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Before My Actual Heart Breaks

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Before My Actual Heart Breaks

By: Tish Delaney
Narrated by: Saoirse-Monica Jackson
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About this listen

I’m not yours and you’re not mine. That’s what I say to his dreaming face as I watch the shadows of his dark eyelashes dance by the light of a Tilley lamp. It’s not the first lie I’ve told myself.

When I was 16, I wanted to fly. I was going to take off like an angel from heaven and leave the muck and madness of Northern Ireland behind as I struck out across the west coast of Donegal, heading straight for America.

Nothing but the Land of Happy Ever After would do for me. It was him I blamed for clipping my wings. I fashioned a cage out of self-pity then and slipped it over my head like a boned corset to hold myself together and to lock him out.

But hate cannot bind two people to each other for 25 years, no matter how many dark skies have to be weathered. Only love can do that.

It’s the first truth I’ve told myself.

©2020 Tish Delaney (P)2020 Penguin Audio Family Life Fiction Genre Fiction Emotionally Gripping Funny Heartfelt Inspiring Witty Tear-jerking Thought-Provoking

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All stars
Most relevant  
Enjoyed it especially the accent which helps drift into the story😊
Very true to the times written about.

Worth a listen

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This book touched my heartstrings, it made me laugh and cry, sometimes it was so over whelming and sad I had to stop listening. The wonderful narration added to the joy of this book, it was filled with nostalgia of another era. A must read.

Story telling at its best.

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The narration was outstanding, the story of Mary had me gripped. The insight into the troubles in Northman Ireland. The way women were treated. I was hooked and it made me laugh, cry, frustration and made me feel grateful I did not live on a farm with no electricity. A must read.

Brilliant narration and characters. A must read.

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To hear Tish Delaney's wonderful tale of a recently bygone Ireland, told in the authentic accent of the North by Derry Girl Saoirse-Monica Jackson is a doubling of the pleasure of simply reading it. By turns hilarious and tragic, it is never less than humane in its depiction of a dark time in the history of our countries. Seen from a Catholic perspective, Delaney manages to keep blame at bay by focusing on the senseless tragedies suffered by all sides of the conflict. At the same time she introduces the reader to a glowing cast of beautifully drawn individuals in a love story which sometimes blatantly refers back to Austen. It is a warm and witty letter from the heart and deserves to be widely read.

A lovely book.

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An absolutely superb book perfectly narrated. My first by this author and I loved it.

Superb!

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What a debut. One of the best books I have read and I did not want it to end. Tish Delaney I salute you.

Before My Actual Heart Breaks Is a tender story that had me captured from the first paragraph. I became completely absorbed in it, feeling as if I were living it right alongside the characters!

It made me cry, it made me laugh out loud and even shocked me at times me with it’s honest portrayal of family life during the ‘troubles’ in Northern Ireland.

Read the book and then listened to the Audiobook and have to admit that the broad Derry accent of Saoirse- Monica Jackson had me captivated even further. A must read for all book clubs.
Next one please Tish.

Captivated until the very last word.

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Really enjoyed this book, and this author.
Great narrator - the only thing that bothered me were a few random sentences that had been filled in with a different voice which was a bit jarring when fully engrossed in the story.

I love the characters TD creates and the humour within the heartbreak

Brilliant

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the language was so poetic and descriptive..the back ground history made the whole book memorable and easily readable. loved it to bits

a brilliant story

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This is a beautifully written work of art, I loved every chapter. The narrator was fabulous too. I look forward to reading The Saint of Lost Things & anything else by Tish Delaney

A Gem of a story

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As perfect a book and reading as is possible. Haunting and relatable, as if you've known the characters all your life and miss them when it ends..

Just stunning in every way.

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