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The Ante-Room
It is the Eve of All Saints, 1880, and Teresa Mulqueen lies dying. Her family gathers round her, and beneath this sad scene another drama, no less poignant, unfolds. In this house of stillness and shadow, her daughter Agnes anxiously awaits the return of her sister Rose-Marie and brother-in-law Vincent. Agnes adores her sister, but secretly, passionately loves Vincent—and she knows their marriage is foundering. Ahead lies a terrible battle between her uncompromising religious faith and the intensity of her love.
277 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1934
6 people are currently reading
303 people want to read
About the author
Kate O'Brien
51 books55 followersKathleen Mary Louise "Kate" O'Brien, was an Irish novelist and playwright.
After the success of her play, Distinguished Villa in 1926, she took to full-time writing and was awarded the 1931 James Tait Black Prize for her novel Without My Cloak. She is best known for her 1934 novel The Ante-Room, her 1941 novel The Land of Spices and the 1946 novel That Lady. Many of her books dealt with issues of female sexuality — with several exploring gay/lesbian themes — and both Mary Lavelle and The Land of Spices were banned in Ireland. She also wrote travel books, or rather accounts of places and experiences, on both Ireland and Spain, a country she loved, and which features in a number of her novels. She lived much of her later life in England and died in Canterbury in 1974; she is buried in Faversham Cemetery.
The Glucksman Library at the University of Limerick currently holds a large collection of O'Brien's personal writings. In August 2005, Penguin reissued her final novel, As Music and Splendour (1958), which had been out of print for decades. The Kate O'Brien weekend, which takes place in Limerick, attracts a large number of people, both academic and non-academic.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
After the success of her play, Distinguished Villa in 1926, she took to full-time writing and was awarded the 1931 James Tait Black Prize for her novel Without My Cloak. She is best known for her 1934 novel The Ante-Room, her 1941 novel The Land of Spices and the 1946 novel That Lady. Many of her books dealt with issues of female sexuality — with several exploring gay/lesbian themes — and both Mary Lavelle and The Land of Spices were banned in Ireland. She also wrote travel books, or rather accounts of places and experiences, on both Ireland and Spain, a country she loved, and which features in a number of her novels. She lived much of her later life in England and died in Canterbury in 1974; she is buried in Faversham Cemetery.
The Glucksman Library at the University of Limerick currently holds a large collection of O'Brien's personal writings. In August 2005, Penguin reissued her final novel, As Music and Splendour (1958), which had been out of print for decades. The Kate O'Brien weekend, which takes place in Limerick, attracts a large number of people, both academic and non-academic.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
March 24, 2024
"What I told you - expectancy." He looked about him. "To-day is an ante-room," he said dreamily. "It's only this moment struck me, but that's what it is. That's what I feel."
A family at the brick of a sad, expected event that would change deeply their life. Watching them, we see how all of them were not as much living a full life, so far, as waiting in an ante-room of life. Waiting for what? They didn't know themself.
Perhaps our whole life we live in ante-rooms. Perhaps it isn't a bad thing. Perhaps we aren't capable to live in "the room".
An ante-room - well, perhaps to truth, or fate, or any of these useful abstracts. And she was all of them, entangled in their moonshine, making both sense and nonsense of their echoes.
Were they happy after the inevitable event (and after the second, shocking one)? Perhaps they found some kind of peace, but I am not sure about the happiness.
...let them be done with the soft food of dreaming.
Or, perhaps, let them/us dream...
PS The novel at a basic level was a simple story. Probably controversial at the time of publishing (but not today). The second, deeper level took me by surprise. [4.5 stars]
October 2, 2015
A grave and beautiful story.
Ireland,1880.
Teresa Mulqueen lies dying.
The house is filled with gloom but beneath all that unmarried Agnes is battling with her faith.
She adores her elder sister Marie- Rose but is secretly in love with her Husband Vincent.
