Few and Far Between

by Jan Carson

From the award-winning author of The Raptures and The Fire Starters.

'A stunningly original novel... should further cement Carson's reputation as one of the most imaginative and talented Irish writers at work today' Roisín O’Donnell, author of Nesting

'A joy to read…No writer captures the absurdity and beauty of life quite like [Jan Carson] does' Sara Baume, author of Spill Simmer Falter Wither

‘Warm, sharp and gloriously funny, Jan Carson writes exuberant prose about difficult people in interesting times' Sarah Moss, author of Ripeness

‘Jan Carson's understanding of, and love for, complicated human people is unmatched in contemporary literature... her best book yet’ Heather Parry, author of Carrion Crowe
___

It’s summer 2017 and the last few residents of the Lough Neagh Archipelago are facing imminent eviction. The flood planned to combat a devastating algae outbreak will submerge their homes, forcing them back to the Mainland for the first time in fifty years.

Robert-John and Marion Connolly came to the islands as children in the 1970s, following their mercurial father, an anthropologist studying the unique society that had developed there. For many, the Neagh Archipelago represented a utopia, a chance to be free of the prejudices and history of Troubles era Northern Ireland. But perhaps this utopia wasn’t all that it seemed.

Marion and Robert-John have grown accustomed to their haunted existence on the Ark, monitoring the mysterious Far Side, where ghostly figures linger and the land swallows secrets whole. How will they cope with a new life on the Mainland? Is it possible to leave the past behind? And will the Ark ever let them go...

_____


Praise for Jan

'Jan Carson is a born her work is so imaginative, whimsical, mischievous and brave, but tender and curious too — you never know where she's going to take you next, so reading her is always an adventure.' Lisa McInerney, author of The Glorious Heresies

'Jan Carson is a unique and very special writer, one of the greatest of the modern fabulists' Donal Ryan, author of Heart be at Peace

'[The Fire Starters] blew me away with its power, anger and wit' Joseph O'Connor, Books of the Year

'One of the most exciting and original Northern Irish writers of her generation.' Sunday Times

'Absolutely magnificent: dark, witty, charming' Marian Keyes, author of My Favourite Mistake

'Heart-rending, hilarious . . . It's a belter.' Louise Kennedy, author of Trespasses

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Ireland, Literary Fiction, Magical Realism, Irish Literature, Speculative Fiction

370 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 9, 2026

About the author

Jan Carson is a writer and community arts development officer currently based in Belfast, Northern Ireland. She has a BA in English Literature from Queen’s University Belfast and an MLitt. In Theology and Contemporary Culture from St. Andrew’s University, Scotland. Jan has had short stories published in literary journals on both sides of the Atlantic, has had two of her plays produced for the Belfast stage and is a current recipient of the Arts Council NI’s Artist’s Career Enhancement Bursary. Her first novel, “Malcolm Orange Disappears” will be published by Liberties Press, Dublin on June 2nd 2014.

Reviews

[theliterateleprechaun · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐ (rounded to 4)

For those wanting a unique speculative fiction story exploring Northern Ireland, a politician’s grandiose proposal, and a superbly crafted setting and sibling duo, this is one you’ll not want to miss.

Jan Carson’s story stands out for her ability to craft vivid characters, imagine a ‘what if’ setting and bring it alive for her characters. She spotlights family drama and the legacy of trauma in a wonderful format that pulls readers in and out of the story, giving them the scaffolding they need to continue.

I’ll remember this book for (1) an armchair trip back to my hometown and (2) characters who were ‘stuck’. Marion and Robert-John are stuck on The Ark; stuck between their past and their future. Leaving is never as easy as helpful bystanders suggest, and their predicament and reliance on securing preservation status will tug at readers’ emotions.

I was gifted this copy and was under no obligation to provide a review.

[Gráinne · Rating 4 out of 5]

no one writes a good sympathetic weirdo better than my girl jan!!!!

[Iman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Now I’m craving some chunky KitKats …

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really loved this. Jan Carson’s writing is so beautiful and visceral and this book is no different. A pure joy to read.

[Hilary Mcfaul · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don’t think I’ve ever read a book quite like this one! Jan Carson is a writing genius. She uses magical realism, northern Irish culture and sharp wit (and a fair wee bit of Ulster Scots language) to craft a totally unique perspective on the troubles.

We meet Marion and her brother Robert-John on the islands of Lough Neagh. The dual timeline gives us present day and back story to their lives and the toxic influences forced on them by family/community/society.

We meet Alex, a previous resident on the islands who has come back to find out the truth about life there for her book.

There is the threat of a planned flood to rid the lough of blue-green algae and force the residents to the mainland.

The metaphors of this book are so powerful, dealing with the impact of trauma (sleepers/almost dead’s) and the threads of hope.
As someone living in Northern Ireland through the troubles this has resonated with me strongly but I don’t think you need that personal connection to thoroughly enjoy this book!

