Cal

Bernard MacLaverty 1983

Devastation Rating

Existential Dread
Northern Ireland Troubles guilt love

Our Take

Cal is a young Catholic man in Northern Ireland who was peripherally involved in a murder. He falls in love with the widow of the man he helped kill. MacLaverty's novel is small and devastating — the intimacy of guilt, the impossibility of the love, the inevitability of the ending.

This page contains affiliate links. If you buy a book through one of these links, we earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. Full disclosure →