After her father’s death, Sister Mary Thomas leaves her convent to reclaim the family farm in the Irish village of Kildawree. In 1950, her status as ex-nun scandalizes the women of the village, but her beauty, strength, willfulness and wit attract every eligible man—and a few who shouldn’t be so available. Mary has no interest in marrying but decides to have a child. As the town tries to identify the father, we see what attracts them to this passionate Irish woman, particularly as she appears to the parish priest. He knows her attractions, does his best by her, and then suffers the consequences of his light hand and unjudging clerical spirit. Written with Keady’s characteristic charm and graceful humor, Mary McGreevy is a moving, funny, and forceful novel of the heart.

About Walter Keady

Walter Keady grew up on a farm in the west of Ireland. He worked in the Irish Civil Service, served as a Catholic missionary priest in Brazil, and had a career as a software engineer with IBM. He is the author of two previous novels, Celibates and Other Lovers, and Mary McGreevy. He lives with his wife, Patricia, in New York's Hudson Valley.