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5th out of 21 books
—
79 voters
Quentins
by
Maeve Binchy
Is it possible to tell the story of a generation and a city through the history of a restaurant?
Ella Brady thinks so. She wants to film a documentary about Quentins that will capture the spirit of Dublin from the 1970s to the present day. And Quentins has a thousand stories to tell: tales of love, of betrayal, of revenge; of times when it looked ready for success and time...more
Ella Brady thinks so. She wants to film a documentary about Quentins that will capture the spirit of Dublin from the 1970s to the present day. And Quentins has a thousand stories to tell: tales of love, of betrayal, of revenge; of times when it looked ready for success and time...more
Paperback, 403 pages
Published
2003
by Orion
(first published 2002)
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Set in contemporary Dublin, Quentins tells the story of Ella Brady, a young woman who has fallen for The Wrong Man. The tale is both universal and timeless, but this time around there is the added elements of tax fraud, hiding out in Spain and The Mystery of the Laptop Computer. While great parts of this book are highly improbable, unrealistic and unnecessary, this book was a really great read. It isn’t the main characters that make it work, but the side characters (there are many, and some from...more
I have mixed feelings about this one. There is a huge array of characters here, most of which are terrific. Unfortunately, though, the one whose story frames the rest is a complete nit. If only we could avoid her, this book would be beautiful!
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How delightful! These characters have connections (or several of them) with the characters in Evening Class, which I read earlier this year. It took me a while to click, but I did eventually, even before the really obvious Signora.
I’ve enjoyed this novel just as much as I enjoyed the other. I love her people and I love the way she winds their stories around. This one revolves round a busy restaurant called Quentins, bringing our key character, Ella Brady, into its environs really beautifully as...more
I’ve enjoyed this novel just as much as I enjoyed the other. I love her people and I love the way she winds their stories around. This one revolves round a busy restaurant called Quentins, bringing our key character, Ella Brady, into its environs really beautifully as...more
1 like · like · see review
Jun 30, 2009
Laurie
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Modern Ireland fans
This is my first Maeve Binchy book and I was pretty pleased for the most part. I was finally drawn to her because of my affinity for all things Irish.
There are enough stories and fully-fleshed out characters to keep one entertained throughout. However, the main character, Ella, does such a disservice to womankind as I have ever met in literature. Trust me though, the larger story that unfolds (most of which she doesn't appear in) is a real gem. I definitely would read another Binchy book that s...more
There are enough stories and fully-fleshed out characters to keep one entertained throughout. However, the main character, Ella, does such a disservice to womankind as I have ever met in literature. Trust me though, the larger story that unfolds (most of which she doesn't appear in) is a real gem. I definitely would read another Binchy book that s...more
This is the story of Ella Brady of Dublin and her friends and family.
In her early 20’s Ella falls in love with a married 41 year old man who tells her up front that he is married in time he betrays her and breaks her heart.
Along the way we get to meet Deirdre, her friend from school, Nick, her friend from Uni and his colleague Sandy. We meet Quentin Barry who owns Quentin’s Restaurant, Patrick & Brenda Brennan who manage Quentin’s for him. We also meet Patrick’s brother Blouse and his wife M...more
In her early 20’s Ella falls in love with a married 41 year old man who tells her up front that he is married in time he betrays her and breaks her heart.
Along the way we get to meet Deirdre, her friend from school, Nick, her friend from Uni and his colleague Sandy. We meet Quentin Barry who owns Quentin’s Restaurant, Patrick & Brenda Brennan who manage Quentin’s for him. We also meet Patrick’s brother Blouse and his wife M...more
Is it possible to tell the story of a generation and a city through the history of a restaurant? Ella Brady thinks so. She wants to film a documentary abuot Quentins that will capture the spirit of Dublin from the 1970s to the present day. After all the restaurant saw the people of a city become more confident in everything from their lifestyles to the food that they chose to eat. And Quentins has a thousand stories to tell: tales of love, of betrayal, of revenge, of times when it looked ready f...more
Readers!! My first Maeve Binchy book which I read and i must say I love it...i truly loved the essence of Dublin, the simplicity of the small town where everyone knows everyone and the betrayal by the hero... I have to confess, the little cafe - Quentins is somewhat of a hub where life comes together. There are tiny stories within this entire novel which is nice, yet sometimes a bit unwanted. What I loved was the super racy end which had me gripping the book tightly, wondering what path would sh...more
After a devastating end to an affair with a married man, Ella quits her job and begins to work at Quentins to help out her family. She throws herself into creating a documentary of the restaurant to get over her heartbreak. We also follow Brenda and Patrick (owners of Quentins), Ella's friends, and many others who had been in contact in with the restaurant in one way or the other. The stories weave into each other in unexpected ways creating a heartwarming story.