Thanks to Doubleday books for my physical advanced copy and netgalley for my e arc! I don’t think there has been a book I have wanted an arc of as badly as this one!

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

The internet women are forever having epiphanies: nine times out of ten it’s about making courgette spaghetti or tucking your shirt into your knickers so it’s still hanging out at the back. They make videos about it!

In Jan Carson’s Few and Far Between, this sharp, dry "wise-up" serves as more than just a comedic jab at influencer culture; it is the mission statement for the entire novel.

There is a delicious irony in Carson, a master of magical realism, calling out the superficiality of the digital age. While the internet attempts to manufacture epiphanies out of mundane domestic hacks, Carson uses the surreal to get at the actual, heavy truth of lived experience.

It is 2017, and ageing siblings Robert-John and Marion Connolly are among the last residents of a purely fictional archipelago of islands in Lough Neagh. For those less familiar with Irish geography, the Lough is a very real, large body of freshwater which Carson helpfully describes as either the hole in the doughnut of Ulster or the cyclops eye of Ireland. In this story, the NI Executive plans to raise water levels to wash away a toxic algae bloom, a move that will submerge the islands and force the siblings to finally confront fifty years of history.

Marion is a warm, caring soul, while her older brother, Robert-John, is a reserved man with few endearing traits beyond a predilection for furtively gorging on Chunky Kit Kat bars. Their link to the modern world is their sister, Rosemarie, who lives a much more "normal" life on the mainland. While she peeves Robert-John, she is Marion’s link to technology and the world of social media.

The surrounding islands host a strange and mythical array of residents, from tree-dwelling rabbits to a hermit-like artist, Sandra, who has insulated herself from all contact with the world.

I listened to this on Audible, and hearing the story narrated in Carson’s own Antrim accent was a revelation. It transported me back to my own early childhood in Antrim Town, sparking a flood of memories I’ve since begun to jot down, perhaps the seeds of my own anthology of growing up during the Troubles.

Carson’s use of magical realism is a brilliant vessel for exploring the psychological impact of our history. Initially, I found myself disliking Robert-John, but by the end, I realised I would miss his inner monologue. His evolution is a highlight: he chooses to leave behind the trauma of an abusive father and resists the pressure to engage in soul-sharing activities like the "Men’s Shed" initiative that Rosemarie believes could help him. He sees that building bird boxes is superfluous in a county full of trees, and he deserves credit for refusing to spend his days "making shit out of wood" just to satisfy a social script.

Rather than providing a literal history, Carson creates haunting metaphors for the province's collective trauma: the traumatised sleepers locked away in hospital wards and the suicide ghosts of Tom’s Hard. These surreal images allow her to examine the layers of experience we’ve navigated, acknowledging the "effluent" of the past that like toxic blue-green algae still occasionally pollutes our present, particularly when leadership from Stormont has been so noticeably absent.

Yet, there is a hopeful undercurrent here. On the whole, Ulster folk are a grounded lot who have always found joy in the gaps between the headlines. In recent decades, the peace process has encouraged a more fulfilling type of co-existence with those we share this weirdly unique place with, allowing us to move beyond the shadows of the past. Through characters like Robert-John and Marion, Carson shows the messy, necessary work of this transition. Perhaps Robert-John will eventually forgo the comfort of those Chunky Kit Kats as he opens up to real relationships, but until then, long live the Chunky Kit Kat (I’m rather partial to them myself!).

This is a five-star read that manages to be hilariously biting while celebrating the resilient and down-to-earth nature of people in this province.

[Claire · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jan Carson always finds the most interesting ways to write about Northern Ireland, drawing you in with some magic realism to shine a light on key issues. In this book the focus is on a group of small islands on Lough Neagh that were an essential refuge for people in mixed marriages, LGBT folk in need of a safe place during ‘The Troubles’, also one that has a more disturbing legacy of suicide. It is also a family drama seen through the main protagonists, siblings Robert-John and Marion, who is the emotional heart of the book. We wait a long time for Marion to find joy which makes it all the sweeter when she does, through friendship and Whitney Houston. The islands felt so real, I could almost believe that it was true. A wonderfully written absorbing book that will get you considering ecology and what is important in life, especially, a happy life in a place, where:
'You're not supposed to swell into a compliment. You're meant to take the air out of it.'

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such a unique book and I really enjoyed it! This was a character driven, slower story that was beautifully written. I love when a location feels like a character itself, and this was definitely the case with this story. I absolutely loved reading everything about the islands and the water and just the entire setting felt so unique and fascinating. These characters were quirky and just so endearing, I wanted to squeeze them so many times during their lives. The women who were half asleep were so intriguing and heart breaking and a perfect touch to the story and atmosphere. I just don't really have the words to describe it, other than unlike anything I've read before!

