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Die guten Frauen von Safe Harbour
»Eindringlich, lebendig, überraschend, warm und klug.« Carrie Snyder
Frances Delaney kehrt nach vielen Jahren an den Ort ihrer Kindheit zurück. Doch das idyllische neufundländische Fischerdorf Safe Harbour ist nicht nur ein Ort guter Erinnerungen.
Vor allem der Verlust der Freundschaft zu ihrer engsten Freundin Annie, erschütterte Frances zutiefst.
Zusammen mit ihrer Freundin Edie stellt sich Frances den Schatten der Vergangenheit und kann sich nun endlich mit ihrem Leben aussöhnen und bei sich ankommen.
Sie hat nicht mehr viel Zeit.
Atmosphärisch eingebunden in die Kulisse der kargen Landschaft Neufundlands handelt diese kraftvolle Geschichte über Freundschaft und Vergebung. Das Debüt der Psychiaterin Bobbi French erzählt von einer Frau, die sich selbst die Chance gibt zu lieben und geliebt zu werden.
Frances Delaney is staring down the last days of her life. Looking back over her fifty-eight years with wit and no small amount of regret, she sees not the life she wanted but the one that happened. An idyllic childhood in the small Newfoundland fishing town of Safe Harbour was darkened by the loss of her father at sea, an unwanted pregnancy and a betrayal by her closest friend, Annie Malone. Frances and Annie were inseparable, and this rupture rocked Frances to the core. In the aftermath, she fled to St. John's and a solitary life nothing like what she and Annie had dreamed of as their grand escape. Now, with the help of her young, optimistic friend Edie, Frances begins a journey toward resolution and back to Annie and Safe Harbour. With these good women in her corner, Frances can at last chart her course to living on her own terms, right to the very end.
A powerfully touching celebration of friendship and forgiveness, The Good Women of Safe Harbour is about a woman who finally gives herself a chance to love and be loved. It's a story that is impossible to read with dry eyes.
Frances Delaney kehrt nach vielen Jahren an den Ort ihrer Kindheit zurück. Doch das idyllische neufundländische Fischerdorf Safe Harbour ist nicht nur ein Ort guter Erinnerungen.
Vor allem der Verlust der Freundschaft zu ihrer engsten Freundin Annie, erschütterte Frances zutiefst.
Zusammen mit ihrer Freundin Edie stellt sich Frances den Schatten der Vergangenheit und kann sich nun endlich mit ihrem Leben aussöhnen und bei sich ankommen.
Sie hat nicht mehr viel Zeit.
Atmosphärisch eingebunden in die Kulisse der kargen Landschaft Neufundlands handelt diese kraftvolle Geschichte über Freundschaft und Vergebung. Das Debüt der Psychiaterin Bobbi French erzählt von einer Frau, die sich selbst die Chance gibt zu lieben und geliebt zu werden.
Frances Delaney is staring down the last days of her life. Looking back over her fifty-eight years with wit and no small amount of regret, she sees not the life she wanted but the one that happened. An idyllic childhood in the small Newfoundland fishing town of Safe Harbour was darkened by the loss of her father at sea, an unwanted pregnancy and a betrayal by her closest friend, Annie Malone. Frances and Annie were inseparable, and this rupture rocked Frances to the core. In the aftermath, she fled to St. John's and a solitary life nothing like what she and Annie had dreamed of as their grand escape. Now, with the help of her young, optimistic friend Edie, Frances begins a journey toward resolution and back to Annie and Safe Harbour. With these good women in her corner, Frances can at last chart her course to living on her own terms, right to the very end.
A powerfully touching celebration of friendship and forgiveness, The Good Women of Safe Harbour is about a woman who finally gives herself a chance to love and be loved. It's a story that is impossible to read with dry eyes.
322 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 8, 2022
63 people are currently reading
3000 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 477 reviews
March 21, 2022
I finished this book a few days ago and I literally can't stop thinking about it. It's wonderful. I am so thrilled to read a book set in rural NL that isn't all dreariness and misery, but about the deep connections you may find there (which has been my experience growing up there). The characters were rich and wonderful and I cried, like, a LOT. And yet somehow I'd call it a lighthearted read? I highly recommend this book.
February 19, 2022
I know I keep saying that I’m not a cryer but then come on here and tell y’all that a book made me cry.
I’m pretty sure I cried all the way through this book.
It is so beautiful.
I really don’t have the words to talk about this book in a good way or a way that it deserves. It is so deeply moving.
I have so much love in my soul for this story and the way that it’s written.
