BOOKS
Reading
Notes
by Orna Mulcahy
E
venings are long and diaries empty, so its a good time for vicarious
thrill-seeking. Daisy Buchanans debut novel INSATIABLE, Sphere,
€14.99, delivers, with its vivid reminders of a time when people
worked in offices, mingled at parties and snogged each other
senseless. As filthy as it is funny is how Dolly Alderton describes it
and there are plenty of laugh-out-loud moments between sex scenes so vividly
drawn youll be glad of the privacy of a Kindle. Buchanan is absolutely fearless
and one can only hope theres a sequel on the way ... Ok, lets imagine the worst
and mankind is doomed. Another debut, Bethany Clifts THE LAST ONE AT THE
PARTY, Hodder & Stoughton, €16.99, hurtles us forward to 2023 when a far
deadlier virus takes hold of the world and wipes out everyone everyone except
one woman who now has plenty of time to ponder the identity of her newborn
child. Having buried her loved ones, she puts herself up at Londons poshest
hotels and raids the empty halls of Harrods for Birkin bags and vintage Krug. A
true pandemic page-turner, with a satisfactorily chilling end ...
With events so distracting, even the most dedicated readers are finding it
difficult to concentrate on big reads. Short stories and essays fill the gap. For
those who like things bleak and beautiful, UNDER A DARK ANGELS EYE,
Virago, €18, is a new collection of stories from Patricia Highsmith, author of
The Talented Mr Ripley and Strangers on a Train. This collection, which marks
the 100th anniversary of her birth and includes two previously unpublished
stories, has unease and menace oozing from the most respectable situations ...
JOAN DIDION: LET ME TELL YOU WHAT I MEAN, Knopf, €18.99, is a slim
collection of early essays from the writer who so movingly chronicled the loss
of her husband John Gregory Dunne in the Pulitzer Prize-winning The Year of
Magical Thinking. Now the subject of a superb Netflix documentary, The Centre
Will Not Hold, this collection finds her dropping in on Nancy Reagan, attending
a Gamblers Anonymous meeting, musing on long-distance running. Didions
spare style of writing is refreshing in an age of oversharing ... It wasnt until the
age of 60 that romantic novelist Rosamunde Pilcher hit the bestseller list with The
Shell Seekers, voted one of the best 100 books in Britain by the BBC. Pilcher sold
a staggering 60m books before her death in 2019 at the age of 94. A PLACE LIKE
HOME, Hodder & Stoughton, €17.90, is a new hardback collection of 15 stories
set in gorgeous romantic locations, from the Scottish highlands to Mediterranean
islands where the sun pours onto hotel balconies furnished with iced bottles of
champagne. Of course, love wins out, most of the time, in these charming stories
that are surprisingly comforting to read, like literary gravity blankets ... Escape
to the country? Hmmm be careful. THE SMASH UP by Ali Benjamin, Hachette,
€17, has a smart New York couple, Ethan and Zenobia, decamp to nowheresville
in search of some peace and quiet but instead they find themselves embroiled
in hashtag hell as controversy erupts around Ethans business partner. Soon
their marriage is buckling under the strain of a MeToo crisis as tweets fly and
neighbours flee ... Calm and reassuring, in A WHOLE NEW PLAN FOR LIVING:
ACHIEVING BALANCE AND WELLNESS IN A CHANGING WORLD, Hachette,
€17, psychiatrist Jim Lucey writes compassionately about the gut-wrenching
stress of mental illness and how it can be overcome ... Dark, funny, immensely
generous, artist Francis Bacon is exhaustively probed in an authorised biography
ten years in the making. FRANCIS BACON REVELATIONS, Harper Collins,
€40, by acclaimed art critics Mark Stevens and Annalyn Swan, includes new
information about Bacons childhood in Ireland, his life in London, Paris,Tangiers
and Spain, and his vast network of friends that put him in the very centre of the
artistic world. n @OrnaMulcahy
26 February 2021 THE GLOSS MAGAZINE
WHAT'S ON MY BEDSIDE TABLE
Danielle McLaughlin, author
"I was blown away by The Earth, Thy Great
Exchequer, Ready Lies (Swift Press), the
debut story collection from Jo Lloyd. Such
gracefulness to the writing, such deftness in
the way Lloyd draws the reader deeper into
each story. Im thoroughly enjoying Strange
Beasts of China by Yan Ge (Tilted Axis
Press). Set in a city where fabled beasts live
alongside humans, its intriguing and thoughtprovoking. Tania Hershmans collection And
What If We Were All Allowed To Disappear
(Guillemot Press) is a thing of beauty, with
text, visuals and texture combining to
produce ingeniously layered pieces. Rumaan
Alam creates a brilliant scenario in Leave the
World Behind (Bloomsbury). A family in a
holiday rental are startled when the owners
arrive on the doorstep asking to stay the
night as they claim an emergency is unfolding
outside. In her magnificent second novel, Hot
Stew (Workman), Fiona Mozley presents a
superbly realised cast of characters whose
lives and stories are interwoven around the
fate of a building in Soho. And for the times
we live in, the Daily Calm by Padraig OMorain
is set to become part of my daily routine. Find
it at www.padraigomorain.com." McLaughlins
debut novel, The Art of Falling, has just been
published in the US, UK and Ireland.
