Helen Cullen's The Truth Must Dazzle Gradually will be published by Penguin on August 20th.
Set against the windswept and beautiful backdrop of a remote
island off the Irish coast, it follows the ebb and flow of the Moone family’s
fortunes – idealistic Murtagh, troubled Maeve, and their four children – as
they come together, shatter apart, and begin to put themselves back together
again.
It’s receiving some wonderful author quotes:
Emma Flint, author
of Little Deaths, said ‘I devoured this, falling in love with the setting and
with every character - and when I reached the end, I wept. It is just glorious.
A sweeping family tale and, at the same time, a close-up on the everyday
beautiful details that make up love’
Elaine Feeney, author of As You Were,
commented ‘So wonderful on the Irish family and the utter complexity of
motherhood, family entanglement and love’
My Thoughts
This is an evocative and complicated read which takes a long look at a family across 37 years. It examines motherhood, marriage, sibling and parental relationships, love, mental health issues, unfulfilled ambition, loss and grief. The list goes on! The overall tone is a calm, quiet one. Despite the raw emotions which you see, there is little anger in the book. There is compassion and genuine selfless love.
You know from the start how things are going to work out. It is a shock. As you then go back in time and learn how Murtagh and Maeve met, you find them both to be well drawn and arresting characters. This feels like a bittersweet tale which alternates between forgiveness and guilt. When you see the effect of Maeve's condition on her children, your heart sinks for them, but then you see how they grow up and find their own way to cope. The most striking features for me are when you hear Maeve's thoughts through her diary and letters. This is a well written, emotional read which leaves you with food for thought. Highly recommended.
In short: A bittersweet look at a family
About the Author
Helen Cullen is an Irish writer living in London.
Her debut novel, THE LOST LETTERS OF WILLIAM WOOLF was
published in 2018 by Penguin Random House in the UK, Ireland, Australia and
South Africa and published in the USA by Harper Collins in 2019. The novel has
also sold in translation to numerous foreign markets including Germany, Italy,
Greece, Russia and Israel.
In addition, Lost Letters has been optioned for television
by Mainstreet Productions whose past successes include Downtown Abbey and
Broadchurch. Helen was also shortlisted as Best Newcomer at this year’s Irish
Books Awards.
Helen's second novel, THE TRUTH MUST DAZZLE GRADUALLY, will
be published in May 2020 by Penguin Random House in the UK, Ireland, Australia
and South Africa and in August 2020 as THE DAZZLING TRUTH in North America by
Harper Collins.
Before writing, Helen started her career with Ireland’s
national broadcaster, RTE (Ireland's national broadcaster) where she worked in
radio broadcasting before moving to London in 2010. She subsequently worked for
companies such as the BBC and The Times before her most recent role in Google
where she worked before signing her publishing contract.
Helen wrote the first draft of her debut novel, The Lost
Letters of William Woolf, while completing the Guardian/UEA novel writing
programme under the mentorship of Michele Roberts. She holds a B.A.
Communications from Dublin City University, an M.A. Theatre Studies from
University College Dublin and an M.A. in English Literature at Brunel
University in London.
Helen is now writing full-time, working on her third novel
and will commence a PHD in 2020.
Thanks to Helen Cullen, Sriya Varadharajan of Penguin Random House for a copy of the book and a place on the tour.
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