Nesting
Roisín O'Donnell

Buy now Bookshop.org Get AudiobookAudible.co.uk

Published: 2025

Longlisted for the 2025 Women's Prize for Fiction

An extraordinary and urgent debut by a prize-winning Irish writer, NESTING introduces an unforgettable new voice in fiction.

On a bright spring afternoon in Dublin, Ciara Fay makes a split-second decision that will change everything. Grabbing an armful of clothes from the washing line, Ciara straps her two young daughters into her car and drives away. Head spinning, all she knows for certain is that home is no longer safe.

This was meant to be an escape. But with dwindling savings, no job, and her family across the sea, Ciara finds herself adrift, facing a broken housing system and the voice of her own demons. As summer passes and winter closes in, she must navigate raising her children in a hotel room, searching for a new home and dealing with her husband Ryan’s relentless campaign to get her to come back. Because leaving is one thing, but staying away is another.

What will it take for Ciara to rebuild her life? Can she ever truly break away from Ryan’s control – and what will be the cost?

Tense, beautiful, and underpinned by an unassailable love, hope and resilience, this is the story of one woman’s bid to start over.

Leafy plant illustration

A moving story, well told about what it’s like to try and leave an abusive relationship, the hurdles, the stigma, the doubt, the ease and temptation of return. Not maudlin or depressing, there’s lots of light here but ultimately this is about a system ripe for change where getting help is nearly as hard as escape itself.

Kit de Waal

Newsletter

Love Books?

Join our 16 million-strong community of book lovers.

  • Get weekly book recommendations
  • Event news
  • Writing tips and inspiration
  • First-hand updates on the Prizes
  • Insider community updates & more

Your information will only be used to subscribe to the Women's Prize newsletter. You can unsubscribe at any time.