Books

Catalogue



cover
5 

Title: Limestone
Authors: Farrell, Fiona
Genre: Fiction: New Zealand
Pages: 240
Year: 2009
Language: English
Description: Clare Lacey is on a quest. In Ireland to attend an art-history conference, she sets out to find her father who walked out one day to buy a pack of cigarettes when she was a child, and disappeared. She is urged on her way by chance encounters: with a woman in a high tower, a blind man at a crossroads, a couple of rotund earthlings, a singer whose song she does not understand... Clues lie all around on a labyrinth of walls - but the final clue lies deep within. This is a contemporary novel about inheritance, belief, art, love... and limestone. [Taken from book cover.] NZ Interest

Comments from Groups:

Most of us were captivated by this book - the writing, the characters and the descriptions. It is very NZ and probably will appeal more to women than male readers. Auckland 039

Several of the group found the opening chapter too wordy and philosophical to hold their interest. But we all enjoyed the NZ flavour of the novel. Hamilton 029

A beautifully written and evocative book enjoyed by all the group. Provoked a lively discussion. Greytown 001

One of our members said it all for us - a wonderful poem but not a novel. We all agreed it was well researched and the prose was impressive, with some memorable phrases and sentences. Lower Hutt 004

We all agreed Fiona Farell gets better and better and we all fell under her amazing spell in Limestone. Not a word of criticism. Auckland 199

Categories: Fiction NZ, Relationships, Ireland, Blind Low Vision library

Reviews

[Please log in to write a review]
By: HAMIL 068 2025-05-26 09:40:02
4 
Beautifully written, a real literary piece of fiction delivering a profound life event; leaving the characters with layers upon layers of hurt and abandonment. The cultural link between N.Z. and Ireland was a nice connection. But our group had mixed reviews, those who managed to read it thoroughly enjoyed, while others struggled and lost interest, as was not captivating enough.

By: NEWP 004 2025-05-07 11:36:42
4.5 
Very enjoyable book. Clever writing.

By: DUNED 062 2023-03-13 12:25:40
4 
Mixed reaction. Some said "too slow".

By: WELL 189 2022-12-15 14:47:22
4 
Interesting book. Jumps around quite a bit. Would have liked to explore some of the themes that the author only touched on. Quite a lot of discussion.

By: WAIPUK 001 2022-09-01 12:02:45
3 
Half our group did not like this book, while the other half quite enjoyed it. No one really loved it, but it provoked very lively discussion. Being familiar with Oamaru and its environs, I could relate better than most and thought it very evocative of time and place.

By: WHANG 004 2022-09-01 12:00:35
4 
Most of us really enjoyed the book, especially the writing, but all agreed there was a little too much description.

By: PALMN 016 2022-09-01 11:58:36
3 
We all acknowledged the excellent prose; she really has a way with words. Some of us found the innumerable digressions, while learned and interesting, often got in the way of the narrative itself. We had a very good discussion.

By: MARTIN 001 2022-09-01 11:56:22
3 
Not much enthusiasm for this book, but some enjoyed her style of writing.

By: BALCL 001 2022-09-01 11:55:25
4 
Intriguing read, enjoyed by almost all. Wonderfully written, beautifully descriptive. Some new Fiona Farrell fans here now! The twist at the end of the book was a surprise, and most enjoyed the humour of the last scene. Anyone who knows Oamaru would love this book.

By: NELS 009 2022-09-01 11:53:27
4.5 
We all enjoyed this book with its many layers and facets which made for animated discussion. Some talked about her wonderful prose, others commented on the rich character descriptions, while some felt the author had taken us on an incredibly informative historic art journey. We will now look for further books by Fiona Farrell to request.

By: TAUR 015 2022-09-01 11:50:24
5 
A lovely New Zealand read. A good twist at the end.

By: WELL 001 2022-09-01 11:48:38
4 
A mixed reaction, which was very healthy for discussion - did the novel ramble or not, was it at times over-written A successful choice.

By: DUNED 058 2022-09-01 11:43:44
5 
We all thoroughly enjoyed this book - we've never rated a book the highest score before! Farrell is a wonderful writer.

 
The Book Discussion 
Scheme is a member of the Federation of Workers Educational Associations in Aotearoa New Zealand
BDS is a member of the Federation of Workers Educational Associations
Top