An Excess of Love
by Cathy Cash Spellman
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From the best-selling author of So Many Partings comes a powerfully moving story of two sisters who are thrust by circumstance into defying an empire. Elizabeth and Constance FitzGibbon, daughters of an Irish Protestant lord, are sheltered by great wealth and a loving family. But when headstrong Con turns her back on her past to marry an aspiring poet named Tierney O'Connor, who is fiercely devoted to the Irish cause, his fiery dream of revolution propels her into the firestorm of show more revolution. And when Beth FitzGibbon's own marriage to aristocratic Edmond Manningham proves cruelly disappointing, she, too, joins the heart of Ireland's bitter struggle.Dublin is a hotbed of Republican fervor, and the FitzGibbon sisters find themselves at the center of it. With their comrades James Connolly, Padraig Pearse, and Countess Markievicz they suffer hunger strikes and imprisonment. Finally they help plan one of the most audacious revolutions of all time, The Easter Rebellion. When for six days, beginning Easter Monday 1916, a small force of men and women holds out against the British Empire, even though the tragic outcome is never in doubt, the FitzGibbon sisters play out a destiny that is both heroic and unforgettable.This is a story of the extraordinary love that can exist between sisters, and of the love of a country that can demand passion, daring, and sacrifice, in order to fulfill its destiny. In this story, rich with historical detail, the torch is finally passed to the next generation.It is Con and Tierney's son Tahg, who assumes the challenge of his parents' unfinished dream. His fiercest foe is none other than his arrogant cousin, Winston Manningham. Jealousy over a beautiful actress, Kitty O'Neill, inflames their hatred, resulting in tragedy, and as civil war sweeps the nation, Beth's children, too, are engulfed in the carnage. When peace finally comes, it is Beth who bears witness to the fulfillment of a seven-hundred-year-old dream passed from generation to generation. An Excess of Love brings to vivid life the Irish struggle for independence and tells the story of one impassioned family who lives the dream of freedom, and heroically pay the terrible price it exacts. show lessTags
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Member Reviews
The ending fell rather flat-it was a bit corny and cliched. That did nothing to ruin this book for me. I do have a soft spot for the Irish struggles against the English. It made enough of an impression on me that I still own my first yellowed copy.
Le combat de deux générations de 1880 à 1920 dans l'IRA pour l'indépendance de l'Irlande. Entre lutte des classes, combat des religions et amour de l'Irlande.
Jan 29, 2012French
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Author Information
15 Works 615 Members
Cathy Cash Spellman has written several books including So Many Partings, An Excess of Love, Paint the Wind, Lark's Labyrinth, and Snowflake from the Hand of God: A Book of Uncommon Prayer. Her novel Bless the Child was adapted into a movie. (Bowker Author Biography)
Common Knowledge
- Canonical title*
- Zoveel liefde, zoveel tranen
- Original title
- An excess of love
- Original publication date
- 1985
- Important events
- Easter Rising
- Epigraph
- And what if excess of love
Bewildered them till they died?
I write it out in a verse--
MacDonagh and MacBride
And Connolly and Pearse
Now and in time to be,
Wherever the gree is worn,
And changed changed ... (show all)utterly;
A terrible beauty is born.
--William Butler Years
"Easter 1918" - Dedication
- To my sister Conny:
For the comfort of your hand across
the uneven years...
For always, always coming through,
and the odds be damned--
For all the trust and love and laughter...
With all my heart, this bo... (show all)ok is yours. - First words
- I always loved my sister.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)And, of course, theirs.
- Canonical DDC/MDS
- 813.54
- Canonical LCC
- PS3569.P445
*Some information comes from Common Knowledge in other languages. Click "Edit" for more information.
Classifications
- Genres
- Fiction and Literature, General Fiction, Historical Fiction, Romance
- DDC/MDS
- 813.54 — Literature & rhetoric American literature in English American fiction in English 1900-1999 1945-1999
- LCC
- PS3569 .P445 — Language and Literature American literature American literature Individual authors 1961-
- BISAC
Statistics
- Members
- 77
- Popularity
- 410,585
- Reviews
- 2
- Rating
- (4.00)
- Languages
- 5 — Dutch, English, French, German, Swedish
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 14
- ASINs
- 4
