Genre: Drama / Historical Fiction

Pages: 367

First published: 2024

Original language: English

The plot: On a secluded cliff in Maine sits a house loaded with several lifetime’s worth of secrets. When Jane Flanagan discovers the house as a refuge from her complex home life, it has long since been abandoned. Twenty years later, now a Harvard archivist, separated from her husband following a terrible drunken mistake, Jane returns home to Maine to discover the house transformed by its new owner, Genevieve.

Genevieve, convinced that the house is haunted, asks Jane to research the history of the house and the women who lived there. There follows an expansive story of forbidden love, dark secrets, lovers lost at sea, and the horrors of colonialism, accompanied by Jane’s own voyage of self discovery.

What did I think of this book?

This was the novel that brought me back. After a long period of health issues and chronic insomnia, I was burnt out and in desperate need of a break. We took a holiday to Majorca in April 2025, and on the flight out, I started this novel. Over the next 9 days, I barely put it down.

The Cliffs helped me heal, sleep at night without the aid of tablets, and forced my body to relax. The complex but absorbing narrative engaged my imagination and drew my mind away from my worries. It was an incredible read. The Maine setting is powerful ; I was right there with these characters in a home that is so well drawn you can practically hear the creaks and groans as you read.

I loved The Cliffs because it combines all my favorite literary tropes – a period home filled with secrets, a dramatic landscape to illustrate the drama happening inside the house, historical flashbacks, and a beautiful setting (Maine, a place I’ve wanted to visit for many years).

What was most interesting about this book?

Some reviewers of The Cliffs claim it to be preachy, but I didn’t find it to be so at all. Then again, I’m neither a Maine resident, an American or a scholar of colonialism, so I’m conscious that I viewed this novel through a different lens. I found it to be an effective and moving blend of family drama, hidden secrets and loss, mirrored by the dramatic cliff-top setting. The lead character (Jane) experiences an intense journey of self discovery, and I loved that Sullivan doesn’t give her a traditional happy ending. The house too is a character in this story, and I loved that the narrative is tied with that of the main character, with both receiving the ending they deserve, an ending that feels intrinsically right.

What am I going to take away from this book?

That it is possible to create positive change in our lives, dark as things may seem. Some things are universal, and happen across generations – unrequited love, grief, fluid sexuality. They just weren’t spoken of. I really felt that I learnt something from this book. The respective histories of the UK and USA are intrinsically linked, more so than I’d realized. I found myself wanting to learn more about our shared histories, and how the events of colonialism and its lessons have passed down through future generations.

Will I enjoy this book?

Absolutely, if you’re a historical fiction fan. Stick with this book past the first couple of chapters though ; it takes a while to get going (as many great stories tend to).

Rating: 5/5