The Adulteress

by Noëlle Harrison

Nicholas is running away, both from his marriage and an unfaithful wife, and the comfortable life he has known in Dublin. He buys a run down house in rural Cavan, right in the heart of Ireland, and embarks on a huge renovation project. While he is there, the house seems to speak to him - there are voices coming from an untraceable source.

Genres: Romance, Paranormal, Fiction

400 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

pseudonym: Evie Blake

Born in London, I moved to Ireland in 1991, shortly afterwards setting up the theatre company Aurora. I have written four stage plays, Northern Landscapes, Black Virgin, Runaway Wife and The Good Sister, and one short film, Blue Void. I have also written extensively on visual art in Ireland, contributing to various journals and artists’ catalogues over the years.

In August 2004 my first novel Beatrice was published by Tivoli/ Pan Macmillan. My second novel, A Small Part Of Me, was published by Tivoli / Pan Macmillan in September 2005. My third novel I Remember was published by Pan Macmillan in September 2008. The Adulteress an erotic ghost story set now and in 1941 in Ireland was published by Pan Macmillan in September 2009. The Secret Loves of Julia Caesar is an illustrated limited edition novella, a companion book to The Adulteress as well as a novel in its own right. It is published October 2012.

I currently live in Bergen in Norway. In September 2012 Beatrice was published by Juritzen Forlag in Norwegian. My books have also been translated and published in Italy, Germany, Holland, and Hungary.

I offer a critiquing service for budding writers and teach various creative writing workshops through Inkwell Writers.

I also write under the pen name of Evie Blake, author of Valentina published by Headline in October 2012, Valentina on the edge (March 2013) and Valentina Unlocked (October 2013). The Valentina Trilogy will be translated and published in Italy, Germany, Holland, Spain, France, Portugal, Brazil, and Serbia.

Reviews

[Sorcha O'Dowd · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Adulteress is one of the most hauntingly beautiful books I have read. It captivated me from the first chapter and I loved reading the descriptions of June Fanning’s childhood in pre World War II England, and how her love for her sister and father made her isolate herself from her Mother. Leaving war-torn London for the Irish countryside with her husband, I felt deeply for June when she found it difficult to find a place for herself. I felt heartbroken for her as her husband left her to fight in the War even though he wasn’t required to, even after knowing she was pregnant, and I felt angry with him for how aloof he was with her in his letters.

I loved the character of Phelim, with whom June grows a strong connection with after her husband leaves for War. Married to a woman who he knows does not love him, he loses himself in his art work, and I loved how cleverly Noelle Harrison intertwined the story of the adulteress, who we assume to be June, and her lover an artist, who we assume to be Phelim, before shocking us with their true identities.

Nicholas’ story was also deeply touching. Having left his wife after she admitted to sleeping with another man, he moves from Dublin into a falling apart house deep in the rural Irish countryside. Immediately I felt a connection and deep sympathy for Nicholas who was obviously unable to settle in his new life. Yet, as we are given glimpses into the reasons behind the problems in his marriage, I also felt a deep sadness for what both him and his wife had suffered, and whilst before I would have taken Nicholas’ side, I now hoped for redemption and reconciliation between him and his wife.

The descriptions of the adulteress and her artist lover, as well as the beauty of the apple orchard was captivating and I felt mesmerised by the powerful imagery behind the storyline.

So why couldn’t I give this story five stars? Up until the last two pages, I was ready to give five stars, having loved the powerful story, and being happy with the way Nicholas’ story unfolded. But then, the ending left me feeling as though I’d completely missed the point of the story. The fact that June realising her true love was her husband seemed very strange considering how only a few pages earlier she’d been describing how much she wished she’d had a life and family with Phelim. Although her husband’s true feelings are discovered in a letter left for June, that Nicholas reads in order for June’s spirit to move on, I found this ending very forced, particularly after all of June’s character development in the novel.

Overall this was a beautiful and captivating read, but I was deeply saddened by the way I felt some of the characters didn’t get the ending they deserved, or had worked for during the book. So I give it 4 Stars but I definitely recommend giving it a read

[Hannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this book, most especially because it knocked over a few chick-lit clichés. One of the main characters in the novel was male and secondly there was some blurring regarding "good" and "bad" actions/choices.

The overlapping between the past and the present storylines were really well done, interweaving multiple story lines together seamlessly. The ending was lovely, and just unexpected enough to be gripping. With the layer storylines it was much more of a thinking book than you would expect from the chick-lit category.

I do think the title “Adulteress” is a bit off-putting, but then again I can’t really think of anything else that could sum up the book. My only complaints would be that I felt the storyline with a couple of the charecters ended suddenly, and at times the author could have been more descriptive regarding scenery/setting.

