Book description
Ria and Marilyn have never met - they live thousands of miles apart,
separated by the Atlantic Ocean: one in a big, warm, Victorian house in
Tara Road, Dublin, the other in a modern, open-plan house in New
England. Two more unlikely friends would be hard to find: Ria's life
revolves around her family and friends, while Marilyn's reserve is born
of grief. But when each needs a place to escape to, a house exchange
seems the ideal solution. Along with the borrowed houses come neighbours
and friends, gossip and speculation as Ria and Marilyn swap lives for
the summer... Maeve Binchy was born in County Dublin and educated at
the Holy Child convent in Killiney and at University College, Dublin.
After a spell as a teacher she joined the Irish Times. Her first novel,
Light a Penny Candle, was published in 1982 and she went on to write
over twenty books, all of them bestsellers. Several have been adapted
for cinema and television, most notably Circle of Friends and Tara Road
. Maeve Binchy received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the British Book
Awards in 1999 and the Irish PEN/A. T. Cross award in 2007. In 2010 she
was presented with the Bob Hughes Lifetime Achievement Award at the Bord
Gáis Irish Book Awards by the President of Ireland. She was married to
the writer and broadcaster Gordon Snell for 35 years, and died in 2012.
Visit her website at
www. maevebinchy. com
