilities for so much harm to be done.

Thanks to Netgalley and HarperCollins Publishers Australia for letting me read an advanced copy in exchange for a review. Available now for purchase.

On a wild winter’s night, GP Enya finds herself doing CPR on a teenage boy, performing CPR, an apparent victim of a hit-and-run. The boy survives, but Enya goes to pieces. She leaves her husband, her son, and everything she knows to start a new life in remote rural Ireland. However, the quiet life of Abbeydooley, fails to diminish the anguish felt by Enya who is still haunted by that night in the rain.
The impact of the event on Enya, causes her to reflect on her life. Her grief is palpable, as she also struggles with her mother’s death and her own mortality. This was a heavy read but the gradual reveal of Enya’s past, made this an interesting read. Whilst Enya as a character was difficult to like, her emotions are raw and truthful.
This book I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

CW: Car accidents; death of a parent;

It's a dark and stormy night in the Eniskerry mountains when Dr Enya Pickering is pulled over to assist at the scene of an accident. The victim: a boy the same age as her own son. While she renders first aid, she is wracked with guilt because she wasn't where she said she was before the accident and anxiety over her upcoming 47th birthday - the same age her mother was when she died.

Heading for a fresh start, Enya takes up a GP position in the village of Abbeydooley, but the accident and the aftermath keep its hooks in Enya until it all comes to a head on another dark and stormy night. Can Enya overcome her fear of her upcoming birthday and resolve the ghosts of the past?

While this had a bit of a slow start, it soon became an un-put-downable read as the pace picked up faster and faster.

It is a tale of relationships and families, of secrets and lies, of redemption and reparation. Woven through is the folklore of the Rag Trees and the healing they bring, and Enya's mother's newspaper columns about the seasons and their spirituality. It's a dark tale of mental illness and crime and retribution, with so many red herrings and wrong turns that the reader is left bewildered

This was a fascinating, twisting turning tale that kept me guessing to the end.

~Many thanks to NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review~

Into the Storm is my second Ahern book and I was really looking forward to it. I kept my knowledge of the book to a minimum as I didn’t want to spoil the story for myself and I’m glad I did that.

The story follows Enya through some difficult times in her life and comes back to the event of her saving Ross’ life by doing CPR late at night and in a storm. She moves to a new town to become the local GP but the troubles still follow her, physically and mentally. I felt that the story flew by and I was always keen to keep going with it, which is always a good sign in my book. I was a bit thrown by some of the time jumps of months but once I realised it made sense since the book went through about a years period in such few pages. I felt the ending wrapped up things quite well and I will be recommending to friends.

This was an intense and emotional read although I found myself caring less about the main character as the story unfolded. I did like the connections with Celtic traditions and there were moments of great atmosphere.

In a stormy night, Enya, a GP comes across a boy who has been the victim of a hit and run. She performs CPR and the boy survives. She can’t help but think of her own son, who is the boy’s age. This night provides the catalyst for Enya to forge her own path, away from an ill-fated marriage, while she continues to be haunted by the events of that night.

The beginning of the book starts off with a bang, as she comes upon the accident and saves the boy’s life. But then the story becomes quite slow going, and repetitive, and I had to make myself read on. About 3/4 into the book the pace picks up again as the mystery unfolds.

I found Enya, the MC, annoying and narcissistic. I found the whole “I’m going to die at 47 because that’s the age my mum died” hard to believe. She was a train wreck making one bad decision after another and maybe that’s the way someone in her state of mind would behave.

I loved Margaret’s character even though she had her own issues going on. The inclusion of the rag tree was interesting as well as the Irish folklore intertwined in the story.

There were a couple of interesting twists throughout but there were also overly used characters like the taxi driver and Mark, that added little to the story. I had a hard time buying into the premise of the story and connecting with its characters. I felt the story dragged on and the ending was quite rushed, although satisfying. This was my first Cecilia Ahern book and after seeing glowing reviews of some of her other books I will try her again.

A book where not one character is really likeable, and the ending rather predictable, but there are a few gems to be discovered along the way.

This was an intriguing read, if somewhat confusing at times. There's so much deception & depression which does get you into the head of the main character, but it's not a place I wanted to stay for very long, so I found it slow going. It does, however, depict battles with mental health really well, especially as the various truths begin to reveal themselves.

This book is a lot, and won't be for everyone.

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!