Note: I adored the audiobook, it was soothing and felt like a good friend was telling me the story.

Thanks to the publisher for a free copy; my thoughts and review are my own.

[Niamh Mcmahon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this novel. I love the way Jan Carson casually includes a touch of the supernatural and makes it appear ordinary and everyday. Marian and Robert John were extremely well written and developed characters. An enjoyable and touching read from start to finish.

[Rory McG · Rating 4 out of 5]

Might be my favourite of Jan's books so far

[Katie Steele · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thoroughly enjoyed this book. Great sense of place, strong characters and just an undercurrent of magic which added to the story and at times had you unsure what was real and what invented. Highly readable and absorbing

[Emma Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Few and Far Between by Jan Carson is a wonderfully imaginative novel that blends alternative history, family drama, and the lingering shadows of the past.

The story centres on siblings Marion and Robert-John Connolly, who have spent most of their lives on a strange cluster of islands in Lough Neagh known as “The Ark.” The islands were once imagined as a kind of refuge during the years of conflict in Northern Ireland, a place where people might escape the divisions and violence of the Troubles. But as the novel opens in 2017, the last residents of the archipelago are being forced to leave, as the government plans to flood the islands due to a worsening environmental crisis.

What begins as a story about the potential loss of a home gradually becomes something much deeper. Carson explores the way places hold memory, and how communities shaped by trauma often struggle to move forward.

One of the things I loved most about this novel was the atmosphere. The islands feel almost mythical: eerie, beautiful, and slightly unsettling. Carson blends humour with melancholy in a way that feels very true to life, creating moments that are both quietly funny and deeply reflective.

I really loved the writing style. Carson’s prose is warm and witty, and she can create characters who feel both strange and deeply human. The story balances political history and intimate family dynamics in a way that feels both ambitious and very personal.

Pick this book up if you’re looking for something thoughtful, charming, and creative.

[Stephanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

If the pending proposal to open the dams to sweep away the toxic blooms of blue-green algae that are devastating Lough Neagh, the largest lake in the British Isles, is approved, the resulting Flood will submerge the archipelago (“the Ark”) and make it uninhabitable. Marian and her brother Robert-John Connolly are hopeful that the academic who is visiting their Isle of Small Flat will write about the Ark in such glowing terms that influential people will grant it protected heritage status. In this alternative history, the Ark was created in 1963 when the then Prime Minister of Northern Ireland passed legislation which was intended to address an employment crisis by providing construction jobs and housing desperately needed in Ulster. When the Troubles began in earnest in 1969, the Ark became a sanctuary for the persecuted, including Catholic-Protestant couples, people of color, and LGBTQ+ people, such as Sandra French, a trans artist who is another of the few people remaining on the Ark. The residents embraced acceptance, tolerance, and diversity, but when the Peace Process was ratified in 1998, most of the residents returned to the Mainland, and records list the islands as uninhabited.

As children, Marian, Robert-John and their elder sister Rosemary moved to the Ark in 1972 with their parents, RJ and Ursula, a German refugee who does her best to push her children into the world. RJ, was an eminent and charismatic anthropologist, but a philanderer and an abusive tyrant at home, who wrote extensively about life on the Ark, his work forming the basis for several contemporary studies of modern utopias. The Connolly family were paid caretakers, running errands for the Ark’s residents, maintaining the inhabited islands, and monitoring activity on the Far Side (“it’s not very nice over there”). RJ remained on Small Flat until his death in 1997. The outgoing Rosemary moved to the mainland and raised a family, but Marian and Robert-John remained on Small Flat without a landline, without television (because Robert-John blames the advent of television for the moral decline of society), and with a cellphone that submissive Marian hides from her brother because he would have a “conniption if he knew there was a mobile on Small.” The phone gives Marian access to the internet where she is “overwhelmed by sheer enormity of things she should, but doesn’t, know.”

The “man” who the Connolly’s hope will save their home is actually a woman, Dr. Alex Anderson, who had lived on the Ark as a child and was one of Marian’s students from 1987 to 1991. Those years on the Ark and her reverence for RJ created a lifetime love of anthropology and a desire to understand the Ark’s role in Ireland’s recent troubled history. Alex at thirty-five recognizes that she is not the bright young thing in her field as she watched the best opportunities go to her male colleagues. She is hoping that the Ark research will kick-start her career and provide her with a tenured position, but she has no expectations that she can save the Ark although she learns from a scientist conducting research on the Ark that the drainage scheme will not permanently eradicate the algae. Although Alex may not have an impact on saving the Ark, she does influence Marian who engages in small acts of rebellion, like having a girls’ night with Alex where she mocks her brother’s misery, declines to make him lunch, and purchases a Wild Jasmine bra which “takes ten years off her sagging breasts,” but declines lipstick as it “might be a step too far.”

