Mairéad Hearne (Swirl and Thread Book Blog)
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maireadhearne.bsky.social
Mairéad Hearne (Swirl and Thread Book Blog)
@maireadhearne.bsky.social
Irish/Cork Book Reviewer/Blogger 💙 📚☘️ FeedSpot Top 25 Irish Book Blog
https://linktr.ee/maireadhearne
Dig. Mkting/PA for writingIE/Murder One International Crime Festival (Views my own)
I have been locked away since last Tues with some kind of 'non-Covid feels like Covid' bug. Not impressed 😫 as I'm quite off-form but I am catching up on some reading inc this door-stopper 📖

The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny by Kiran Desai

Beautifully written 💙
#amreading
November 15, 2025 at 5:54 PM
#BookReview

#James by Percival Everett

Winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction

A remarkable reimagining of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884) giving Jim (James) his voice

Intelligent, raw, emotional & poignant

Dark & unsettling

Read more:
www.swirlandthread.com/james-by-per...
November 7, 2025 at 10:56 AM
Wishing @samblakebooks.bsky.social a Very Happy Paperback Publication Day 🎉

#TheKillingSense is a superbly researched, taut, contemporary thriller with a strong Parisian flair

Review:
swirlandthread.com/the-killing-...

Shortlisted for Crime Fiction Book of the Year
➡️ VOTE irishbookawards.ie/vote/
November 6, 2025 at 11:59 AM
#BookReview

#Summer by Edith Wharton (1917)

'She had learned what she was worth when Lucius Harney, looking at her for the first time, had lost the thread of his speech...'

Wonderfully astute tale of repression & youth captured with an experienced pen

www.swirlandthread.com/summer-by-ed...
November 5, 2025 at 8:24 AM
I wonder how many loyalty points this would get you 🤔
November 5, 2025 at 7:57 AM
#BookReview

#TheBenefactors by Wendy Erskine

A disconcerting premise.
Shocking & heartrending.
Leaves its mark on every reader.
A striking & astute debut.

Read my thoughts:
www.swirlandthread.com/the-benefact...

#booksky
November 3, 2025 at 8:46 AM
I'm very excited to be starting James by Percival Everett this weekend.

So many readers have adored this book so my expectations are huge!

Have you read it?
November 2, 2025 at 12:28 PM
#BookReview

#SilentBones by Val McDermid

The return of cold case detective, Karen Pirie
(Book 8)

An extremely compelling, and intelligent police procedural.

A stellar novel, with a very controlled, yet complex, plot

www.swirlandthread.com/silent-bones...
#booksky
October 30, 2025 at 12:15 PM
#BookReview

#OnceAYear by Felicity Hayes-McCoy

A sweet tale of family dynamics across generations

A comforting read

www.swirlandthread.com/once-a-year-...

#booksky
October 29, 2025 at 9:08 AM
Coffee & book shopping 👌

Sure how else would you spend a Sat morning 📚

Here I am with the wonderful Fiona Farrell (owner of Leaf & Bower bookshop in Ballincollig & bookseller extraordinaire) & fantastic crime fiction author @catherinekirwanbks.bsky.social (after our breakfast blaa!)

#cork
October 25, 2025 at 4:29 PM
This sounds wonderful 📚

Almost a century ago, an Irishwoman was more famous than Amelia Earhart - yet today, few know her name.

The Sky is Not Enough by June O'Sullivan will publish January 2026

TY to Poolbeg Books & @sullyj.bsky.social for an advance copy🙏
#booksky
October 24, 2025 at 11:53 AM
#BookReview

#RingTheBells by @caimhmc.bsky.social
(Book 5 in The Stranger Times Series)

Paranormal mystery

Caimh's pure wit, and his ability to create such a motley crew of lovable oddballs is very much the appeal of these books.