Will Agnes be strong and what will happen as the book reaches its dramatic conclusion.
Utterly compelling, couldn't put the book down.
The first of hers I've read but will be looking out for more
Ireland,1880.
Teresa Mulqueen lies dying.
The house is filled with gloom but beneath all that unmarried Agnes is battling with her faith.
She adores her elder sister Marie- Rose but is secretly in love with her Husband Vincent.
Will Agnes be strong and what will happen as the book reaches its dramatic conclusion.
Utterly compelling, couldn't put the book down.
The first of hers I've read but will be looking out for more
March 2, 2021
This was a SLOG.
Why did I finish it? Short answer: because the author & I have the same name. (The long answer is not interesting.) And, about two-thirds of the way in, I realized I'd become invested: I actually wanted to know what happened! Well played, O'Brien. Well played.
There is SO MUCH here that's obnoxious to me, in particular O'Brien's tendency to tell (at length!) rather than show. How does a character feel? Behold, several dense paragraphs describing just that in verbose detail! As to the action--what action? SHE'S BUSY USING ALL THE WORDS. You'd think this would result in finely-drawn characters, but it doesn't. Agnes, the central character, is the most fully-rendered, but there's still an important detail I don't understand and never will. Most of the characters are unsympathetic and all of them need to be slapped (it's just a matter of how much).
OK so I have a lot of feelings.
tl;dr Very little action, lots of telling instead of showing, and frustrating characters, but I got sucked in regardless so it gets 2 stars. I'm eager to yell about this book with someone.
Why did I finish it? Short answer: because the author & I have the same name. (The long answer is not interesting.) And, about two-thirds of the way in, I realized I'd become invested: I actually wanted to know what happened! Well played, O'Brien. Well played.
There is SO MUCH here that's obnoxious to me, in particular O'Brien's tendency to tell (at length!) rather than show. How does a character feel? Behold, several dense paragraphs describing just that in verbose detail! As to the action--what action? SHE'S BUSY USING ALL THE WORDS. You'd think this would result in finely-drawn characters, but it doesn't. Agnes, the central character, is the most fully-rendered, but there's still an important detail I don't understand and never will. Most of the characters are unsympathetic and all of them need to be slapped (it's just a matter of how much).
OK so I have a lot of feelings.
tl;dr Very little action, lots of telling instead of showing, and frustrating characters, but I got sucked in regardless so it gets 2 stars. I'm eager to yell about this book with someone.
July 16, 2019
A well-to-do Irish Catholic family await their mother Teresa’s death, amid prayer and intrigue, as 25-year-old Agnes Mulqueen appeals to her faith to kill the burning passion she holds for her sister’s husband. Set in 1880, with Parnell’s power approaching its zenith, the book reflects in part on what would make a person of position and ability sacrifice everything for love. Despite the expertly invoked Roman Catholicism of the mise-en-scène, the eros at the heart of the novel feels distinctly Hellenic – love is an affliction from the Gods that neither party wants or can resist. There are satisfying Freudian undercurrents too, with men who want only to marry their mothers, husbands spurned for the love of sons, and the most sensual relationship in the novel existing between its two sisters. Written in the 1930s, a time when women’s lives were becoming further constrained by the theocracy that followed the promise of the revolutionary period, O’Brien poses questions about faith, family, love and sexuality vital to the new state, and still provocative today.
January 5, 2010
I enjoyed this novel of life in a Catholic Irish family in 1880. The mood is one of muted sadness as the mother's death is anticipated and awaited, and the various family members gather to pray for her. It is perhaps a surprising book for an Irish agnostic to have written, but it is convincing in its detail and characterisation for the most part and holds one's attention. I did not find it nearly so moving as her work "That Lady" however, but a good story well-told nevertheless.