Big big thanks to HarperCollins for sending my this book ahead of its release through my work with indigo #indigoemployee
I’m pretty sure I cried all the way through this book.
It is so beautiful.
I really don’t have the words to talk about this book in a good way or a way that it deserves. It is so deeply moving.
I have so much love in my soul for this story and the way that it’s written.
Big big thanks to HarperCollins for sending my this book ahead of its release through my work with indigo #indigoemployee
June 6, 2022
Thank you to author Bobbi French for sending me a copy in exchange for a review!
This book started off a little slow, but as we get into the tragic past of Frances Delaney, you can’t help but keep reading and rooting for her. She might not make a decision you agree with, but I love how Bobbi approaches everything in this.
I love that this novel focuses on friendship, living a life you want, and how it’s never too late. I need more books like this in my life. This novel is great to read right now, in the early weeks before summer officially starts, so get yourself a copy asap!
TW: rape, suicide, death of a loved one, forced (enforced?) adoption, cancer, assisted dying.
This book started off a little slow, but as we get into the tragic past of Frances Delaney, you can’t help but keep reading and rooting for her. She might not make a decision you agree with, but I love how Bobbi approaches everything in this.
I love that this novel focuses on friendship, living a life you want, and how it’s never too late. I need more books like this in my life. This novel is great to read right now, in the early weeks before summer officially starts, so get yourself a copy asap!
TW: rape, suicide, death of a loved one, forced (enforced?) adoption, cancer, assisted dying.
July 4, 2022
What an absolutely beautiful and heartwrenching book. After I finished the final page and closed the book I had to just sit in silence for awhile. I am speechless.
March 28, 2022
Wow! Wow!! Wow!!!
Notwithstanding that it is still early in the calendar year… there is no doubt that this title will be right up at the top of my year’s best CanLit fiction titles for the year. And a debut at that… What a debut!!!
This is why we read… to experience the joy that it is to read such an exquisitely crafted heart-stirring life-affirming story. The characters, the setting, the themes… all perfectly rendered. The writing craft on display belies that this is a debut. Phenomenal.
THIS IS A MUST READ BOOK. Savour the experience.
I will warn you that you had best have a full box of Kleenex beside you while you read. You’ll be needing it.
Wow! Wow!! Wow!!!
Notwithstanding that it is still early in the calendar year… there is no doubt that this title will be right up at the top of my year’s best CanLit fiction titles for the year. And a debut at that… What a debut!!!
This is why we read… to experience the joy that it is to read such an exquisitely crafted heart-stirring life-affirming story. The characters, the setting, the themes… all perfectly rendered. The writing craft on display belies that this is a debut. Phenomenal.
THIS IS A MUST READ BOOK. Savour the experience.
I will warn you that you had best have a full box of Kleenex beside you while you read. You’ll be needing it.
Wow! Wow!! Wow!!!
December 20, 2022
"I haven't lived the life I wanted - I've lived the one that happened."
4 stars for that line alone, which will stick with me. Very enjoyable story focused on women's friendships. Also liked the Newfoundland setting.
4 stars for that line alone, which will stick with me. Very enjoyable story focused on women's friendships. Also liked the Newfoundland setting.
March 17, 2022
A deeply moving and unforgettable story of a woman who lived a simple life, friendship and the difficult choices to be made at end of life. I don't have the words to adequately explain how this book affected me. It was impossible to put down yet I had to read it slowly with a box of tissues at hand because I was often too overcome with emotion to continue.
Frances Delaney and Annie Moore were inseparable growing up in the small community of Safe Harbour, Newfoundland but when they were 18 an argument tore them apart and Frances walked away. Frances is now 58 and hasn't spoken to Annie or returned to Safe Harbour since. She lives in St. John's, cleans houses and looks forward only to her regular trips to the library. Frances has recently learned that she is terminally ill and is determined to die on her own terms. Edie, the 16 year-old girl whose home Frances has cleaned for many years, helps to bring Frances back to Annie and Safe Harbour and the two of them support Frances in her end-of-life journey.
Frances has lived a solitary life - a life that happened rather than the one she wanted - but with the help of Edie and Annie she finally lets herself love and be loved during the last days of her life. It's a heartbreaking yet life-affirming story with an important message about the power of female friendships and the importance of living a life of your own choosing. The Good Women of Safe Harbour is one of only a few books that I know I will read again and Frances, Annie and Edie are characters that I will never forget.