Top-class entertainment👌

www.swirlandthread.com/ring-the-bel...
October 23, 2025 at 7:57 AM
#SilentBones by Val McDermid is the latest Karen Pirie Thriller

Publishing with Sphere October 23rd

'When torrential rain causes a landslide on a motorway in Scotland, it reveals a crime scene: someone hid a body in the tarmac eleven years before' 😱

#amreading #booksky
October 22, 2025 at 11:13 AM
#BookReview

#Aftershock by Liz McSkeane

An earthquake hits Lisbon 1755 - Dom Sebastião José de Carvalho e Melo takes charge of the rebuild

A powerful and dramatic tale, educational in its insights and shocking in its storytelling

Read:
www.swirlandthread.com/aftershock-l...

#booksky
October 21, 2025 at 6:56 AM
#BookReview

#TheChristmasMagpie by Mark Edwards

'Behind the twinkling lights, danger watches closely'

www.swirlandthread.com/the-christma...

#booksky
October 20, 2025 at 6:40 AM
'I’m hoping that ISTRIA BLACK tells a story of hatred that sprouts generously in wounded hearts, and of its eternal rival—forgiveness'

#GuestPost by Mike Downey, author of #IstriaBlack

Described as 'an ambitious and atmospheric historical thriller'

Read:
www.swirlandthread.com/istria-black...
October 16, 2025 at 8:09 AM
#BookReview

#ThePlantersDaughter by @susanlanigan.bsky.social

Book 1 in a new series feat. 2 Cork based detectives, Keane & Xiao

Dual timeline (today & Ireland's War of Independence)
Relevant societal themes
Intriguing & emotionally potent

www.swirlandthread.com/the-planters...

#booksky
October 15, 2025 at 6:42 AM
#Extract

A Quilting of Scars by Lucy E.M. Black
@riverstreetwriting.bsky.social

Described as 'a contemplative novel about identity, secrets, life choices, aging and mortality.'

Read:
www.swirlandthread.com/a-quilting-o...

#booksky
October 14, 2025 at 8:01 AM
Books as Gifts - #BookRecommendations - Donal Skehan, Michael Harding & Shane Lehane

Books to be lingered over & returned to on multiple occasions as the evenings draw in from cooking to meditation to the nostalgia of tradition.

Read:
www.swirlandthread.com/book-gifts-b...

#booksky #booksasagift
October 13, 2025 at 6:39 AM
Yay 😊

A day dedicated to books
📚 📖📚📖📚📖

It's always great to escape into a good book, but especially today in celebration of #bookshopday

What's on your wishlist?

#shoplocal #choosebookshops
@booksaremybag.bsky.social
October 11, 2025 at 8:33 AM
#BookReview

#Nesting by Roisín O'Donnell

✨✨✨✨✨ instant bestseller

Heart-breaking yet powerful tale

A story of hope and resilience, depicting the purest of love between a mother and her children

A beautiful and magnetic debut

Read:
www.swirlandthread.com/nesting-rois...
#booksky
October 9, 2025 at 7:35 AM
#BookReview

#FlyWildSwans by Jung Chang

Sequel to the bestselling memoir #WildSwans

Educational, compelling and potent

A remarkable and momentous book

Published Sept 16th by William Collins/Harper Collins

www.swirlandthread.com/fly-wild-swa...

#booksky
October 7, 2025 at 7:41 AM
#BookReview

#IntoTheFire by M.J. Arlidge

A heart-pumping, page-turning stonker of a read with a gutsy protagonist at its centre.

Read my full thoughts:
www.swirlandthread.com/into-the-fir...

#booksky
#bookrecommendation
October 3, 2025 at 9:27 AM
#BookReview

#FairPlay by Louise Hegarty

An inventive and refreshingly different debut

A unique reading experience

Tackles grief with an experimental approach

Read my thoughts:
www.swirlandthread.com/fair-play-lo...

#booksky
October 1, 2025 at 7:50 AM
#Extract

#DarkHorse by Felix Francis

'This latest chapter of the Sid Halley story will have readers racing to the end as they are plunged into the dangerous and gripping world of horse racing.'

Read:
www.swirlandthread.com/dark-horse-f...

OUT NOW w/ @zaffrebooks.bsky.social

#booksky
September 30, 2025 at 7:32 AM