January 10, 2011
The eponymous ante-room in question is a very small place, stifling and oppressive, filled with an array of not terribly likable people. This pleasant and comfortable Irish country house around All Saint's Day, 1880 is, in fact, "God's Waiting Room". While the Mulqueen family matriarch, Teresa, lies near death awaiting a visit from specialists brought in to consult on her advanced cancer, a black comedy of manners develops downstairs amongst her children. The nominal protagonist, Agnes, an attractive and capable young woman of twenty-five, has become the object of Teresa's physician's affections; William Curran is a young country doctor, equally capable and sensible, though somewhat cold. Agnes's pretty and trite "society" sister, Marie-Rose (constantly described as "conceited"), arrives from Dublin with her dashing husband, Vincent De Coursey O'Regan. Their relationship, however is strained: Vincent too, has become enamoured of Agnes, and Agnes would be only too ready to reciprocate, were it not for her incredibly deep sense of guilt over the pain a relationship with Vin would cause her sister. Their brother Reggie, an alcoholic and syphilitic ne'er-do-well, is unable to envision a future life without the protection and guidance of his mother; though the live-in day nurse, Miss Cunningham has a cure for that: she will marry Reggie in spite of his maladies, thereby securing herself a life of security if not love. The elder men of the house, Danny Mulqueen (their father), is beyond himself in grief, and Canon Considine, Teresa's brother, sequesters himself in private prayer. Oh they've each made ante-rooms of their own where together they wait alone.
I couldn't help thinking that on the other side of the door from this ante-room was that lovely Second-Empire sitting room that provided the setting for Sartre's Huis Clos.
An analogy could be drawn between The Ante-Room and John Banville's latest novel, The Infinites. We also have a country house in Ireland, with the family gathering to await the death of its leader: if only Agnes Mulqueen's god had come down off his cross and stirred up things the way Hermes did in The Infinites!
The Ante-Room ends, as promised: with a death, even if not the one so anticipated. I wish I could have enjoyed the novel more, and will give Kate O'Brien another look (her two subsequent novels were banned in Ireland when originally published for their overt references to lesbianism); hopefully the language will be less affected with High Victorian verbosity.
I couldn't help thinking that on the other side of the door from this ante-room was that lovely Second-Empire sitting room that provided the setting for Sartre's Huis Clos.
An analogy could be drawn between The Ante-Room and John Banville's latest novel, The Infinites. We also have a country house in Ireland, with the family gathering to await the death of its leader: if only Agnes Mulqueen's god had come down off his cross and stirred up things the way Hermes did in The Infinites!
The Ante-Room ends, as promised: with a death, even if not the one so anticipated. I wish I could have enjoyed the novel more, and will give Kate O'Brien another look (her two subsequent novels were banned in Ireland when originally published for their overt references to lesbianism); hopefully the language will be less affected with High Victorian verbosity.
April 12, 2020
I enjoyed this much more than the previous book of hers that Ive read.Agnes Mulqueen's mother is dying. Her sister and brother in law visit to be with her. But Agnes finds herself conflicted between her strong religious views and her equally strong desire for her brother in law. Over the course of 3 days Agnes' torment grows. Enjoyed this one.
Read
September 28, 20221934. O'Brien 1897-1974
Story set in 1880 in her own hometown of Limerick ['Mellick']
O'Brien is very heavy on the religious side of her characters. More so in this book than in Mary Lavelle. O'Brien is said to have turned agnostic herself, but it seems the Irish were still very much in thrall to the Catholic church and beliefs and customs in her day. It's a bit hard to imagine intelligent people took all that religious superstition seriously, but they must have done.
As to the religious content, this is similar enough to James Joyce [portrait of a young man], where religious faith plays such an unbelievably large role.
Many reflections in this book on marriage and love/passion, by both male and female characters.
Several of the characters come to life and of course each is different from all the others.
==================
After by chance reading Mary Lavelle, I was pleased to have discover yet another excellent author of the past who was previously unknown to me.
Found another of her works on my own shelf [also a Virago edition]: The Ante-room, with an Afterword [1988] by Deirdre Madden.