Frances Delaney and Annie Moore were inseparable growing up in the small community of Safe Harbour, Newfoundland but when they were 18 an argument tore them apart and Frances walked away. Frances is now 58 and hasn't spoken to Annie or returned to Safe Harbour since. She lives in St. John's, cleans houses and looks forward only to her regular trips to the library. Frances has recently learned that she is terminally ill and is determined to die on her own terms. Edie, the 16 year-old girl whose home Frances has cleaned for many years, helps to bring Frances back to Annie and Safe Harbour and the two of them support Frances in her end-of-life journey.
Frances has lived a solitary life - a life that happened rather than the one she wanted - but with the help of Edie and Annie she finally lets herself love and be loved during the last days of her life. It's a heartbreaking yet life-affirming story with an important message about the power of female friendships and the importance of living a life of your own choosing. The Good Women of Safe Harbour is one of only a few books that I know I will read again and Frances, Annie and Edie are characters that I will never forget.
September 19, 2022
Oh my goodness. A very powerful and emotional book. I loved it.
December 24, 2024
Solid 30-40 minutes of crying while on a walk finishing this one today. Tonya did warn me…
July 9, 2023
2.5 stars
In The Good Women of Safe Harbour, Frances Delaney reflects on her life as she nears a chosen end after learning she has a terminal brain tumor. Growing up in the quaint Newfoundland fishing town of Safe Harbour, her childhood was blighted by the loss of her parents, an unwanted pregnancy and forced adoption, and the loss of the friendship of her best friend, Annie. With the help of a young friend Edie, Frances wraps up her life on her terms and reunites with Annie in Safe Harbour.
Despite the solid opening with Frances asserting herself and refusing surgery or treatment, I never felt as though she really regained any agency that she allowed to slip away by the choices she made earlier in her life, which seemed to be a big battle of regret for her. Her young friend Edie brought in fresh moments, but also really emphasized the anachronistic feel to Frances and some of the plot elements. As the story unfolded, so did it unravel.
Once the story started to open up beyond her refusal of treatment in the first chapter, it felt increasingly unmoored from time. Frances and Edie in the 2019 present, felt more like a pair of generational gap friends as you'd see them in the late '70s or '80s. Frances, in particular, felt of a completely different era. I had a hard time reconciling her as a 58-year-old woman in 2019, so out of touch did she seem — particularly with her removed perception of social media, her amazement with some social and health care issues, and her utter lack of self-awareness. Her assignment for the story as a curmudgeonly woman just didn't match up to me with someone not even sixty years old - someone who would've been born in the early 1960s. She felt like she should've been born some twenty years previous.
Additionally, the solitary life Frances has chosen and the level of isolation French has decided upon, only made it as though the intervening years between her late teens when she left Safe Harbour and roughly the present day, existed only as a smudgy nothingness.
The shining light, and something I did continue to appreciate, was the wherewithal Frances exhibited by taking control of her own life in refusing treatment and the way she handled herself in that regard. French wrote smartly about the need for everyone to recognize their own mortality and allowed this knowledge that Frances was granted about her own to be a blessing in and of itself.
Audiobook, as narrated by Rachel Fulginiti: Fulginiti was perfectly up to the task of performing the narration here. I found a good bit of the dialogue to be fairly stilted, and her narration was a little more deliberate in delivery than I'd like, but I think she suits the story well enough.
In The Good Women of Safe Harbour, Frances Delaney reflects on her life as she nears a chosen end after learning she has a terminal brain tumor. Growing up in the quaint Newfoundland fishing town of Safe Harbour, her childhood was blighted by the loss of her parents, an unwanted pregnancy and forced adoption, and the loss of the friendship of her best friend, Annie. With the help of a young friend Edie, Frances wraps up her life on her terms and reunites with Annie in Safe Harbour.
Despite the solid opening with Frances asserting herself and refusing surgery or treatment, I never felt as though she really regained any agency that she allowed to slip away by the choices she made earlier in her life, which seemed to be a big battle of regret for her. Her young friend Edie brought in fresh moments, but also really emphasized the anachronistic feel to Frances and some of the plot elements. As the story unfolded, so did it unravel.
Once the story started to open up beyond her refusal of treatment in the first chapter, it felt increasingly unmoored from time. Frances and Edie in the 2019 present, felt more like a pair of generational gap friends as you'd see them in the late '70s or '80s. Frances, in particular, felt of a completely different era. I had a hard time reconciling her as a 58-year-old woman in 2019, so out of touch did she seem — particularly with her removed perception of social media, her amazement with some social and health care issues, and her utter lack of self-awareness. Her assignment for the story as a curmudgeonly woman just didn't match up to me with someone not even sixty years old - someone who would've been born in the early 1960s. She felt like she should've been born some twenty years previous.
