The Heart's Invisible Furies

"By turns whimsical and heartbreaking, Boyne's sprawling novel treads Dickensian territory across seven decades of Irish history, ending with a redemption for both a country and a native son." - People

"Bleak, bittersweet, and Irish to the bone... explore[s] the relationship between Catholicism and patriarchy in midcentury Ireland and beyond." - O, The Oprah Magazine

"A picaresque, lolloping odyssey for the individual characters and for the nation that confines them...The book blazes with anger as it commemorates lives wrecked by social contempt and self-loathing.... a substantial achievement." - The Guardian

"With intricate narrative precision, The Heart's Invisible Furies cuts to the heart of what family is, how it is chosen, and how it endures. And it is charming and funny, even as it dives down from the precipice of endearing humor into the very specific ironies and cruelties of real life.... characters are cinematically rendered, with a deft, decadent wit that will make you laugh aloud at least once. Searing heartbreak; loneliness; a quest for internal and external redemption, solace, and contentment are all there in The Heart's Invisible Furies." - The Millions

"This is nothing less than the story of Ireland over the past 70 years, expressed in the life of one man...highly entertaining and often very funny...Big and clever." - The Times Sunday Review

"An epic full of verve, humour and heart... sure to be read by the bucketload... deeply cinematic [and] extremely funny." - The Irish Times

"Boyne writes scenes that will make a reader laugh and cry-without saccharine sentiment or flippancy. Infused with heart and humor, as well as a keen sense of man's capacity for cruelty, The Heart's Invisible Furies pulsates with life's complexity and progress' slow march." - Paste

"A big, sweeping novel...Cyril's intelligent, witty voice takes us all the way through to the end of his life. The Heart's Invisible Furies is a brilliant, moving history of an Irishman, and of modern Ireland itself." - Minneapolis Star Tribune

"The most inviting and completely spellbinding book this author has ever written...an outstandingly memorable achievement." - Christian Science Monitor

"This in-depth look at the life of one adopted man in post-war Ireland will make you laugh, weep, and live-tweet at two in the morning." - Brit + Co

"More than a coming-of-age story, The Heart's Invisible Furies is one man's journey from persecution to toleration....The novel... delights." - BookPage

"Enchanting... Boyne explores Cyril's life in luscious detail... With evocative descriptions of each city and fateful plot turns that twist the narrative in surprising ways, Boyne adroitly captures Cyril's shifting identity as he grapples with nationality, class, and sexuality. The book becomes both an examination of Cyril's life and a catalogue of Western society's evolution from post-war to present day, with all its failings, triumphs, complexities, and certainties... The life of Cyril Avery is one to be relished." - Publishers Weekly