Listening Still

Jeanie Masterson has a gift: she can hear the last words of the dead.

Passed down from generation to generation, this gift means she is able to make wrongs right, to give voice to unspoken love and dying regrets. She and her father have worked happily alongside each other for years, but now he's unexpectedly announced that he wants to retire early and leave the business to her and her life is called into question.

Does she really want to be married to the embalmer, or does she want to be with her childhood sweetheart, off in London? Does she want to have children, and pass this gift on to them? And does she want to be stuck in this small town, or is there more of the world she wants to see - like the South of France, where she's discovered a woman who shares her gift?

Tied to her home by this unusual talent, she begins to question: what if what she's always thought of as a gift is a curse?

“An extraordinary novel, a poetic writer, and a story that moved me to tears.[An] impressively confident debut - Guardian on WHEN ALL IS SAIDGriffin is a magical storyteller whose prose is effortless and clear. - Daily Mail on WHEN ALL IS SAIDA book to savour, and pass on. An absolute joy - Sunday Mirror on WHEN ALL IS SAID”

A wonderfully unexpected tale of love, death and everything in between -- Graham Norton, Sunday Times-bestselling author of Keeper and Home Stretch
Stunning - a book that surpasses all expectations and thoroughly cements Anne Griffin's place on the short but venerable list of writers whose work is always a must-read. A delicately-hewn delight from first sentence to last -- Billy Callaghan, Irish bestselling author of Life Sentences
Absorbing and heartwarming . . . There are deep thoughts sown beneath the light and charming surfaces of Griffin's novels. Her books are fable-like, deep musings on life, mortality, and what makes a life worth living, philosophy for everyday readers, cleverly disguised as a good old-fashioned story Irish Times
Carries many of the winsome Irish signature traits we expect of Griffin Irish Sunday Times
Ireland's long line of magical storytellers is further enriched by Anne Griffin, who follows her poignant debut When All is Said with another outstanding read . . . Griffin explores the tension between instinct and duty in a powerful, moving novel, deftly weaving the strands of the story to create a masterpiece that lingers long in the memory Sunday Express
The setting and its supernatural undertow allow Griffin's humour to sparkle . . . there is a lesson in this quirky account of duty shirked and freedom tasted Irish Independent
Some surprising twists and turns . . . kept me engaged to the end Sunday Independent
Listening Still marries rural realism with the supernatural very convincingly and beautifully highlights the small, but important, moments of life and death -- Irish Examiner
A warm and funny read, full of lovely characters and poignant moments. Good Housekeeping
There's bags of charm here Daily Mail
Tender, gentle and warm-hearted Best
An emotional, funny look at human relationships in all their forms. My Weekly Special
Listening Still is very good and I would recommend it . . . It's a really exciting story and . . . highly interesting . . . actually quite enthralling, and even though it sounds wild, as you read the book it seems entirely feasible Athlone Advertiser
A highly original story about a family-run undertaking business TheGloss.ie
Griffin sensitively explores Jeanie's struggle for self-fulfilment in an assured second novel. Observer

Anne Griffin's first novel When All is Said was a Number One bestseller in Ireland in 2019 and chosen as the Sunday Independent Newcomer of the Year in the An Post Irish Book Awards. It was also shortlisted for the John McGahern Annual Book and the RSL Christopher Bland prizes. Her second novel Listening Still was also a bestseller in Ireland. Her work has been published in 23 territories. The Island of Longing is her third novel. She lives in Co. Westmeath, Ireland.

Jeanie Masterson has a gift: she can hear the last words of the dead. Passed down from generation to generation, this gift means she is able to make wrongs right, to give voice to unspoken love and dying regrets. She and her father have worked happily alongside each other for years, but now he's unexpectedly announced that he wants to retire early and leave the business to her and her life is called into question. Does she really want to be married to the embalmer, or does she want to be with her childhood sweetheart, off in London? Does she want to have children, and pass this gift on to them? And does she want to be stuck in this small town, or is there more of the world she wants to see - like the South of France, where she's discovered a woman who shares her gift? Tied to her home by this unusual talent, she begins to question: what if what she's always thought of as a gift is a curse?

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