Tag: David Park

Published May 8th, 2025 by Oneworld
Historical Fiction, Gothic Fiction, War Story

Welcome to my review for this poignant and affecting novel. Thank you to Oneworld for sending me a copy of the book in exchange for my honest review.

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ABOUT THE BOOK:

A POIGNANT STORY OF LOVE AND REGRET, FROM A MASTER OF CONTEMPORARY IRISH FICTION

* ‘David Park is one of Ireland’s great novelists.’ Roddy Doyle, author of The Commitments *

For fans of Sebastian Faulks, Donal Ryan and Anne Tyler comes this beautiful novel following two troubled men, separated by nearly a century, bound by the ghosts of their past

When George Allenby is put in charge of building a lake in the grounds of an imposing Irish manor house, he intends to do the job as swiftly as possible and return to Belfast. Allenby is still wrestling with his time as an officer during the First World War, burdened by the many things he could have done differently.

Almost a century later, Alex and Ellie are preparing for their wedding, sparing no expense to hire a venue overlooking the very lake Allenby built all those years ago.

Like Allenby before him, Alex is haunted by decisions he made in the past. Now, with the wedding drawing ever closer, he is at a crossroads. Telling the truth might free him from his guilt; it might also take away everything he cares about, including Ellie. 

In this masterful portrait of love and betrayal, David Park reveals the many ways the past seeps into the present: destructive, formidable, but also hopeful, in the moments of fragile beauty that remain.

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MY REVIEW:

Ireland, 1920s. George Allenby is put in charge of creating a lake and boat house in the grounds of the Remington family’s imposing manor house. It is an unenviable task plagued by bad weather and the mud makes the job even harder for George, who is haunted by his time in the trenches during the Great War and the ghosts of the men they lost. All he wants is to finish, go home to Belfast and forget. 

A century later, Alex and Ellie book the Boat House of the Manor House Hotel for the wedding, known as ‘the ghost house’ by everyone who works there. But Alex is haunted by his own ghost and regrets of a night years earlier. As the wedding approaches, his guilt deepens. He longs to unburden himself but knows that if he confesses then he risks losing everything.

Hopeful, moving, and thought-provoking, Ghost Wedding is a poignant and lingering story about the ways in which our past can haunt our present. David Park showcases himself to be a masterful storyteller with exquisitely written prose and by moving between timelines and narrators to create a storyline that is inextricably interwoven. It is a story that is deeply human, exploring the aftermath of our choices and how we can be haunted by guilt. He examines how these so-called eponymous ghosts can affect our present and our future, shaping our destiny in ways that can be devastating. 

Beautiful and affecting, I highly recommend this novel. Just make sure you are emotionally prepared before you start. 

Rating: ✮✮✮✮✰

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

David Park is a novelist from Northern Ireland. He grew up in a Protestant working-class family in East Belfast, and wrote seven novels while working as a teacher, before retiring to write full time.

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BUY THE BOOK:

Bookshop.org* | Waterstones* | Amazon*
*These are affiliate links

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Thanks for reading, Bibliophiles xxxx