Firefly Summer

Kate and John Ryan are happy in Mountfern, a peaceful and friendly village - and, for their four young children, an unchanging backdrop to a golden childhood. The summers are long and hot, and the twins Michael and Dara, and their siblings Eddie and Declan have, in the ivy­ clad ruins of Fernscourt, the once-grand house on the bank of the rivyr burned down during the Troubles, a place to play like no other. Then Patrick O'Neill, an Irish American with a great deal of money in his pocket, buys the ruins of Fernscourt. No-one in Mountfern could have guessed what Patrick's dream would mean for their small village, and it's not until the very end of this tale of love won and lost that Patrick O'Neill himself will understand the irony and significance of his grand dream for Fernscourt ... 'Binchy's novels are never less than entertaining. They are, without exception, repositories of common sense and good humour ... chronicled with tenderness and wit' SUNDAY TIMES 'Another joyful, absorbing Binchy read with lots of heart' I RJ'S'I1 I ES 'Full of warmth and pure delight' WOMAN & HOME FIREFLY SUMMER Maeve Binchy was born in County Dublin and was educated at the Holy Child Convent in Killiney and at University College Dublin. After a spell as a teach er in various girls' schools, she joined the Irish Times, for which she wrote feature articles and columns. Her first novel, Light a Penny Candle, was published in 1982, and since then she has written more than a dozen novels and short­ story collections, each one of them a bestseller. Several have been adapted for cinema and television, most notably Circle of Friends in 1995. She was awarded the Lifetime Achievement award at the British Book Awards in 1999. She is married to the writer and broadcaster Gordon Snell. Visit her website at www.maevebinchy.com Praise for 'Firefly Summer . Firefly Summer is warm, humorous, sad and happy. Reading it is a joy' Irish Independent 'Binchy's novels are never less than entertaining. They are, without exception, repositories of common sense and good humour . . . chronicled with tenderness and wit' Sunday Times 'Maeve Binchy is one of the few writers who can pull at your heartstrings . . . reading her books is like gossiping with old friends' Daily Express Also by Maeve Binchy Fiction Light a Penny Candle Circle of Friends Victoria Line, Central Line Dublin 4 The Lilac Bus Echoes Silver Wedding The Copper Beech The Glass Lake Evening Class Tara Road Scarlet Feather Quentins Nights of Rain and Stars Whitethorn Woods Non-fiction Aches & Pains FIREFLY SUMMER arrow books Published in the United Kingdom by Arrow Books in 2006 5 7 910 8 6 Copyright © Maeve Binchy, 1987 Maeve Binchy has asserted her right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988 to be identified as the author of this work. This is a work of fiction. Names and characters are the product of the author's imagination and any resemblance to actual persons, living