Saoirse by Charleen Hurtubise
on February 24, 2026
Genres: Fiction / Coming of Age, Fiction / Places / Europe, Fiction / Thrillers / Suspense, Fiction / Women
Pages: 256
Format: ARC
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Saoirse completely surprised me—in the best way.
I’ll be honest: based on the cover alone, I didn’t think this book was going to be for me. But once I settled into the story, I found myself deeply invested. The novel begins slowly, but that pacing is intentional, allowing space to build Saoirse’s world and gently layer in her past.
In the present, she is living in Ireland under the name Saoirse (pronounced Sear-sha)—a name that sounds like the sea and means freedom in the language of her adopted country. She resides on the rugged coast of Donegal with her husband, Daithi, and their two children. On the surface, she has built a quiet, loving life—but there’s an undercurrent of unease, the feeling that something fragile is holding it all together and that something bad is coming.
The story then takes us back to Michigan, where she was once Sarah, a child shaped by fear, silence, and trauma beyond what you can imagine. We are taken on the journey of how she survived and ultimately escaped to Ireland. These glimpses of her past are haunting and deeply emotional, adding weight to every choice she makes in the present.
Art plays a powerful role in this novel. Saoirse expresses her pain through her paintings—work she doesn’t truly want to be recognized for, despite her tremendous talent. When her art begins to gain attention, it threatens the life she has so carefully and quietly built. The tension is subtle but constant, driven by memory, identity, and the fear of being truly seen.
This is a beautifully written, lyrical novel that lingers long after the final page. It’s emotionally heavy, thoughtful, and deeply human—one I’ll be thinking about for quite some time. Saoirse would make an excellent book club selection, especially for readers who enjoy discussing the gritty and emotional aspects of life, survival, and reinvention.
A huge thank you to Celadon Books for the advance copy for my Little Free Library—my LFL patrons are going to devour this.
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