I purchased this book for my own personal collection.
Publisher: Riverhead Books
Published: November 3, 2026
Summary:
In 1982, Róisín and Red meet as teenagers in their hometown in Ireland. Red’s reputation for trouble might precede him, but Róisín finds in him an intelligent and funny – if unlikely – friend. When a brush with the law pushes Red into a corner, he escapes their town and his family for good to start a new life in England.
As the years pass, they grow up and apart. Despite Red’s particular gift for disappearing, they remain tethered to one another, a fragile thread holding their once fierce friendship together. When Róisín arrives in London to spend Christmas with her estranged father, she finds herself swept up once more into Red’s storm. Róisín longs for the closeness they once had, but Red continues to travel away from her – and as the past weighs on the present, Róisín wonders if she’ll ever reach Red where he is.
Stations is a devastating story of love and friendship, and the choices we blithely make when we are young, unaware that the consequences will reverberate throughout our lives.
My thoughts:
I will read anything and everything Louise Kennedy writes. Her debut novel, Trespasses, is one of my favorite books, and her collection of short stories, The End of the World is a Cul de Sac, was quite powerful. I have been eagerly awaiting this next novel and I was not disappointed.
This book wrecked me in the best way possible. A story about friendship, finding oneself, family drama, addiction, true love and so much more, this book completely got under my skin. I was so invested in the friendship between Roisin and Red, who first meet in Ireland in the mid-1980s. We then trace their lives over 25 years and when I say I was all in, I mean A L L I N. I lived, breathed, dreamed these characters while reading this book and even though it’s a smaller book, coming in under 300 pages, it’s one I savored, taking my time reading and digesting. It’s heartbreaking at times and I needed to pause a few times to let what I read sink in.
One thing I have come to love about Kennedy’s writing is how well she writes characters. The relationships she writes are so real and relatable. They are complex and feel completely authentic. As much as I wanted more of Roisin and Red, I was equally invested Roisin’s relationships with Mary and Lynne. And of course, the setting is just as much a character, with the time and place coming alive. The political tension is always there, though never overtaking the story, the same with religion and class. It’s woven into the story and feels natural. You can’t have a story set during this time without this being part of it and Kennedy does this so seamlessly.
All the stars for this book…and another reason this author is a must-read for me!
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