The Coast Road by Alan Murrin

A poignant debut novel set in 1994 County Donegal, Ireland, focusing on two women, housewife Izzy and poet Colette, navigating restrictive societal norms and troubled marriages as they seek independence. Their friendship deepens as Colette, who left her family for a married man, uses Izzy as a go-between to see her children, leading to a tragic and liberating outcome for them. The book explores themes of female confinement, gossip, and the price of freedom in a pre-divorce Ireland.