Overall I would recommend this as a fairly quick, enjoyable book for weekend reading. Something a bit deeper than the other chick-lit novels out there.

[Penny · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm glad to have read this book - the first 95% was a good page-turning read that was enjoyable. The last 5% was unfortunately a bit of a convenient end to tie up loose ends. A bit of 'telling' via letter. I'd guessed who the father was quite early in the novel so that came as no surprise to me. Four stars for the most and then two stars at the end. So I'm giving it a high 3 stars. I am glad to have read this book at last.

[Ginny Moore · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic read, could not put it down.

[Kayleigh Osborne · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5

[Anette Gago · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it beautifully written loved all the characters.
Really enjoyed all the twisty and turns. The unexpected!

[Debbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful... just Beautiful

[Don · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Adulteress
by
Noelle Harrison

The Adulteress was my second Noelle Harrison read. After reading The Girl Across The Sea, also by Harrison, I was expecting an entertaining read.

However, I knew things were going south during the prologue which I feel must have been the longest I have ever read, and which did nothing for the book in my opinion. I found it so waffly that I nearly put the book down as a bad joke about halfway through the prologue before I commenced reading chapter one.

I was very disappointed with the writing and storyline and the long-winded descriptive narratives. In fact, on reflection, I think it could have cut The Adulteress back to a short story.

In short, The Adulteress is about a family (two sisters) and their wants, needs and woes, as children, married teens and as adults. And whether it was a want, need or woe, it was described in great detail. Often so much detail that I found it easy to forget exactly what the topic was at beginning of the chapter.

I rated The Adulteress as a two-star read simply because I finished reading the book.

At the time of writing my review other Goodreads readers had awarded The Adulteress an average of 3.61 stars from 150 ratings 20 reviews.

[Pippa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had difficulty putting this book down. The story centres around a young man called Nicholas whose wife has betrayed him. He has bought a cottage in a remote location in Ireland and is trying to forget his own overwhelming feelings of jealousy and upset as he renovates it. The cottage turns out to be haunted by a woman whose story intrigues him and he gradually uncovers more and more of the truth about her, which relates strangely to his own life.

This is the story of several lives in parallel situations, in different contexts of time and place. It is not only concerned with the ghost who haunts Nicholas's house, but the ghosts of her memories, and the actions of older people who have made their own, different choices. The characters are sensitively drawn and the prose is poetic and evocative. I recommend it highly.


(Review originally published in Goodreads magazine).

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this book up for $3 from a bargain bin, so I didn't really have high expectations for it - how wrong I was. This is a beautiful novel switching between the 1940s and modern day society. The character development is excellent, particularly June. The writing style suits the theme of the book and captures the emotional complexity of the characters well. The twist at the end (well, several of them) were a huge shock to me! Overall, a very good novel exploring themes of love, betrayal and infidelity.

[Monica Akinyi Odhiambo · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book a lot,and I am going to get all her books and read them.I had thought the adultress was June but was surprised to find out it was Minerva.That era of the war was such a bitch,things were difficult especially for the wives whose husbands had to go to war.Having to wait for Robert while who she really liked was Phelim.In the end the question was 'Choose your husband or lover?'.
Don't know what I would have done in such a situation.I just wished June would have followed up on her studies and being a classist.Everyone should read it.

[Cat · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't get into this until I was about 60% through I have to admit, but it turned out to be such a beautiful story. I'm not usually one for wartime fiction, I tend to favour ealirer historical periods but this was amazing. Simply amazing. The end made me cry, which is very rare; and given i picked it up in Tescos for £1.50 - stunning.

If you're a history buff who loves stories about love and social history get down to Tescos now!

[Lynda Atkinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good read.

[KomalKaur · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great Read. The plot was well developed, as were the characters. The writing was better then most as well.

[Jan · Rating 3 out of 5]

So good. Great story line, well written and hauntingly interesting.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorites, amazing story.

[Cindy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book, I was lost at first but then it all came together. I read it in one day, loved it.

[Cat · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story managed to keep me interested all the way through. Always a good sign. I read this over a few days on a Greek beach. Was a treat!

[Avril Dalton · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very pleasant and nicely written story!

[Amanda Mcewan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved this book the story was really enthralling and kept me interested until
The end.

[Magdalena · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent read, a piece of a really good literature...

[Prue · Rating 3 out of 5]

In the end I really enjoyed this book. It took me a while to get involved but it was worth the wait. What a beautiful ending.

[Carol · Rating 3 out of 5]

I quite enjoyed this book, not my usual genre as normally avoid things involving ghosts, but was interestingly written with the present and the past entwining. Good book, but not amazing for me.