This is the third novel by O’Farrel that I’ve read, and, as was the case with the other two, “Hamnet” and “The Marriage Portrait”, I loved it.  Superb writing, vivid characters, suspenseful action, and a terrific ending made this a great read.  Here’s how I concluded my review of “The Marriage Portrait” and it holds for “Land” as well: “Read O’Farrell for the joy of great writing and the fun of being held in tense suspense.  I experienced the sure sign of a fine book when I put it aside for two days as I was nearing the end.  I wanted to find a quiet interval when I could sit down and uninterruptedly savor the final 30 pages.  Highly recommended.”

While “Hamnet” takes place in the 17th Centuryand “The Marriage Portrait” in the 16th, O’Farrell situates this novel in the mid-19th C not long after Ireland’s Great Hunger killed many and disrupted the social fabric.  At the start of the novel, we meet Tomas, an Irish surveyer, and his son, Liam, who are working for the hated British making maps of an unremarkable peninsula in western Ireland.  When they stumble upon what appears to be an enchanted spring, the story takes off.  We meet Tomas’s wife Phina and learn how they met at a workhouse after their families died in the Great Hunger. We meet their son Liam, their  daughters Enda and Rose, and eventually, the newborn Oliver.

After Tomas encounters the magical spring and appears to be possessed by it, he undergoes an exorcism by the priest. When he finally recovers, he moves the family to the peninsula and lives in proximity to the spring.

As the book unfolds, we learn the history of the spring beginning with a mythical past when a young girl and her dog were sacrificed by the elders as an offering when a draught wiped out the food supply.  From there we witness the succession of conquerors and occupiers of that piece of land from the Vikings to the Romans and finally the British aristocrats who are eventually tossed out.  We also go back in time to Tomas and Phina’s childhood experiences in a workhouse and forward to Enda and Rose’s life in Quebec.

The book is quite special bringing a fine literary skill to a deeply engaging plot peopled with memorable characters.  Another winner from O’Farrell, almost sure to be awarded prizes galore.