Carson’s scarred characters are beautifully rendered, their dialogue and interior monologues are perfection. The Ark’s mysterious islands are crafted in precise detail. Church Flat is a notable ghoulish site where the “Almost Deads,” zombie-like figures who sustained a life-threatening injury reside until they either recover or ceased to exist. Eglish Flat is a repository for garbage, including computers, old trophies, and weapons, but the buried things are starting to reappear. Tom’s Hard, which Marian patrols daily, is the site of dozens of suicides. “Sleepers,” primarily women comatose with grief and suffering from “resignation syndrome”, are transported from the mainland to Middle Flat where they are tended to by a team of nurses who clean, feed, and turn them “slowly from one side to the other like pork sausages under the grill.” Thank you Scribner and Net Galley for an advance copy of this is absorbing and complex story of family and societal trauma.

[Courtney Johnston]

Bit of a book catch-up. Three novels that could all be classed as cli-fi if you threw a loose ring around them: politics meets environmental collapse meets social tensions. Two that have ambitious reach (too ambitious, IMHO, to be sustained right to the end) and one that’s beautifully paced and really delivers.

Jan Carson’s “Few and Far Between” counterfactual drama beaches off from a real moment in recent Irish history, a 1950s proposal to semi-drain Lough Neagh, an enormous fresh water lake, and populate the islands that would arise from it. In Carson’s novel, the project proceeded and the resulting archipelago became a somewhat utopian location, a safe space amongst the Troubles, where families formed from mixed marriages, gay couples, a transgender woman, and others who would be imperiled in mainstream society can live undisturbed.

The book centres on Robert-John and Marion Connolly, the children of a famous Irish anthropologist, who brought his young family to “the Ark” in the 1970s to study this unique community.

We travel back over the history of the small community but the book is set in 2017, when the community has depleted, algal bloom has overrun the Lough, and plans are in place to reflood it to “restore” the environment.

The Ark is full of mysteries and with the help of a young post-doc student who is visiting to research a book on the sibling’s father we explore them — the island that has become a mecca for suicides, the island that houses women from the mainland who have been overwhelmed by trauma and fallen into sleep that they don’t awake from, the island that swallows all the detritus and secrets that people leave there, the island where the maybe-dead hover until they recover or pass through.

The setting is extraordinary. The characters though don’t quite hold it up and the insertion of the researcher who uncovers and explains and documents everything for us becomes laboured. Reviewers describe it as funny — I found it terribly sad in parts, but flat in the end.

Australian writer Keely Jobe’s first novel “The Endling” likewise takes a massive swing with setting and plot, but peters out at the end. Another isolated community — this time a woman-only commune on a mountaintop in the Australian outback — is slowly failing in the 1990s, riven by ideological differences and dwindling numbers. On the other edge even of this isolated community live Frank and her dog Chicken Midnight (a gorgeously drawn relationship) — Frank’s health is failing and her cranky dependence on her niece Mila who lives in the main community is growing. Further even from Frank is a deep gully with its own subclimate, in which the sole remaining representative of a species of orchid sends its biological messages out into the world, patiently waiting for a response.

Tensions in the community are brought to their head when all the women bar Frank mysteriously fall pregnant. The book wavered for me at about the three-quarter point, and the magical realism ending didn’t do it for me. The vivid, bodily writing is a joy though and the presentation of the human body as an animal surrounded by other animals and plants in the outback environment — perceptions, desires, physicalities — is terrific.

John Lanchester is one of my discoveries of 2026. “The Wall” is the sparsest of these three books — in background detail and in style. In a slightly future Britain, post “the Change”, an enormous wall barriers the mainland from the sea. Young citizens are required to spend two-year stints as Defenders on the wall, watching for and dealing to incursions by the Others — climate refugees. Should a group of Others manage to penetrate the defences, the punishment is that an equal-sized group of Defenders will be put to sea, cast out to become Others themselves.

The Wall is about the anger younger generations feel towards their elders who fucked the world up and left them to carry the can.

It’s about cold, fear, boredom, repetition, hierarchy, physical endurance and what a human can adjust to.

And it’s about what happens when the worst happens (which is where spoilers live). The book could not be more different than Lanchester’s revenge thriller “Look What You Made Me Do” which came out this year, but it’s equally gripping.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jan Carson! What a brilliant author and what a stunning creation is her new novel Few and Far Between.  For the past few days I have been totally absorbed by this counterfactual story of a utopia that wasn't.  Sorting out what's true and what's not ceases to be of any importance as the story takes hold.

There really is a very large freshwater lake called Lough Neagh in Northern Ireland and there really are small islands, and sadly, it really is beset by algal blooms.  But Carson's counterfactual plays with a 1970s politician's proposal to drain it and build developments on the archipelago that emerged.  A BBC article says that this proposal is true too.)  In the novel these islands were touted as a utopia for refugees from The Troubles, i.e. the 30-year Civil War that made life hell in Northern Ireland.  On the islands of the 'Ark', there was no religion, and people were free to marry and socialise and work across the sectarian divide.  Now however, with EU funding disappearing in the wake of Brexit and a (dubious) plan to flush away a toxic algal bloom by flooding the lake, the remnant population will have to relocate to the mainland.

