Hemingway’s Retreat

“It was with some pleasure I joined Hemingway on his literary and sporting tour of Ireland circa 1960.  He meets all the greats from the very grand Knight of Glin who was his guide, philosopher and friend.  They meet all the great literary figures of the day including John B. Keane in Listowel, where they take in a days racing.  They go on to meet Nobel laureate Seamus Heaney and a host of others.  To cap it off, the greatest horse trainer of his generation, Vincent O’Brien, meets them and they hunt with the iconic White Heather Harriers.  All in all a great read, particularly for Hibernophiles.” 


—Dickie Power,

Correspondent, The Irish Field

(The Voice of the Irish Equine Industry)


“On July 2, 1961 the world was not ready to let go of Ernest Hemingway.  In his debut novel Hemingway’s Retreat J. M. Moriarty proposes what if the world did not have to. The novel follows a defeated but not destroyed writer hiding and trying to find remnants of his former self.  It is a unique and engrossing tale, which unfolds in castles, pubs and the beautiful rolling hills of Ireland.”


—Raul Villarreal,

coauthor of Hemingway’s Cuban Son



The life of action and fame has finally caught up to Ernest Hemingway, prompting him to contemplate whether he can go on living. Now as he faces the age-old question of whether to live or to die, Ernest makes a life-altering decision to choose both.


After he fakes his demise, Hemingway is pronounced dead on July 2, 1961. While the world learns of his death, EMH transforms into Matt Fitzgerald. With the help of his friend, President Kennedy, he moves to Ireland to live in a castle with a cousin of the president. As his new life begins, Fitzgerald travels through Ireland, learning about its people and history. Even as he searches for peace, it is only a beginning for him. Although his will to live is still there, his ambition has been tempered. As Fitzgerald’s need to understand returns as a goal, his desire to tell basic stories becomes a driving force. Now the real question is whether his new life will keep him going or whether he will once again plunge into the darkness of depression.


Hemingway’s Retreat shares an imaginative account of what would have happened if the famous writer had faked his own death.