The Crows of Beara

The Crows of Beara

by Julie Christine Johnson
Setting: Ireland
Published on September 1st 2017

When Annie Crowe travels from Seattle to a small Irish village to promote a new copper mine, her public relations career is hanging in the balance. Struggling to overcome her troubled past and a failing marriage, Annie is eager for a chance to rebuild her life.
Yet when she arrives on the remote Beara Peninsula, Annie learns that the mine would encroach on the nesting ground of an endangered bird, the Red-billed Chough, and many in the community are fiercely protective of this wild place. Among them is Daniel Savage, a local artist battling demons of his own, who has been recruited to help block the mine.
Despite their differences, Annie and Daniel find themselves drawn toward each other, and, inexplicably, they begin to hear the same voice--a strange, distant whisper of Gaelic, like sorrow blowing in the wind.
Guided by ancient mythology and challenged by modern problems, Annie must confront the half-truths she has been sent to spread and the lies she has been telling herself. Most of all, she must open her heart to the healing power of this rugged land and its people.
Beautifully crafted with environmental themes, a lyrical Irish setting, and a touch of magical realism, The Crows of Beara is a breathtaking novel of how the nature of place encompasses everything that we are.

I was excited to try The Crows of Beara from the description of magical realism and environmental activism but I wasn’t immediately grabbed by the story.  I put it aside for a while.  Honestly, I probably would have DNFed it if it wasn’t for the fact that this is a book tour book for me and I had to read it.  I knuckled down to read it and found myself drawn into the world.  I finished it in two sittings.  I’m glad that I didn’t pass on this one based on a snap judgement on a day when I wasn’t in the right frame of mind for it.

This is a quiet character-based story.  Daniel and Annie are both recovering alcoholics.  Daniel has been sober for nine years but Annie is just recently out of rehab.  Both are still dealing with the serious repercussions of the issues that drinking caused in their lives.

I appreciated the fact that the author showed them both still struggling.  You see this from Annie’s point of view most.  She is working hard to find AA meetings to attend while in Ireland.  She is trying to avoid pub culture and alcohol during business meetings even though she really wants to drink.

The story of the mine versus the community takes a backseat to the story of two people trying to rebuild their lives after they ruined them while drinking.  The story summons the quiet of a rural, mystical part of Ireland.  The author does a wonderful job of evoking mist-covered cliffs and coastlines.  Read this one on a rainy day while snuggled in a blanket with a mugful of hot chocolate.