The narration consists of deadpan comic delivery that reveals the pathetic lives of those still living on 'the Ark'.   There is also text that purports to be an anthropology of the island authored by a young academic called Alex Alexander.  This text looks authoritative (i.e. true, real) because it has footnotes, but the playful style (sometimes mocking, sometimes jocular) alerts the reader to be wary.  Alex is ambitious: hoping to make a name as a celebrity anthropologist, following on from the late RJ Connolly, who was the face of the utopia on The Ark.  He was father to the two remaining residents on Big Flat, Marion and Robert-John, both in late middle-age and both marooned on the Ark because they lack the interpersonal skills and habits to get by on the mainland.

It's a dark story, but it's laced with wit and humour which leavens the poignant history of these siblings.   It's not a pity party.

This is how the book begins:

The man is coming.Everything depends on him.  If he writes the Ark in glowing terms, it might yet survive the Flood.

Marion is way ahead of herself.  She has the man's book written and published.  Popular opinion set aside.  The Ark some kind of heritage site; its existence enshrined in law.  She and Robert-John granted leave to remain.  Indefinitely ever after.  (Happily is too big of an ask.)

Marion's not an optimist, but she's grown accustomed to putting a degree of spin on whatever life pitches at her.

Robert-John's a pessimist.  He's been pissing on his own parade since '63 or thereabouts. '(p.1)

Robert-John doesn't like strangers, but he's willing to tolerate the man who sent them a proposal to write about the Ark if it can stave off the Flood.  Marion is hoping that the man will document a utopia with heritage value.

'If the man writes that we had a utopia, folk will wish that they had grown up here.  They won't want to see it washed away.

They both fall silent, considering what should be shared with the man and what should be kept to themselves.

The man is coming, day after tomorrow.

There is much to be done before he arrives.  Much to be hidden and tucked away. (p.3)

Robert-John, taking charge (because he has taken on more of his toxic father's values than he realises), gets his comeuppance when 'Alex' turns out to be an attractive young woman. But though their reasons are different, the siblings agree about deflecting Alex's attention from the islands known collectively as The Far Side...

To read the rest of my review please visit https://anzlitlovers.com/2026/05/28/f...

[Becky Wallace · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.75 ⭐️

Thank you to @doubledayukbooks for this proof copy.
 
This was an interesting story. I was pleasantly surprised at how quickly I was sucked in.
 
Imagine if the Lough Neagh was drained, revealing hidden islands beneath the surface. These islands became the homes for those wanting to escape the conflict in Ireland. People built communities free from labels, prejudice and judgement. A safe haven where life was simple and everyone was happy. Or so it seemed!

But then there was a toxic algae outbreak, which will eventually make the islands uninhabitable.
In response to this the government announce a forced flooding of the Lough to help combat the outbreak. Meaning the the islanders are left with no choice but to leave their homes.
Gradually, after more than fifty years, people are forced to return to the mainland. To some this wasn’t a problem but to others this was very scary.
Some people refused to leave. Bound to the islands with secrets and decided to live in complete isolation - until they had no other choice.
 
This premise is compelling, but what really pulled me in was the Connolly family. Such a complex, multi layered and troubled set of characters. I loved how there were chapters peppered through the book going back in time, gradually building a fuller picture of who the Connolly’s were and how they came to live on the islands. Then Alex enters their lives and everything shifts. I loved this.
 
I found the environmental thread and learning about the outbreak interesting, it added another level to the story. But for me, it was the characters that made this story shine.

Carson is a brilliant storyteller. She expertly brought the islands to life but she also blurred the lines between reality and the surreal, which added an eerie feel.
 
With the vivid descriptions of the islands and the complicated characters there was a constant feeling of unease and tension throughout, but there was also some very moving aspects which made for a very intriguing family drama.
 
I enjoyed this read. Slightly different for me but It reminded me it’s always worth stepping outside my comfort zone.

[Catherine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Few and Far Between was one of those rare books that kept me turning pages long after I should have gone to sleep. For me, that's the hallmark of a truly exceptional read, and Jan Carson delivered exactly that.

One of my favorite aspects of the novel was its slightly skewed version of reality. At first, everything seemed perfectly ordinary, and it took me a moment to realize that certain details didn't quite align with the world as we know it. Rather than feeling jarring, these subtle departures from reality enriched the story and gave it a unique atmosphere. I was completly transported to the remote group of islands in the middle of a Northern Ireland lake. The novel reminded me somewhat of Emily St. John Mandel's work in the way it presents a world that feels familiar yet subtly altered, allowing deeper themes to emerge naturally from an unusual premise.

