EILEEN BATERSBY reveals her favourite 25 works of fiction of 2009

EILEEN BATERSBY , Literary Correspondent, reveals her favourite 25 works of fiction of 2009 - well 26 actually - as well as her favourite non-fiction

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/weekend/2009/1219/1224260949596.html

Serena by Ron Rash

The year is 1929, and newly-weds George and Serena Pemberton arrive from Boston in the North Carolina mountains to create a timber empire. Serena is new to the mountains - but she soon shows herself the equal of any worker, overseeing crews, hunting rattlesnakes, even saving her husband's life in the wilderness. Yet she also learns that she will never bear a child.

Serena's discovery will set in motion a course of events that will change the lives of everyone in this remote community. As the Pembertons' intense, passionate marriage starts to unravel, this riveting story of love, passion and revenge moves toward its shocking reckoning.

Merry Christmas

Cathedral by the Sea by Ildefonso Falcones

Set in Barcelona during the Middle Ages, this novel explores issues such as class, race, the crusades and medieval trade. It reminds me of Emberto Eco's The Name of the Rose, it evokes the atmosphere of medieval Barcelona in a vivid way.

top 10 books of the last ten years

The Irish Times did a review of the ten most signifigant books of the last 10 years yesterday, which includes some really great reads such as No Logo by Naomi Klein, The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen and Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser.

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/features/2009/1202/1224259882847.html