In some ways, it's hard to believe that 1994 was 30 years ago. However, reading Alan Murrin's debut novel offers direct evidence of just how much has changed in Ireland --- particularly in the lives of women there --- in the three decades between then and now. Abortion in this predominantly Catholic country became legal in 2019, and --- most relevant to this book --- just 30 years ago, Ireland's constitution prohibited divorce.

As THE COAST ROAD opens in October 1994, rumors of change are in the air in County Donegal. But readers soon come to know several families whose lives might have been different under different legal circumstances.

"Beyond the propulsive chain of events at its center, THE COAST ROAD is a fascinating character study, particularly of the contrasting but ultimately complementary characters of Izzy and Colette, but also of the character of this remote and ruggedly beautiful part of Ireland."

At the novel's center is Izzy Keaveney. The mother of two children, Izzy is married to James, a local politician for whom appearances are everything. She has grown increasingly resentful; shortly after the birth of their older child, James sold off the flower shop that she had run in the early days of their marriage. The couple didn't need the income anymore, but Izzy still found fulfillment in her work outside the home. She has bristled ever since over James' failure to acknowledge her value and interests aside from being a wife and mother. Perhaps that's why Izzy has become so close to Brian, the new parish priest. She enjoys talking with him about books and ideas, conversations she can't ever remember having with her husband.

Like many others in the town, Izzy is fascinated and somewhat scandalized by the return of Colette Crowley to Ardglas. A poet, Colette created quite a stir a few years prior when she abandoned her husband, Shaun, and three children to live in Dublin with another man. That relationship has since ended, and Colette has returned to Ardglas in the hopes of reuniting with her sons. Unfortunately, they are embarrassed by what kids at school say about their mother, and Shaun, who already has moved on with a new girlfriend, refuses to let Colette see them.

Determined to stay close, Colette asks to rent a small cottage on the property of Dolores and Donal Mullen. Dolores, who's expecting the couple's fourth child, gets a bad feeling about the arrangement right off the bat. For one thing, she knows Donal has slept with half the women in town, so why should she invite an attractive lady like Colette to move in right under Donal's nose? But she knows the added income will help support their growing family, so she holds her nose and turns the other way when, true to form, Donal becomes a little too interested in the newly single Colette.

To earn money, Colette also starts holding poetry workshops for town residents. Izzy decides to sign up on a whim but finds herself growing closer to Colette, fascinated by her worldview and experiences, as well as by her approach to relationships and marriage. But small-town politics and gossip being what they are, Colette's reappearance in Ardglas will not be tolerated without a fair amount of drama, which is compounded by new and resurgent scandals and ultimately leads to tragedy.

At every turn, Murrin's novel encourages readers to ask themselves how these women's lives might have been different if they had the opportunity to divorce or, more broadly, define themselves outside of marriage before entering into such a binding arrangement. Each woman must come to her own conclusion, to make a sort of peace with her own circumstances. As one character realizes at the end of the book, "acceptance was not the same as resignation."

Beyond the propulsive chain of events at its center, THE COAST ROAD is a fascinating character study, particularly of the contrasting but ultimately complementary characters of Izzy and Colette, but also of the character of this remote and ruggedly beautiful part of Ireland. And it's a glimpse into the lives of ordinary Irish people at a specific moment in history, complete with insights into parenting, local politics and the changing role of the Church in their day-to-day existence. Readers will be eager to see what this talented young debut novelist will do next.