The Good People
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4.0 • 19 Ratings
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- $9.99
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
From the author of Burial Rites, "a literary novel with the pace and tension of a thriller that takes us on a frightening journey towards an unspeakable tragedy" (Paula Hawkins, bestselling author of The Girl on the Train and Into the Water).
Based on true events in nineteenth century Ireland, Hannah Kent's startling new novel tells the story of three women, drawn together to rescue a child from a superstitious community.
Nora, bereft after the death of her husband, finds herself alone and caring for her grandson Micheal, who can neither speak nor walk. A handmaid, Mary, arrives to help Nora just as rumors begin to spread that Micheal is a changeling child who is bringing bad luck to the valley. Determined to banish evil, Nora and Mary enlist the help of Nance, an elderly wanderer who understands the magic of the old ways.
Set in a lost world bound by its own laws, The Good People is Hannah Kent's startling new novel about absolute belief and devoted love. Terrifying, thrilling and moving in equal measure, this follow-up to Burial Rites shows an author at the height of her powers.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Faith, folk-knowledge, and fear coalesce in remote 19th-century Ireland in this second novel from Kent (Burial Rites). When her daughter and husband die amid what the community considers dark omens unmoving birds, mysterious lights, a raging storm N ra Leahy dreads a future of backbreaking work in order to pay her rent and care for her four-year-old grandson Miche l. Once hale and healthy, the boy was delivered to N ra's doorstep after the sudden death of his mother mute, unable to walk, and starving. Bitter gossip at the well and by the hearth questions how N ra's luck soured so quickly, why the valley cows' milk is drying up, and why none of the townspeople ever see the ailing boy. Rumors and dark signs weigh on N ra until she seeks help outside of her comfort zone: old Nance Roche's knowledge of the Good People the fairies. But the old hermit's cures of nettle, nightshade, and foxglove bring nearly as much risk as reward. Defying the valley's newly appointed priest, Nance, N ra, and her young housemaid, Mary Clifford, set out to determine whether Miche l is a boy or the fairy changeling the valley fears him to be. Though rife with description, backstory, and a surfeit of gossip, the book's pervasive sense of foreboding and clear narrative arcs keep the tale immersive. Kent leads the reader on a rocky, disquieting journey to the misty crossroads of Irish folk beliefs past and future.