If you are a fan of Maeve Binchy,...more
If you are a fan of Maeve Binchy,...more
Ella Brady has a nice, if quiet, life as a schoolteacher when she meets Don Richardson. She knows he is married, but falls hard for him and is soon having an affair with him. She completely trusts him, believing everything he tells her, and is shocked when he flees Ireland after having conned several people out of their money, including many of Ella's friends and her own father. Shamed, Ella quits teaching and takes on several part time jobs to help her family financially. One job she takes on i...more
Pas mal, mais pas le meilleur roman de cette auteure, moins prenant que d'autres. L'histoire s'interrompt deux fois pour une série de courts chapitres où interviennent des personnages qui ne figurent pas dans le reste du livre. Lorsque j'ai lu la première de ces nouvelles, j'ai dû retourner en arrière pour voir qui étaient ces gens. J'avais lâché le livre quelques jours et je me disais que j'avais dû en oublier des bouts. Mais j'ai fini par comprendre que ça n'avait pas grand-chose à voir avec l...more
I’ve read other Maeve Binchy books and enjoyed them, so I kept giving this book chances to redeem itself; it never did. The story revolves around Ella Brady, a seemingly intelligent young woman with certain standards and values, who in chapter two starts doing stupid and illogical things. It was incredibly annoying. For example (spoiler alert), she sees nothing wrong with having an affair with a married man (after lambasting her friend for a similar indiscretion) and lying to her parents about i...more
I think this is probably why I am not huge on fiction. I had to do a lot of skipping to get to the end of this book and that's not usually my style. Again, I'm not a big fiction reader, so that may have been my real issue here. However, when your protagonist is hard to like, I have a hard time getting into the book. Ella is a spoiled, self centered person whom we're suppossed to sympathize with. I just don't feel it. She's painted as "perfect" yet she's having an affair with a married man. We're...more
Maeve Binchy makes you feel right at home with her books. She burrows in a softness and coziness right as the first chapter opens. But while I like this one much better than "circle of friends", I do have a hard time with Maeve Binchy's stories. For what they are, I think they are too long. I love the Irish culture that is written in and the array of characters. Except, for a novel, its much to long. For short stories, Maeve Binchy would be stellar. But its just really difficult for me to keep r...more
Jan 17, 2013
Sue
added it
Every table at Quentins Restaurant has a thousand stories to tell: tales of love, betrayal and revenge. Ella Brady wants to make a documentary about the renowned Dublin restaurant that has captured the spirit of a generation and a city in the years it has been open. In Maeve Binchy's magical QUENTINS you will meet new friends and old: the twins from SCARLET FEATHER, the Signora from EVENING CLASS, Ria from TARA ROAD - and a host of fresh faces. There is Monica, the ever-cheerful Australian waitr...more
Interesting style of writing multiple subplot chapters interspersed with what would be seen as the main plot.. a young woman choosing her own path in spite of common sense and all that's wisdom in relationships and bearing greater consequences than even that wisdom could have foretold..