I also loved the book-within-a-book element. The inclusion of a nonfiction account of the islands in Lough Neagh added another layer to the narrative and made the world feel even more real and lived-in. It was a clever device that deepened my investment in both the place and its history. I wasn't sure if Lough Neagh was real so I did a little research and found that is does exist in Northern Ireland and it has recently been dealing with toxic algal blooms, just like in the book.

The characters were equally compelling. I became deeply invested in Marion, Robert-John, Alex, and Sandra, each of whom experiences meaningful growth over the course of the novel. Their individual journeys felt authentic and emotionally satisfying, and I found myself caring about what happened to all of them.

The pacing was excellent, and the novel felt exactly the right length. Nothing seemed rushed, yet the story never overstayed its welcome. The ending was especially satisfying. I even found myself tearing up a little as I reached the final pages.

This was my first book by Jan Carson, but it won't be my last. Few and Far Between has made me eager to explore her earlier novels, and I look forward to seeing what other worlds she has created.

[Jen G · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first Jan Carson book. 3.5 stars rounded up.

Set in Northern Ireland, this book is a blend of family drama and speculative fiction. In this version of history, the Lough Neagh (the largest lake in Ireland), was partially drained in the mid-20th century to create a series of islands known as "the Ark". These islands served as refugia for those fleeing the Troubles, or who otherwise didn't fit in on the Mainland.

Anthropologist RJ Connelly brings his young family - his German wife Ursula and three children, Rosemary, Marion, and Robert-John Jr - to the Ark in the 1970s and raises his family there. Rosemary leaves the Ark for the Mainland, but Marion and her (likely autistic) brother remain on the islands to the present-day, where we meet them in their fifties and serving as caretakers for the Ark islands. The Ark is now reduced to a slim number of permanent residents, but hosts a population of transients in various stages of dying, with names like Almost-Deads and Sleepers (this is where the speculative fiction comes into play). The Lough is polluted with agricultural runoff and overgrown with algal blooms, and the government has decided to flood the Ark to wash away the algae. An ambitious young academic who grew up on the Ark, Alex, comes to stay with Marion and Robert-John, in hopes of writing a book about the family patriarch that will land her a permanent university position.

The book alternates between the Ark of the present-day and the 1970s. Readers slowly piece together the true story of the Connelly family. Marion, in particular, is a sympathetic character who readers will root for.

Overall, a good read, I enjoyed the creative setting and alternative history, and I learned a bit about Northern Ireland history and geography. The climax scenes felt a bit over the top, but the first 2/3 was a solid 4 stars.

Thanks to Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for the eARC.

[The Speculative Shelf · Rating 5 out of 5]

A brilliant alternate history and a cracking read. An archipelago of small islands emerges from the depths after a local politician’s gambit to drain the largest lough in Northern Ireland in order to create more habitable space for those seeking sanctuary during the Troubles. The drainage scheme never got off the ground, but Jan Carson explores what might have happened if it had.

There’s such intriguing lore surrounding The Ark, this archipelago of islands. Each island has a unique flavor and distinct inhabitants—some grounded and wholly human, others suspended between worlds, ghostly apparitions caught between life and death. There’s an air of mystery among the residents, especially our sibling protagonists, Marion and Robert-John, who call The Ark home.

Carson paints a vivid picture of the setting and her characters, plumbing the depths of their psyches and the collective traumas that shape them. Marion and Robert-John are suspended in a state of arrested development. They can’t escape their past while they remain on The Ark, yet they can’t leave The Ark because they remain firmly tethered to that past. A rising tide will force their hand.

I had such a wonderful time with this novel. Between the dry humor, the family drama, and the unique island setting, Carson hits all the right notes.

My thanks to the publisher and Edelweiss for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

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[Janereads10 · Rating 4 out of 5]

A somber, atmospheric novel that moved me more than I expected.

Carson built the atmosphere from the first page, the loch setting the tone immediately — dark, isolated, and promising something I needed to see through. Being taken into Small Flats during the character's boating drive through each island was unlike anything I'd read. Each island felt distinct, some dark and sad, but it was the underlying tone that jumped off the page. Each one represented humanity at its darkest.

The siblings and the academic were all complex characters. The siblings seemed to be hiding something, putting up a face, while the academic was bound to uncover secrets that were meant to stay buried. Uncovering the past and understanding why the siblings acted the way they did was one of my favorite parts of the novel.

This was a story about memory — how easy it is to remember things fondly when we've only ever seen one facet of them. Others hold a different view, a different truth. It also explored the conservation of nature in a way that stayed with me. The loch was under pressure to be flooded, leaving those who called it home with nothing. Instead of saving something, we tend to end it and start something new.

Carson narrated her own audiobook and her authentic accent gave the story an added layer of intimacy. The same emotions she put on the page came through in her voice.