Additionally, the solitary life Frances has chosen and the level of isolation French has decided upon, only made it as though the intervening years between her late teens when she left Safe Harbour and roughly the present day, existed only as a smudgy nothingness.
The shining light, and something I did continue to appreciate, was the wherewithal Frances exhibited by taking control of her own life in refusing treatment and the way she handled herself in that regard. French wrote smartly about the need for everyone to recognize their own mortality and allowed this knowledge that Frances was granted about her own to be a blessing in and of itself.
Audiobook, as narrated by Rachel Fulginiti: Fulginiti was perfectly up to the task of performing the narration here. I found a good bit of the dialogue to be fairly stilted, and her narration was a little more deliberate in delivery than I'd like, but I think she suits the story well enough.
October 20, 2022
A wonderful story sad, yet bittersweet. A story of love; sisterly love, motherly love, long lost love, all entwined in the loss of a loved one and one's own life. Brings up so many current topics; abortion, MAID, mental health. I loved every moment of this read, even when I cried.
September 3, 2023
Ich schwanke zwischen 4 und 5 Sternen.
Das Titelbild lässt an einen Sommer Wohlfühlroman denken. Das ist es aber nicht.
Eine sehr schöne Geschichte, sehr emotional und tragisch und dennoch schön und versöhnlich.
Danke für diesen Lese Tipp.
Das Titelbild lässt an einen Sommer Wohlfühlroman denken. Das ist es aber nicht.
Eine sehr schöne Geschichte, sehr emotional und tragisch und dennoch schön und versöhnlich.
Danke für diesen Lese Tipp.
September 8, 2025
So glad I stumbled on this tearjerker! A beautiful story of hardships and the glorious difference that friendships can make in our lives.
July 22, 2022
I was enjoying this book so much - I loved the characters and the setting, and Frances' relationship with Edie was touching. The novel lost me though, when Annie and Frances were intimate. It felt out of character and unmoored the whole story, instead of adding to it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 14, 2025
So many warnings about tears and I tossed them aside as I am a toughie. Great friendship story.
March 22, 2024
still crying
May 16, 2022
First off, I loved that this book is set in Newfoundland, a beautiful province and culture that is high on my travel to-do list. In this debut, Bobbi French pulls her readers into the heart of this close-knit province and tells a story that follows Frances, a woman who was recently diagnosed with a brain tumour.
Frances lives a solitary life and through flashbacks readers understand how her past influenced the woman she became. There is a small cast of characters, and my favourite part of the book was easily Frances' relationship with teenage Edie. I love intergenerational friendship! As Frances' life unfolds, French addresses emotional issues which make this a heartfelt story.
But despite the topics and relationships, I didn't find myself emotionally connected to the characters or the poignant topics that brought many other readers to tears. I'm a hard 'tear duct to crack' so to speak so I'm chalking this up to an 'it's me, not you' thing because despite its blurb that says this is 'a story that is impossible to read with dry eyes', leave it to me to be the outlier and the one person who was not brought to tears.
I loved the premise of this debut and how it focuses on the bonds between women, the endurance of friendship, the different forms of family and the power of forgiveness. This is a heartfelt story and an impressive debut that will appeal to many readers.
March 21, 2022
As someone from the East Coast of Canada, I've read lots of books set in Newfoundland, and they never get the dialogue just right. Bobbi French does! And the result is a truly fantastic read. The storyline is simple: dying woman returning home to reconnect with her best friend. But it's the conversations (both internal and between characters) that hook you.
These are REAL women - and their thoughts and words feel so natural and so matched to their lives, that you can't help but love them. This is a lovely book. Well-worth reading!
These are REAL women - and their thoughts and words feel so natural and so matched to their lives, that you can't help but love them. This is a lovely book. Well-worth reading!
December 7, 2022
This was a pleasant read and hooked me right away. I enjoyed Frances, the main character, especially her mature wit and realism. The prose was really beautiful at times and often amusing. However, the plot seemed to come to an end about halfway through the novel though the narration continued all the way to the expected ending. The personal transformation could have added more weight to the plot but it felt a bit superficial. Well before I got to the end, I was getting a little bored.
March 16, 2022
Frances, Annie and Edie will stay with me for some time to come. A beautiful story of love and friendship. Choices for the end of your life are not easy conversations to be had but they are very important. My heart is still recovering from this beautiful story
January 1, 2024
There are are no words to describe what a wonderful book this is. I listened to it on audio and it was just so so good. A beautiful touching story, set in Newfoundland, of friendship , forgiveness and how to come to terms with your life and all that it hands you. I absolutely loved it!
