Hood

In the late '70s Irish convent school teenager Pen O'Grady fell in love with fellow student Cara Wall. Pen, an appealing heroine who is feisty yet vulnerable, and Cara, a free spirit who follows no path but her own, prove themselves to be up to the challenge of a love deemed unacceptable in Catholic Ireland. Their tumultuous relationship, full of love and passion and desire and flight, survives infidelities of all sorts--until they reach their late 20s, when Cara dies in a car accident. Through the elegant use of flashbacks intermingled with the harsh present-day reality of Cara's upcoming funeral, Pen reveals a sexy, beautifully written love story filled with the bittersweet reflections and emotional complexity of an intimate relationship. Above all, it is a graceful tale about coming to terms with loss.