Fans of books with themes of isolated communities, environmental dread, and surreal family secrets will find a lot here.

Thank you, Scribner and Simon & Schuster Audio, for my advance review copies. All opinions are my own.

[Amber · Rating 4 out of 5]

**This was an ARC through Goodreads, but my opinions are my own. I do thank the author and publisher for the opportunity to read this book.**

Very good read.

Characters are pretty well developed. Each having a distinct voice, they are flawed and "real" feeling. You have conflicts on multiple levels (internal, between characters, between the environment and between "the powers that be".

Atmosphere and setting are well done. There is a slightly creepy vibe at times, others depressed, resigned, slightly hopeful; there is an ebb and flow that goes with the story and is demonstrated well in the atmosphere and setting.

Writing style was successful with the story. You have multi-timelines, some strange things happening here and quite a few characters to keep up with, but it is well done.

Novel is well plotted and cohesive. You move through the story rhythmically, with little pieces of information being revealed slowly. I personally found the pacing a bit slow in places, but I understand the reasons for that, and it was well written.

It does keep your interest. Chapters are at a good length to keep you moving through pretty steady. Information is revealed at a pretty good rate to keep propelling you forward.

Logic is appropriate to the world in which the story takes place.

It was an enjoyable read. It is not a "light" read, and as pointed out previously, the pacing can be slow at times (while not sluggish) but with reason, and I think the payoff is worth it.

[Janine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Speculative fiction rewriting the history of the Northern Ireland Lough Neagh if the government had been allowed to drain it and create an archipelago called The Ark (this idea occurred around 1958) to become a utopian refuge for people during the times called The Troubles

The Ark has been created but a new government wants to take it back and reflood it to kill the algae. Brother and sister Marion and Robert-John Connelly, both unmarried, have lived in the Ark since its inception and among some of the last still living there. Their father, RJ, an anthropologist, brings his family back to Northern Ireland from war-torn Biafra, to a safer place and where he can still do his studies. When the Ark was created it became a haven for those judged and condemned by the mainlanders. When the family moves into the old parochial home, RJ assumes a central role in the life of the Ark. once the Peace Pact occurs, many of the people in the Ark leave for the mainland. Now with the government threatening to reflood the Ark, the Connelly’s hope is on Alex who says he’s come to study the islands and write about it when Alex’s sole purpose is to invigorate his stagnant career. The Connelly’s believe the book may help reconsider its decision.

The islands all have names: Big Flat, Small Flat, English Flat, for example. One island attracts suicides. There are the Sleepers and the Almost-Dead. The book has a series of chapters that give the history of the Ark, the reason the Connelly children are secretive about RJ and why they are reluctant to leave.

This is a story about flawed families and love shown through the simple things of daily living.

My thanks to NetGalley and Scribner for allowing me to read this ARC.

[Susan Ballard (subakkabookstuff) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of those literary reads that would make a great book club pick, so much to unpack here, or discuss.

A unique read that presents an alternate history of the creation of the Ark (an archipelago) in Northern Ireland. It was created by draining the Lough Neagh, Ireland’s largest lake. It was a refuge for many during the political unrest of The Troubles, until an ecological issue threatens it all.

The story is not just about this speculative place, although the whole idea opens up discussion of topics such as ecology, memories, and politics. Yet, the story was central to the people; the Connolly family, especially siblings Marion and Robert-John.

Whereas at times I felt a little lost trying to understand some of the Irish vernacular and the pace slowed, Carson’s vivid storytelling and use of dark humor warmed me up to these quirky characters. The touch of magical realism adds another layer for you to dissect or just enjoy. The narrative cleverly uses metaphors and other devices to examine trauma, toxicity, and memories, and how they can “pollute” our present.

🎧 The author narrates the audiobook, and it allows you to be completely immersed in the story. She has a lovely Irish accent, and it swept me away to Northern Ireland. A perfect complement to the physical book.


Thank you | gifted | @scibnerbooks @simon.audiobooks @librofm

[Jamad · Rating 3 out of 5]

A curious, slightly elusive novel built around an alternative version of Lough Neagh and the archipelago that emerges when it is drained.

The story follows Marion and Robert-John, siblings who grew up on the Ark — a loose, makeshift community that became a kind of refuge during the Troubles. Decades later, they remain among the last inhabitants, looking back on their childhood and the complicated legacy of their father, while the outside world edges closer and the future of the islands becomes uncertain.

Carson moves between past and present, blending the everyday with moments that tilt towards the surreal. The Ark itself has a slightly dreamlike quality, a place shaped as much by belief and memory as by geography. The novel circles around questions of refuge, belonging, and what it means to step away from the wider world, particularly in the shadow of Northern Ireland’s history.

It’s an interesting and distinctive book. I enjoyed reading it, though I never quite felt fully drawn in by it.