January 2, 2024
Genuinely think this will be added to my list of all time favorite books. It was gorgeous, complex, so emotional - I cried so, so hard but also want to restart it immediately. A beautiful portrait of life and death, friendship and family. Will take me 5-7 business days to recover most likely.
December 10, 2022
It was wonderful to read a book set in Newfoundland with such rich and interesting characters. I especially loved the friendships in this book. A little bit of home, right when I needed it!
July 21, 2022
Enjoyed this one so much. Such a heartwarming story of love and friendship - reminded me a lot of the 100 Years of Lenni and Margot. Bonus for the Canadian setting and author!
December 5, 2023
Oooo this was a tear jerker - i need a vampire break I think 🤧
October 3, 2022
I started this book with no expectations. My sole reason for choosing to read it is that it is set in Newfoundland by a Newfoundland author. It turns out that was reason enough.
Frances is a 58 year old woman, living in St John’s, diagnosed with a terminal brain tumour. She has decided that she will die on her own terms but first she has a lot of things to settle (things in her mind) before she is mentally ready.
While the subject matter is heavy, there is so much to love about this book. So many emotions: anger, love, conflict, resolution, loss, acceptance, friendship. Relationships between women are the pillar of the story.
Characters are very well developed. Their differences make the story believable. The story is told in the present but through Frances’ musings, we get the back story of her life, all that had brought her to this point. This method works well.
Despite the subject, I did not find the book morbid or off-putting. I loved Frances's matter-of-fact attitude. She is very stoic about her situation. She has a relationship with her tumour, has even named it The Squid.
This story made me laugh and made me cry.
Frances is a 58 year old woman, living in St John’s, diagnosed with a terminal brain tumour. She has decided that she will die on her own terms but first she has a lot of things to settle (things in her mind) before she is mentally ready.
While the subject matter is heavy, there is so much to love about this book. So many emotions: anger, love, conflict, resolution, loss, acceptance, friendship. Relationships between women are the pillar of the story.
Characters are very well developed. Their differences make the story believable. The story is told in the present but through Frances’ musings, we get the back story of her life, all that had brought her to this point. This method works well.
Despite the subject, I did not find the book morbid or off-putting. I loved Frances's matter-of-fact attitude. She is very stoic about her situation. She has a relationship with her tumour, has even named it The Squid.
This story made me laugh and made me cry.
July 7, 2024
My Rating: 4.5/5
What do I say about this book? First, do not let the bright and summery cover fool you into thinking it is anything other than an emotional read. I actually had to take a day off reading because it felt quite heavy.
Now that all being said, this book really grew on me. At first I was SO frustrated and felt so emotionally detached from Frances, the MFC. Through a very slow unraveling of her history however, you start to understand why she has kept people at an arm's length. You then start to slowly connect with her as she connects with those around her.
I think knowing that the author is a former psychiatrist, I started to understand her desire to really bring the reader into Frances' psyche. Upon further reflection after finishing the book I really appreciate that. This book won't be for everyone but it was for me.
TW: Suicide, forced adoption, MAID
What do I say about this book? First, do not let the bright and summery cover fool you into thinking it is anything other than an emotional read. I actually had to take a day off reading because it felt quite heavy.
Now that all being said, this book really grew on me. At first I was SO frustrated and felt so emotionally detached from Frances, the MFC. Through a very slow unraveling of her history however, you start to understand why she has kept people at an arm's length. You then start to slowly connect with her as she connects with those around her.
I think knowing that the author is a former psychiatrist, I started to understand her desire to really bring the reader into Frances' psyche. Upon further reflection after finishing the book I really appreciate that. This book won't be for everyone but it was for me.
TW: Suicide, forced adoption, MAID
April 16, 2022
This book was a crowd pleaser for our Happy Bookers’ book club. Out of a rating range from one to ten, with 10 being excellent, and one being 👎, this book by Bobbi French rated an average score of 9, with 2 people rating it a 10. We loved the book. Bobbi French’s Good Women of Safe Harbour, generated discussion about love, friendship and deep connections, family dynamics, assisted end of life, and the challenges of accepting death as we do life. Really enjoyed French’s use of humour throughout the book…. I’ve never laughed and cried so much while reading one book! Thank you Bobbi for this wonderful read. Janet Gagnon
February 28, 2024
Not many books can leave me in tears but this one did. Maybe the Newfoundland setting tugged on my heartstrings a little more. My first 5 star read of the year. Highly recommend.
May 12, 2022
I loved the friendships formed.
3.5
3.5
Displaying 1 - 30 of 477 reviews