When All is Said

[An] impressively confident debut ... Maurice Hannigan emerges as an engaging, compassionate creation * Guardian * Anne Griffin's debut novel is a must read. Beautifully observed, masterful story telling - stunning! -- Graham Norton There is something special here . . . The next big name to emerge from the Irish writing scene. -- John Boyne Griffin is a magical storyteller whose prose is effortless and clear. She conjures an intimate, poignant and ultimately enthralling portrait of a man who has battled loneliness and other demons throughout his life. Maurice is superbly well-realised: a character who tries to make amends and, in so doing, cracked my heart. -- Fanny Blake * Daily Mail * A book to savour, and pass on. An absolute joy * Sunday Mirror * A hugely enjoyable, engrossing novel, a genuine page-turner. -- Donal Ryan Maurice Hannigan is a wonderful invention, whose bitter-sweet meditations will stay long in the reader's mind. Anne Griffin has fashioned a rare jewel. -- John Banville This is how you tell a story -- Cecelia Ahern [Anne Griffin] builds a remarkably rich sense of place, while also tracing the wider changes affecting Ireland. ...Maurice is a lovingly rendered example of the current vogue for characters who have fallen through the cracks * Sunday Times * Beautifully written, unhurried and thoughtful, and a character you love from the off. -- Kit de Waal As candid a portrait of human frailty as you're likely to find. Griffin is uncannily accurate in her depiction of that peculiarly Irish emotional paralysis we're all familiar with. * Sunday Independent * Pitch-perfect prose ... Moving and beautifully written, this is a wonderfully assured debut. * Mail on Sunday * A proper tear-jerker, but one that will ultimately leave you feeling hopeful * Grazia * A warm and wise treasure of a book with a character whose voice draws you in from the start * The I * A rich and moving story, a poetic voice and unforgettable character in Maurice * Elle * It's all beautifully done; a tale told in the plain but poetic prose of a man who recognises the tragic truths gleaned from a life of love and loss. A gem of a book * Sunday Express * This could be one of the big book hits of 2019 * Red Magazine * An atmospheric debut ... The most impressive aspects of this first novel are its rich, flowing prose, its convincing voice and its imaginative and clever structure ... Griffin is a welcome arrival to the literary scene * Irish Times * Griffin's strength is in voice and in the rhythm of her prose ... She is excellent at interrogating the complexity of Maurice's barriers * Irish Independent * A rich, fluid debut novel * The I Newspaper * A heartfelt and impressive debut novel * Sunday Business Post * Poetic and touching without being sentimental, When All Is Said by Anne Griffin is something special. * Good Housekeeping * An emotional yet uplifting novel - we defy you not to fall in love with Maurice Hannigan and his heart-warming story. * Woman's Weekly * Will stay with you long after you close the cover * Irish Mail on Sunday * Beautifully written, this is a feast of Irish storytelling * Choice * A powerful page-turner ... wonderfully poetic, atmospheric and moving. -- Dierdre O'Brien * Best * When All Is Said captures the texture of a night catching up with an old friend - the pleasures and comforts, the stories and surprises - one that you never want to end, and all the more bittersweet because you know, of course, that it must. -- Kathleen Rooney Maurice Hannigan is one of those rare and unforgettable characters whose lives we enter, inhabit for a time all too brief, and emerge from deeply changed. Anne Griffin is a writer with a bright, bright future. -- Janet Peery A warm and nourishing story from a writer of much promise. * RTE Guide * Griffin's debut is a beautiful and poignant page-turner. * Image Magazine * A fine literary debut from a writer I'm sure we'll hear more from * Mature Times * Superb ... incredibly moving without

Anne Griffin's first novel When All is Said was a Number One bestseller in Ireland in 2019 and chosen as the Sunday Independent Newcomer of the Year in the An Post Irish Book Awards. It was also shortlisted for the John McGahern Annual Book and the RSL Christopher Bland prizes. Her second novel Listening Still was also a bestseller in Ireland. Her work has been published in 23 territories. The Island of Longing is her third novel. She lives in Co. Westmeath, Ireland.