ALWAYS IN PRINT
THE ENCHANTED APRIL
BY ELIZABETH VON ARNIM
In damp and dreary London one February,
four very different women spot the same
newspaper advertisement: To Those who
Appreciate Wisteria and Sunshine. Small
Mediaeval Italian Castle on the shores of the
Mediterranean to be Let. They swap the
metropolis, with its uncaring husbands and
silly suitors, for a sun-drenched garden by
the sea. Friendship and love flourish among
the tumbling geraniums and fiery nasturtiums
as the sunshine heals old wounds and puts
everyone in a much better
mood. Just shy of its 100th
birthday and an instant
bestseller when published
in 1922, The Enchanted April
is credited with putting
Portofino on the tourist
map. Von Arnim, a cousin
of Katherine Mansfield,
wrote the story while
staying at Castello Brown
in the village, and this was
also the setting for the 1991
movie of the book.
PEOPLE, PLACES AND THINGS / HAPPY WITH WHAT WE HAVE / FAR FROM THE MADDING CROWDS / TALKING POINTS MAGAZINE FEBRUARY 2021 with THE IRISH TIMES www.thegloss.ie DRESSING DOWN CHANGING THINGS UP
BROWN THOMAS, GRAFTON STREET, DUBLIN 2
CONTENTS IN THIS ISSUE THE GLOSS MONTHLY REMINDER SIGN UP to receive a monthly reminder by email when THE GLOSS is out so that you never miss an issue. Simply register your details on WWW.THEGLOSS.IE. PU B LI S H E R JA N E M C D O N N E LL E D I TO R SA RA H M C D O NN E LL D E PU T Y E D I TO
PEOPLE PLACES THINGS TWO UP LEAGUE CO U Gloss~ip February fashion, fiction and frivolity ES Y IV Frida Kahlo, Winston Churchill and Edith Warton all loved WFB (working from bed) à la Miss Monocle by Slim Aarons. RS MICHAEL KORS Upgrade lockdown learning with The Science of Well-Being Course
Always set the right atmosphere. inductionAir Plus guarantees fresh air in your open kitchen and maximum flexibility for perfect hosting thanks to the combination of a modern induction hob with a powerful and integrated ventilation unit. siemens-home.bsh-group.com/ie The future moving in. BSH Grou
PEOPLE PLACES THINGS A ATHFLOW The new fashion buzz word for 2021? Athflow. It's where athleisure meets elegance. Smart enough for a client Zoom meeting, stretchy enough for an online Pilates class. Think flowy pull-on trousers, ballet pumps and wrap-around cardis, oversized shirting, jumpsuits a
H PEOPLE PLACES THINGS is for fashion hook-ups. Designer Niamh ONeill has collaborated with vegan chef and sustainability advocate, Holly White, to co-create a six-piece eco-responsible capsule collection. The duo's versatile dresses, wrap tops, a silk-satin slip skirt and a bias-cut silk blouse ar
Oat-based milk chocolate, ice cream, cheese, yoghurt, and even double cream are coming our way this year, according to Baileys food futurologist Dr Morgaine Gaye and a cohort of global treat makers. Expect other (Instagrammable) trends such as luxurious savoury spreads. Champagne butter and sloe gin
WORKING OUT PEOPLE PLACES THINGS Beaded belt; www.chanel.com. WAISTS Waists are the focus for SS21. Specifically belted, bejewelled waists. How to get yours in shape this year? Smart home gyms are really taking off. Consider mirror training. A tech-enabled magic mirror (above) turns into a fancy
NEW DISCOVERY SPORT PLUG-IN HYBRID CHARGED FOR ADVENTURE NEVER STOP DISCOVERING You can now take the kids to their various adventures more efficiently with the New Discovery Sport Plug-in Hybrid. With an EV-only range of up to 55km, its perfect for your hectic week, and when the weekend comes, you
PEOPLE PLACES THINGS 1 2 Spot The Trend 3 SCHIAPARELLI Aislinn Coffey loves spring's coolest colour 5 4 8 6 7 9 10 11 11 SPRING CREAMS Pantone named Babys Breath, a tinted offwhite, as one of five core colours we can expect to see thoughout 2021. Ever since we saw Jenna Lyons, the woman
Respect the exceptional. The difference is Gaggenau. The Kerry, the Hinterwälder-Rind and the Welsh Black are examples of remarkable breeds. While some of these breeds can trace their lineage back to Roman times, today they may only number in the hundreds. The exceptional, finest and most prized; d
INTERIOR S + D ESIGN at I NTE RI ORS + D E S I GN 25 Rockhill, Main St, Blackrock, Co Dublin 01 9631383 info@rockhillinteriors.com www.rockhillinteriors.com
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PEOPLE PLACES THINGS Fashion Notes Sand Kaia blazer, 349; www.aninebing.com. Blue Original straight-leg jeans, Totême, 216.41, at Brown Thomas. STRAIGHT-LEG BALMAIN VICTORIA BECKHAM by Aislinn Coffey VALENTINO BOOT-CUT STYLING IDEAS BALLET PUMPS What to wear with new denims 18 February
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PEOPLE PLACES THINGS Beauty Notes JIL SANDER by Sarah Halliwell A NEW MOOD The perfect scent for spring, grounding beauty + tinted lip care 1. LIP CARE I love many Charlotte Tilbury products whod be without Flawless Filter? but her new tinted lip balms are overpriced (€32 for just 2.4g), and ho