Came across an excellent Introduction [1999] by Clare Boylan included in the edition of 'The Land of Spices' on Google Books. Reflections on O'Brien's life and career, as well as discussion of the book itself, most of which is there for anyone to read online.
Virago has published:
Without My cloak 1931 [1st novel]
Mary Lavelle 1936
Farewell Spain 1937 [travel book]
The Land of Spices 1942
That Lady 1946
The Ante-Room 1934
The Last of Summer 1943
Story set in 1880 in her own hometown of Limerick ['Mellick']
O'Brien is very heavy on the religious side of her characters. More so in this book than in Mary Lavelle. O'Brien is said to have turned agnostic herself, but it seems the Irish were still very much in thrall to the Catholic church and beliefs and customs in her day. It's a bit hard to imagine intelligent people took all that religious superstition seriously, but they must have done.
As to the religious content, this is similar enough to James Joyce [portrait of a young man], where religious faith plays such an unbelievably large role.
Many reflections in this book on marriage and love/passion, by both male and female characters.
Several of the characters come to life and of course each is different from all the others.
==================
After by chance reading Mary Lavelle, I was pleased to have discover yet another excellent author of the past who was previously unknown to me.
Found another of her works on my own shelf [also a Virago edition]: The Ante-room, with an Afterword [1988] by Deirdre Madden.
Came across an excellent Introduction [1999] by Clare Boylan included in the edition of 'The Land of Spices' on Google Books. Reflections on O'Brien's life and career, as well as discussion of the book itself, most of which is there for anyone to read online.
Virago has published:
Without My cloak 1931 [1st novel]
Mary Lavelle 1936
Farewell Spain 1937 [travel book]
The Land of Spices 1942
That Lady 1946
The Ante-Room 1934
The Last of Summer 1943
November 5, 2020
God i love these Virago classics! So many great writers and books that i've not come across before.
So, i remember a Virginia Woolf quote that went something along the lines of the literary establishment decide one book is important because it deals with a war and another unimportant because it deals with the emotions of women in a drawing room. Virginia Woolf was argueing that a book about the emotions of women in a drawing room was just as valid as any other book.
I happen to agree with Virginia on that.
This book is all about the emotions of women (and men) in drawing rooms with added shame, guilt and stifled lives due to Irish Catholicism in 1880.
So the family matriarch lies dying. The rest of the family struggles to deal with it and also with their stifled, unexpressed by intense passions for life and each other.
The story takes place over the course of three days but the consequences will last a lifetime, more than a lifetime if you accept the Irish Catholic ideas about eternity which the characters do.
This would make an excellent, moody and miserable film if it was done right.
I will hunt down more work by this author now.
So, i remember a Virginia Woolf quote that went something along the lines of the literary establishment decide one book is important because it deals with a war and another unimportant because it deals with the emotions of women in a drawing room. Virginia Woolf was argueing that a book about the emotions of women in a drawing room was just as valid as any other book.
I happen to agree with Virginia on that.
This book is all about the emotions of women (and men) in drawing rooms with added shame, guilt and stifled lives due to Irish Catholicism in 1880.
So the family matriarch lies dying. The rest of the family struggles to deal with it and also with their stifled, unexpressed by intense passions for life and each other.
The story takes place over the course of three days but the consequences will last a lifetime, more than a lifetime if you accept the Irish Catholic ideas about eternity which the characters do.
This would make an excellent, moody and miserable film if it was done right.
I will hunt down more work by this author now.
October 1, 2017
I really liked her writing. She is eloquent and enlightening describing these characters emotions and why they are feeling them. Everyone in this novel is trapped by society and its conventions so no one feels they can do anything about their unhappiness except for the Nurse who seems quite two-faced but when you think about it has less options than the other characters and gives some respite from the agonising of everyone else. And that's why it only gets 3 stars because, even though it's so well-written, it is all a bit on one-note. Unhappy people describing why they're unhappy. But it doesn't outstay it's welcome. If it had been twice as long I would probably have hated it.