Ella accepts the invitation and advances of a handsome, charming, well known financier, married with children.. what she perceives as an idyllic life with the man of her dreams is soon revealed to be anything othe...more
Ella accepts the invitation and advances of a handsome, charming, well known financier, married with children.. what she perceives as an idyllic life with the man of her dreams is soon revealed to be anything othe...more
There are a lot of characters in this book! It is interesting to see how they all come together. (Sometimes I would get confused at who belonged to who and how they were connected, etc.) I liked how it was all woven into the restaurant, Quentins. Since I am fond of Ireland, food and people I enjoyed the book. At times it seemed a bit predictable but maybe just because I have read multiple Maeve Binchy books. For example, why is it that in every book I have read there is at least one affair going...more
Binchy's latest book incorporates a lot of characters from previous books. It takes place at the Quentin's restaurant (mainly) on Tara Road. I have read all the previous books and loved "seeing" old characters again. It tells the story of a new character, Ella, and being scorned by a lover and how that affects her family and ultimately her little community as she sets out on a venture to produce a film (with two other friends) about the successful restaurant, Quentins, as a diversion to her sadn...more
I like the way she weaves a tale. There are stories within stories, and they all come together realistically.
The reading flows. There was just one bit that appeared to be mixed up. The PR firm wanted a mollusk banquet, and Patrick knew it. Then Patrick, who has been in the hospital this entire time, and therefore apart from the others, calls the client asking why he wanted shellfish. When he heard the reason, he told the client they wanted mollusks, not shellfish. It appears that the author forg...more
The reading flows. There was just one bit that appeared to be mixed up. The PR firm wanted a mollusk banquet, and Patrick knew it. Then Patrick, who has been in the hospital this entire time, and therefore apart from the others, calls the client asking why he wanted shellfish. When he heard the reason, he told the client they wanted mollusks, not shellfish. It appears that the author forg...more
After listening to Tilly Bagshawe's "Adored" on audio CD, I was beginning to despair for the chick lit genre - - that is, until I stumbled on to Quentins. Now this was more like it! Even though abridged, Maeve Binchy's story was captivating and great fun to listen to on audio CD. The narrator was excellent, altering her voice only slightly to let you know who you were hearing speak. The "bad guy" was truly evil, but amazingly, was evil without the constant use of 4-letter words sprinkled through...more
Compared to the other books by the author I've read this one just didn't live up to the same standard as the others. In fact, it was a bit of a flop compared to the others.
The main storyline involving Ella was almost cringe worthy, I hated the entire plot line with her and everything to do with her. The story behind the restaurant and the characters wrapped in it, would have been a lot stronger if Ella had never appeared. Even the character herself was bad compared to what I've read by the auth...more
The main storyline involving Ella was almost cringe worthy, I hated the entire plot line with her and everything to do with her. The story behind the restaurant and the characters wrapped in it, would have been a lot stronger if Ella had never appeared. Even the character herself was bad compared to what I've read by the auth...more
Not my favorite of Maeve Binchy, but there is something to be said about her writing. Even though I wasn't loving the main character or the story, I still had to find out what happened next and I read it fairly quickly.
Spoiler Alert!!! This will be a summary of the book, so don't read if you plan on reading this one...
This is the story of Ella Brady, who falls in love with charming (but married!!!) Don Richardson. Don is a fraudulent investment broker and many people in Dublin entrust him with t...more
Spoiler Alert!!! This will be a summary of the book, so don't read if you plan on reading this one...
This is the story of Ella Brady, who falls in love with charming (but married!!!) Don Richardson. Don is a fraudulent investment broker and many people in Dublin entrust him with t...more
At first I did not like Quentins. The characters didn't seem to have much depth and the story was a little boring. I have a really hard time relating to main characters that enter into extramarital affairs. Maybe that was my main issue. But then around page 150 it picked up and I started to love/hate characters where appropriate :-) I finally began to like and care about the main character, Ella, whom I hated at the beginning of the novel.
For the most part I enjoyed the short stories offered bet...more
For the most part I enjoyed the short stories offered bet...more
This one started off by seeming a bit cliched but it definitely picked up after Ron disappeared and she began to relate more to the others around her. Adversity bringing out the best but also dragging people down, the second often sees shown in other Irish literature, fits well. The best so far has been the stories of Quentin's clients, a kind of gift that shows the direction and themes of how powerful hope can be to make change. I wish it were truer in this world. It's a good read, if not the t...more
I picked up this book after Maeve Binchy's death and after hearing that she was considered the JK Rowlingof Ireland. Kaylen and Bill were vacationing in Ireland so it seemed like good karma; Maeve wrote many books (like Debbie Macomber) so there were many titles to choose from... Quentins sounded interesting "a story of generations told through the history of a restaurant" ..... this book was not my cup of tea! After muddling through girl is swept off her feet by a handsome, rich man that turns...more
I just returned from a trip to Ireland, and it has been raining cats and dogs, which brought me to choose this novel, which I somehow missed when it was first published.