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FOOD Life Gives You Lemons by Trish Deseine I n the cold, dark days of early February, never have we needed a change of scene quite so much, nor craved sunshine, nor dreamt more of faraway shores. In my kitchen and on my plate, I am simply heading far South and far East to recharge and dream unti
Book a design consultation and discover a new way of living. Call us today to book your design consultation Gaggenau authorised partner 46 Serpentine Avenue Ballsbridge Dublin 4 +353 1 660 4856 www.mcnallyliving.ie
BOOKS Reading Notes by Orna Mulcahy E venings are long and diaries empty, so its a good time for vicarious thrill-seeking. Daisy Buchanans debut novel INSATIABLE, Sphere, €14.99, delivers, with its vivid reminders of a time when people worked in offices, mingled at parties and snogged each other
DESIGN INTERIORS BESPOKE FURNITURE Creators of luxury homes Head Office/ Ballycoolin Showroom Units 12/13, Block 8 Blanchardstown Corporate Park Ballycoolin, Dublin 15 01 820 8480 Deansgrange Showroom Unit F, Deansgrange Business Park Kill Lane Blackrock, Co. Dublin 01 207 0702 +353 1 820 8480
JEWELLERY Paris Hilton's pear-cut 20ct diamond engagement ring. LOVE IS IN THE AIR In these months of uncertainty, diamonds last forever. Perhaps it's time for a memorable gesture From left to right: Yellow gold/platinum and round brilliant-cut diamond engagement ring, 2,745, at Weir & Sons; www.w
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ESSAY The Remembering Rope by Polly Devlin For new readers and seasoned ones ... This is the seventh episode in the loose concoction called The Remembering Rope a series of memories describing the fruits of my travels and my addiction to collecting an addiction which skewed my life as all addict
ESSAY from it. When it was finally up and running, it was organised and captivating. It bridged minimalism and conceptualism and she wasnt a stranger to drollery. Yoko liked to play with conceits, ideas and concepts and of course, words. (Her book Grapefruit in 1964 was eye and brain-opening and su
TRAVEL Travel Notes PETER MATTHEWS by Tim Magee T heres a scene from the penultimate series of Mad Men, as good a lockdown rewatch as any, when Don is just back from Hawaii with his pain-in-the-hoop new wife Megan. Alone in his office there is a beautifully framed shot of him looking through th
INTERIORS The Look I Love Blue tapered 42cm candles, Ester & Eric, 5.26 each; www. signaturerentals.ie. Natural coated linen placemat, 23; www.hedgeroe.com. Aislinn Coffey deconstructs an inviting dining space THE DETAILS MONTSE GARRIGA GRAU A dining room inspired by a coastal palette COLOURS So
BEAUTY COST EFF€CTIVE THE 2021 BEAUTY BUCKET LIST GARETH BROMELL Lets redress the balance of last year and fix all the things we neglected. SARAH HALLIWELL discusses the latest, greatest and most cost-effective options ... YOU HAVE 20 TO SPEND RAISE YOUR BROWS Get your eyebrows professionally
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THIS GLOSSY LIFE CABIN FEVER Apart from the crowds but reassuringly close to five-star facilities luxe hideaways have become the main attraction, says PENNY McCORMICK T he lure of rural escapism has never been stronger, it seems. Glamping or glamorous camping which embraces everything from tepe
THIS GLOSSY LIFE FINNLOUGH BUBBLE DOMES, CO FERMANAGH USP: Weve all been in a social bubble, this is a literal one. The futuristic domes have four-poster beds, ensuite bathrooms, Nespresso machines and fluffy robes. Onsite options also include Lakeside Lodges, Waterside Cottages and catered suites.
THIS GLOSSY LIFE CONTEMPORARY COTTAGES OWENMORE COTTAGE, BALLYNAHINCH CASTLE HOTEL, CONNEMARA USP: This luxurious self-catering six-bedroom cottage opened last year and can sleep up to twelve guests. Surrounded by forest on the 700-acre Ballynahinch estate, it has views of the winding Owenmore Riv
THIS GLOSSY LIFE CIARA NIGHTS IN NATURE The Cabin Convert Zoomed, Zoflored and zonked out, Ciara has a pending Q2 strategy document to complete. As a financial analyst she is advising a client on the prospect of a long term bounceback. For this she needs complete silence and order. Aware that the
IN THE NEWS STAR POWER JUSTIN SULLIVAN Kamala Harris, the daughter of immigrants who both received doctorates from UC Berkeley, served as California attorney general and San Francisco district attorney, before being elected to the Senate in 2016. Last month, she became the first African-American
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