September 4, 2020
Another great Kate o Brien book . Set in Ireland in 1900s , story of a young Catholic woman , living at home with her mother , who is dying from cancer, her father , who is heartbroken at the thought of losing his wife, and her brother, who has been pampered all his life by his mother, esp now as he has been made ‘infirm’ by STD he contacted a few years ago. The action takes place over the mother’s final weekend alive. Wonderfully written , it portrays one again the catholic guilt versus sensuality and human feelings. Agonisingly insightful, it delves into the mind of the main character in the novel .
December 8, 2022
rather two stars and a half ..or not quiet 3
its hard to rate it...it is an easy read and familiar ..but my problem is that its not wholly convincing either as period piece or as an emotional struggle ..
those not familiar with the classics will not be able to spot that the setting is not believable
its not enough to keep noting.. this is the 1880s ..where not the dialogue or the interactions justify it
even the catholic theme.. this could easily be of its own period ( the 30s ) or even beyond ..
its a common issue with historical novels in general
its hard to rate it...it is an easy read and familiar ..but my problem is that its not wholly convincing either as period piece or as an emotional struggle ..
those not familiar with the classics will not be able to spot that the setting is not believable
its not enough to keep noting.. this is the 1880s ..where not the dialogue or the interactions justify it
even the catholic theme.. this could easily be of its own period ( the 30s ) or even beyond ..
its a common issue with historical novels in general
May 27, 2024
Another where a 3.5 would be more apt but I’m feeling generous. This relatively short read is like an Ibsen play in novel form, and for all that works pretty well in giving a bleak and realistic vision of the decline of the values of the 19th c. Some of the narrative elements are a little overly conventional (two deaths and a marriage at the end…) and perhaps a slightly more expanded study of character was needed in some parts.
February 12, 2026
Interesting book about an upper class family dynamics and relationships. Their mother is dying and the strong ruling Catholic way of death dictates all that is happening in their lives. All types of love are described in this book, and all sharped and ruled by Catholic doctrine. Parts of it I really enjoyed, but some was just dreary! Pleased I read it as it was written in 1934 so a very different world then.
October 12, 2021
TW's for this book: death, suicide, syphillis (idk if it's a trigger?), pretty catholic?
So, I'm like pretty danish so english is my second language and I don't really understand most of what the book said, reason for the rating, but I believe if I understood it I would like it more.
So, I'm like pretty danish so english is my second language and I don't really understand most of what the book said, reason for the rating, but I believe if I understood it I would like it more.
August 18, 2024
Lust and violence in a bourgeois Irish Catholic family. Its the Eve of All Saints, Ireland, 1880.
December 10, 2023
Absolutely marvellous how Kate O'Brien manages to convey the conflict between Catholicism and secular desires for human connection. Does a relationship with a higher power trump our real human need for love and connection especially when you consider that this higher power has given us this ability to connect with each other. O'Brien's love triangle set mainly in The Ante-Room hence the title, tackles these questions with nary a word wasted and an overarching sense of claustrophobia and suspense and what an ending! Superior, thought provoking writing.
October 31, 2016
A rather bleak story set in Catholic Ireland in the 1880s, but despite its gloom, it is incredibly readable and difficult to put down. However, if you only like happy endings, this is not the book for you! I found it fascinating in its exploration of illicit love and desire under the constraints of society and the Catholic faith, and set under the cloud of impending death. An excellent read.
December 23, 2010
the ending packs a savage punch...
Want to read
August 29, 2015I registered a book at BookCrossing.com!
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/12862643
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book-collection
June 30, 2017Irish Independent Great Irish Writers Series
February 19, 2016
Beautifully written, not as miserable as expected. Wonderful of-the-time language.
September 3, 2016
Crash course on Irish lit no. 1.
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews