This Must Be the Place

This Must Be the Place by Maggie O'Farrell

Fiction

2016

Finished on October 1, 2025

Rating: 2/5 (OK)

Publisher's Blurb:

Daniel Sullivan leads a complicated life. A New Yorker living in the wilds of Ireland, he has children he never sees in California, a father he loathes in Brooklyn, and his wife, Claudette, is a reclusive ex-film star given to pulling a gun on anyone who ventures up their driveway. Together, they have made an idyllic life in the country, but a secret from Daniel's past threatens to destroy their meticulously constructed and fiercely protected home. Shot through with humor and wisdom, This Must Be the Place is an irresistible love story that crisscrosses continents and time zones as it captures an extraordinary marriage, and an unforgettable family, with wit and deep affection.

In a crazy effort to read all of Maggie O'Farrell's books, I stuck with this one in spite of my irritation with the structure of the novel. Anyone who has read O'Farrell's works is familiar with both her nonlinear timelines and multiple points of view. I have enjoyed a few of her books with these formats, but This Must Be the Place pushed me to my limit. Allow me to share the following line-up for each chapter:

Daniel 2010

Claudette 1989

Niall 1999

Phoebe 2010

Auction Catalog 2005

Donegal 2010

Claudette 1993

Daniel 2010

Lenny 1994

Donegal 2010

Todd 1986    

Lucas 1995

Daniel 2010

Claudette 1996

Teresa 1944

Daniel 2010

Maeve 2003

Ari 2010

Daniel 1986

Daniel 2010

Nicola & Daniel 1986

Niall 2013

Claudette & Daniel 2013

Interview with Timou 2014

Lucas 2014

Rosalind 2015

Ari, Calvin & Marithe 2016

Daniel 2016

There you have it. If my calculations are correct there are 16 points of view. As it's Daniel's story, he is the primary narrator, but the complex puzzle of a story made my head hurt. (I didn't even try to keep track of the locations!)

This is not the sort of book you can set down for more than a day without losing your place in the narrative. The prose is lovely, and the conclusion was satisfying, but this is not a book that I can recommend. I can't imagine what it would be like to listen to the audiobook. The novel really needs more than two readers (and the male's delivery is bland and annoying), and the constant shift between characters, time, and place would be agonizing. Thankfully, I had the print edition, which I promptly threw across the room once I finished. Bah!

20 Books of Summer Reading Challenge Results - 2025

 

The 20 Books of Summer Reading Challenge is one of my favorite reading challenges, and this is the sixth year that I've participated. I prefer to wait until the fall equinox (September 21st) rather than Labor Day to finish up the challenge, giving myself three extra weeks to complete my goals.

Once again, I chose 20 books, and had a mix of new releases and backlist titles. I had four that I gave up on, but subbed in nine (some for book club, as well as a few audio selections). All in all, I wound up reading seventeen books, and I'm very pleased with my results. Seven of the books were over 400 pages, and one of those was over 600 pages. 

Below is an image of my original picks. I'm currently reading This Must Be the Place, and I still plan to read The Lacuna, The House of Special Purpose, The Song of Achilles, Where the Forest Meets the River, The Grey Wolf, and The Nix.  Maybe my fall reading list will include these unread books.

For past posts (and results) about this challenge, click here. 

A Month in Summary - September 2025

Little Whale Cove

Depoe Bay, Oregon

September 2025

Didn't I just post August's summary?! Time truly does seem to speed up the older we get, doesn't it? Since it doesn't really get hot here, summer feels nonexistent (other than the longer days), so when the rainy season arrives, it seems like the year is much shorter. Whatever. Time for another wrap-up.

The first half of the month was spent traveling down and back to the Santa Rosa/Bodega Bay area for my Auntie Sue's memorial. It was nice to spend time with family & friends, as well as a brief visit with our granddaughter. We didn't go on a long road trip this year, so it was good to get out to some of our favorite campgrounds for a couple of weeks.

With that two-week long road trip, and another week of catching up around the house with errands and appointments, it's no wonder I didn't read very many books in September. I also blame my current book which has taken me over two weeks to read. I should have called it quits, but I held out hope that it would improve. Nope. But at this point, I will finish since I'm stubborn. Once I finish that book, I'm on to my fall reading selections (which I shared here). 

Books Read (click on the title for my review):

The Rose Code by Kate Quinn (4.5/5)

The Ride of Her Life by Elizabeth Letts (3.5/5)

Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir (4.5/5)

Movies & TV Series:

Person of Interest (Season One) -  We finished the first season and will take a break before watching more of this show. It's good, but each season has close to two dozen episodes!

The Thursday Murder Club - I haven't read any of the books in this series, so I didn't know what to expect from the movie. We thought it was entertaining and worthwhile.

Unforgotten (Season Six) - This series is ok, and we were kept guessing, but it's not as good as the earlier seasons. I miss Nicola Walker!

I Am a Noise - I would have liked more about her music and career and less about her therapy and the possibility of sexual abuse by her father. Too much navel-gazing.

Travels:

As mentioned above, we were in Bodega Bay for my aunt's memorial. It was great to spend time with family, as well as some of her friends, whom we had met on previous visits.

A bunch of Jacksons

Sue's immediate family

And then we had lunch with our beautiful granddaughter, Shaylyn!

Health News:

I was thrilled that not only did I not need a prescription from my doctor, but I could get my Covid booster even though I'm not 65. Whoohoo. Got my flu shot, too. #itrustscience

R.I.P.:

September ended with sad news of the passing of a dear friend and fellow blogger. You can read my post about Nan here.

Be well, friends. 💕