Set in Dublin (with a side trip to the US), filled with larger than life characters and an engaging plot, “Quentins” is a satisfying read. Working to dispel stereotypes about the Irish, Binchy creates hardworking, motivated characters. Family and friendship are central to characters’ values. Few have been spared hardship, and mos...more
Set in Dublin (with a side trip to the US), filled with larger than life characters and an engaging plot, “Quentins” is a satisfying read. Working to dispel stereotypes about the Irish, Binchy creates hardworking, motivated characters. Family and friendship are central to characters’ values. Few have been spared hardship, and mos...more
What ages would I recommend it too? – Sixteen and up.
Length? – Several day’s read.
Characters? – Memorable, several characters.
Setting? – Ireland 1990's.
Written approximately? – 2002.
Does the story leave questions in the readers mind? – Ready to read more.
Any issues the author (or a more recent publisher) should cover? No.
Short storyline:
Notes for the reader: This story brings in characters from several of Maeve Binchy's other novels. However, some of the timeframes seem off. In one place she me...more
Length? – Several day’s read.
Characters? – Memorable, several characters.
Setting? – Ireland 1990's.
Written approximately? – 2002.
Does the story leave questions in the readers mind? – Ready to read more.
Any issues the author (or a more recent publisher) should cover? No.
Short storyline:
Notes for the reader: This story brings in characters from several of Maeve Binchy's other novels. However, some of the timeframes seem off. In one place she me...more
Set in Dublin, Ireland, Quentins is a story of love, loss, hope and sorrow -- with a few laughs thrown in as well. Ella Brady, only child of Tim and Barbara Brady, moves into her own apartment, meets a man who is married, but uses the old line of we're separated, no love there and Ella falls head over heels in love with him. In the course of time, she discovers that he is not only a fraud, but is defrauding others right and left with his advice on investments and his willingness to take money to...more
I thought this was a good book. It made for a nice summer read. The characters were delightful, although at times I shook my head at the choices the main character made, however as a young adult it is to be expected that she would get swept up in her emotions as she led a very sheltered childhood.
The setting of Quentins restaurant was a great backdrop to the stories of the people who work and eat there. I think the little "vingettes" within the book recounting the lives of the patrons and employ...more
The setting of Quentins restaurant was a great backdrop to the stories of the people who work and eat there. I think the little "vingettes" within the book recounting the lives of the patrons and employ...more
This book killed my unqualified love of Binchy books.
Stopped reading at page 37, the story was going the way of Circle of Friends. Ella is the 'good' one because she has only slept with a few men by her early 20's and she begins a major romance with a married man. Her parents have a disfunctional relationship with her and each other and offer no moral guidance. Her best friend constantly has one night stands.
Becoming a nun referenced as the worst thing that could happen to a woman (no sex). Thi...more
Stopped reading at page 37, the story was going the way of Circle of Friends. Ella is the 'good' one because she has only slept with a few men by her early 20's and she begins a major romance with a married man. Her parents have a disfunctional relationship with her and each other and offer no moral guidance. Her best friend constantly has one night stands.
Becoming a nun referenced as the worst thing that could happen to a woman (no sex). Thi...more
Maeve Binchy is a favorite of mine and I enjoyed this book with its meandering, character-filled storyline. I do have to say that the "heroine" (I use the term very lightly) deserved a slap on more than one occasion. Her misplaced loyalty to her slimy, married "love" became so annoying that I skipped sections describing it. What an insult to intelligent, thinking women! Since she is supposedly the main character in this tale that may seem like a huge reason to not read it. But no...there is so m...more
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| 1st Book! | 13 | 52 | Jan 19, 2013 01:14pm |
Maeve Binchy was born in Dalkey, County Dublin and came to fame first as London Correspondent for the Irish Times. Her first novel, Light a Penny Candle, made her famous in the UK and USA. She passed away on July 30, 2012, at the age of 72.
More about Maeve Binchy...
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