Two and a half rounded up

[Craig McCullough · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks to NetGalley for the advance copy.

I have been a fan of Jan Carson for many years, actually growing up knowing her family quite closely. While I have grown accustomed to her magic realism style, while I was reading this book it definitely had less of this that her previous books, but did that make it any less worth reading? Not in the slightest. Being a Northern Ireland native and living less that 10 minutes from the setting of the book, it is written is such a beautiful, poetic way that truly encapsulates the Northern Irish spirit, colloquialisms and all. Jan states in her acknowledgements that it was " the longest, slowest, most taxing novel I've ever written..." but I can say it was worth every second. I'm far from a literary scholar, but honestly, Few And Far Between is easily the best book I've read in many years and is definitely the best thing I've read from Jan Carson, and that quite the achievement given how much I loved her last novel The Raptures.

[Joy]

It took me a long time to get thru this. It was ok? It’s definitely an elaborate setting. I suspect there is some imagery that went over my head because I’m only so literary.
This was a true Northern Irish story. I think it would be hard for people who aren’t close to modern Irish history to fully appreciate this who story line. I doubt it would have broad appeal.
I found the pacing to be slow. I also realized that at the end, everyone’s stories “blew up” and the popular charismatic leader was finally realized to be a philandering, disingenuous abuser. And all the people (family members) who had structured their whole lives around his ideas suddenly wondered what they had spent their lives on. (And the one son finally feels like he’s free.) I believe the Ark was being flooded right at the time of tbd Good Friday Accords, so there was a lot of parallel imagery there — in terms of the world and social culture as everyone knew it to be suddenly washed away.

[Katerina Karavapori · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't know what runs in the water on the emerald island, but if we keep getting these kinds of literally gems, I'm here for it! Jan Carson is a very established writer and this book is no exception. She is a brilliant storyteller and I massively enjoyed this alternate version of history, the sardonic, dry sense of humour that seeps through the pages, the family drama.

This is a story that's immersive, intriguing, thought-provoking, a bit mind-bending, with complex characters and I can't say I was able to predict which way it was going, and the writing/prose is smooth and skilful. I think, if you are familiar with Jan Carson and her writing, you are in for a treat!

Thank you to Jan Carson, Random House UK, Transworld Publishers | Doubleday and NetGalley for this review copy, all opinions are my own.

[Linda Murray · Rating 4 out of 5]

Call me an idiot, but I spent the first third of this book getting confused and frustrated with the pseudo-official reporting of Stormont ( NI parliament) actually planning and organising this archipelago of odd bods in the middle of Lough Neagh. I mean, what? Really??!! Only when then talking to a friend did she convince me to read it as a tongue in cheek comic assessment of speculative political ineptitude. So, when I started again with my light-hearted head on, it was great.
Jan Carson has a wonderful ear for dialogue and the slightly oddball socially awkward character, but yet dig a little deeper and there are serious points to be made about society and politics. Some of her 'speculation' has a fabulist element to it, but if you can stick with it, or indeed just 'allow the crazy in' it is a warm funny and satisfying read. I particularly liked how she wrapped it all up at the end.

[Sullivan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Picked up a signed copy of this at Waterstones in Derry - they had a lovely and very convincing display!

It’s very well written. The plot is propulsive and an enjoyable mix of magical realism and Northern Irish cynicism. It’s clever the way Carson weaves the personal and family histories and troubles alongside The Troubles and the Peace process and urgent contemporary political issues, without making it directly a political novel. I really loved the use of local phrases and language, and familiar landscapes and types of people. The inner voices and conflicts of the characters are really well drawn. You very quickly get a grasp on each person, flaws and all, and it rapidly becomes clear that everyone is an unreliable narrator with secrets they’re holding close.

Sometimes, unfortunately, this comes at the expense of characters whose inner voices we don’t hear - Marion and Robert-John’s family members tend to be somewhat one note villains who only exist to as backstory for the main characters. Some of the dialogue scenes read quite visibly functional - getting characters to the next motivation or action - rather than as more organic conversations. There’s not a lot of subtlety. And this is a peeve only for me, but the “academic” writing is not how an academic would write and it’s distracting as a device. Books where no one listens to each other tend to drive me crazy and that’s everyone here.

However! A very worthwhile read, especially for anyone interested in a geographically and culturally specific authorial voice and a cracking yarn.

[Leanne Simmons · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m a long-time devourer of Jan Carson’s stories, and this novel is perhaps her best yet. Stunningly original in its concept and told through a dual timeline, it is packed to the rafters with tender exchanges amongst troubled characters that reach right into the heart of what it is to be human. I feel lucky to be living in a time when writers like Jan Carson continue to push the boundaries of their own creativity and produce art that is alive to the difficult waters in which our modern world finds itself. I’ll be pushing a copy of Few and Far Between into the hands of everyone I know and love.