Land

by Maggie O'Farrell

'You will never understand how the land remembers, how deep the roots grow'

A spellbinding story of separation, longing, recovery and survival as a family makes a new home in the aftermath of tragedy.

'Maggie O'Farrell is a miracle in every sense' Ann Patchett
'Maggie O'Farrell takes up a bow and arrow and aims right at the human heart' The Times

On a windswept peninsula stretching out into the Atlantic, Tomás and his reluctant son, Liam, are working for the great Ordnance Survey project to map the whole of Ireland. The year is 1865, and in a country not long since ravaged and emptied by the Great Hunger, the task is not an easy one. Tomás, however, is determined that his maps will be a record of the disaster.

The British soldiers in charge are due to arrive any day, expecting the work to be completed, but Tomás is sent off course by an unsettling encounter in a copse. His life, and those of his family, will never be the same again. Liam is terrified by the sudden change in his taciturn father. What was it that caused such cracks to open in Tomás and how is Liam, aged only ten, going to finish the mapping, and get them both home?

Land is a story of buried treasure, overlapping lives, ancient woodland, persistent ghosts, a particularly loyal dog, and how, when it comes to both land and history, nothing ever goes away.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Ireland, Historical, Literary Fiction, Irish Literature, Adult

Audible Audio

Expected publication June 2, 2026

About the author

Maggie O'Farrell (born 1972, Coleraine Northern Ireland) is a British author of contemporary fiction, who features in Waterstones' 25 Authors for the Future. It is possible to identify several common themes in her novels - the relationship between sisters is one, another is loss and the psychological impact of those losses on the lives of her characters.

Reviews

[Julia]

Never clicked Want to Read faster, this is the best news all week

[Shannon Henry]

saw a quote about maps so ofc i'll be reading this

[Kim Alkemade · Rating 5 out of 5]

Immersive and atmospheric, this magnificent novel took me on a journey through time as the fate of one Irish family is woven through the history and geography of the land on which they make their home. In a story that spans from Nordic invaders to English colonization, from the Great Famine to Canadian emigration, from the far-reaches of British empire to the source of a supernatural well, O'Farrell's gorgeous prose and rich descriptions gave me a visceral sense of Ireland's wonders and woes.

[Kristine]

I Want to Read This: It is By Maggie O’Farrell! 💖💖💖

I love her writing. This story sounds so close to her heart.

Release Date is: June 2, 2026

[Tova]

This sounds like Translations by Brian Friel, but make it Maggie O'Farrell, I am excited!!

[Alix · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well it's beautiful and it was a page turner, but it was also a difficult read. I've been researching a family who emigrated from Ireland to New Hampshire in the wake of the Great Hunger and following that family's descendants to today, so it was interesting for me to read a historical fiction about this period. Tomás and his son Liam are working as surveyors in 1865, and they have a predicament -- to give the British every detail of their beloved homeland as required, or not. Tomás realizes, "It could exist on a map, or it could exist on the land." This is such a beautiful recognition of the way documents shape the land and our relationship with it. There was almost a feel of magical realism as Liam and Tomás have a life-changing experience in a copse of trees, but that's not really the overall vibe. The book takes us on a journey back and forth in time to millennia ago, and then follows the four children of Tomás and his wife Phina, who each have different relationships with Ireland. I particularly loved Enda, the eldest daughter, who plays the fiddle so well that O'Farrell writes "The music she plays is the land: it summons it; it conjures it," no matter when Enda goes.

I'd recommend this book for people who like Kristin Hannah's books but think they could be a little sadder, people whose great-great-great grandparents emigrated from Ireland, and people whose favorite exhibit in the National Museum of Ireland was a bog body.

CW for death of a parent, amputation, sexual assault, and death of a dog

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This novel unfolded around me in the most exquisite way. Land is soaked in memory and beauty, and Maggie O’Farrell’s writing feels less like prose and more like something elemental, rising straight out of the soil it describes. Every sentence hums with tenderness and quiet power, capturing how the land holds pain, history, and love long after people think it’s gone. O’Farrell renders longing and survival with such grace that even the landscape breathes. This is a story that understands how trauma roots itself deep in families and places, and how healing is slow, fragile, and necessary. I closed the book feeling awed and profoundly grateful to have read something so beautifully written and so deeply human—a reflection of O’Farrell’s breathtaking talent and the beautiful, generous soul that infuses her writing.

Many thanks to Edelweiss+ and Knopf for providing an eARC prior to publication in exchange for an honest review.

[Levi Collins]

Land by Maggie O’Farrell feels like a powerful and deeply emotional novel where the landscape itself becomes a keeper of memory. The story explores loss, separation, survival, and the slow process of healing after tragedy. With its rich historical atmosphere and lyrical writing, the book reflects on family bonds and the deep roots that tie people to place. It promises a moving and thoughtful reading experience.For those who are looking for entertainment and new experiences, I recommend visiting https://kasinoslovensko10.com/. Hopefully this request gets the attention it deserves.

[Jane Nolan]

I’m gonna freak out

[Susan Houghton]

Pub date June 2, 2026

[Mary Ellen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rich. Amazing.