From the bestselling author of Ask Again, Yes comes an Irish-American family novel spanning both decades and continents, full of tenderness, wit and humanity

'I MISSED THIS BOOK WHENEVER I WASN'T READING IT' FLORENCE KNAPP

'I COULDN'T STOP READING' RODDY DOYLE

'AN EXQUISITE FAMILY EPIC' CLAIRE LYNCH

An immersive multi-generational family story from the beloved and bestselling author of Ask Again, Yes

Connemara, Ireland, 1963. Sixteen-year-old Macdara and his brothers are aware from a young age that they must one day leave their small fishing village to make their way in the world. But that time comes sooner than expected in the wake of a sudden tragedy, when their father makes choices for his eleven grieving sons. The older boys will emigrate to England for work, while the younger ones will stay at home.

Macdara, the second eldest, is offered a job on a Montana cattle ranch and prepares to set off. His spirited younger brother Rian begs to go with him, and Mac promises to bring Rian to America as soon as he's old enough.

Mac embarks upon his new life, trying not to think about all he has left behind. And then one day he receives a call to say that Rian has disappeared. The weight of his unkept promise will haunt Mac through the years, as he and the older brothers move to New York to build lives and families of their own. It will take a new generation to confront the mystery of Rian's absence and seek to reunite them all.

Spanning decades and continents, Whale Harbour is a warm, immersive and unforgettable novel that explores the emotional resonance of family and the depths of the human heart.

Details

ISBN13: 9781399639002
Format: Paperback / softback
Number of Pages: 352
Edition:
Publication Date: 27 Oct 2026
Publisher: Orion Publishing Co
Publication City, Country: London, United Kingdom
Dimensions (cm): 23(H)x15.2(L)x2.8(W)440
Weight (gm): 440

Author Biography

Mary Beth Keane was awarded a John S. Guggenheim fellowship for fiction writing, and has received citations from the National Book Foundation, PEN America, and the Hemingway Society. She is the author of The Half Moon, The Walking People, Fever, and Ask Again, Yes, which spent eight weeks on the New York Times bestseller list. To date, Ask Again, Yes has been translated into twenty-two languages.

Reviews

Tender, immersive and exquisitely written, Whale Harbour is the story of a family that seems borne out of both the land and the sea - one that aches with regret and thrums with longing. Mary Beth Keane finds the quiet in amongst the bustle of eleven brothers, to pore over their shared mythology and explore the loss, remorse, and fraternal bonds that follow each far into adulthood. I felt I knew the whole cast of characters intimately, as well as the landscapes they existed in - the Joyce's Connemara, Montana, and New York will remain etched in my mind. I missed this book whenever I wasn't reading it. Mary Beth Keane is one of my favourite storytellers and here, she's at her finest. I adored it -- Florence Knapp, bestselling author of The Names
Whale Harbour is an epic, almost mythic, novel. Keane is a master storyteller -- Claire Kilroy, author of Soldier Sailor
Whale Harbour is an exquisite family epic. I was completely invested in the fates of all the Joyce brothers. The places and people were so expertly drawn, I felt like I walked beside them the whole way -- Claire Lynch, author of A Family Matter
I picked up Whale Harbour and couldn't stop reading. The gang of brothers, the missing brother, the father, the daughter, the whole family, Ireland, everything - it's a great story, and beautifully written -- Roddy Doyle, author of Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha
Whale Harbour is a sweeping family saga which gets to the heart of the Irish immigrant experience, from Connemara to Montana. Epic in scope and rich in detail, Whale Harbor understands the complex nature of family bonds, and the way that certain places never relinquish their hold on our imaginations -- Roisín O’Donnell, author of Nesting
Whale Harbour is a very special book, the kind that comes along rarely. It is epic in scope yet, at the same time, so intimate and immersive I could scarcely catch my breath as I read. A meditation on what it means to be a family with all the secret heartaches and disappointments, the losses, and above all, the love that binds them together. Truly magnificent -- Clare Leslie Hall, bestselling author of Broken Country
No one writes about the long arc of family - its loyalties, betrayals and returns - like Mary Beth Keane. Whale Harbour is an expansive, beautiful novel about how time can reshape love and kinship in ways we'd never anticipate, and a reminder that every family contains a world -- Kathy Wang, author of The Satisfaction Cafe